Legislation1862
Preliminary Emancipation Proclamation Issued
President Abraham Lincoln issued the preliminary Emancipation Proclamation, declaring that all enslaved people in states still in rebellion on January 1, 1863 would be "thenceforward, and forever free." The proclamation gave Confederate states 100 days to cease their rebellion.
Why It Matters
The preliminary Emancipation Proclamation signaled a fundamental shift in the purpose of the Civil War from preserving the Union to ending slavery, transforming the moral character of the conflict.