A Complex Story
Why was the Emancipation Proclamation so significant?
Most historians agree that the Emancipation Proclamation was a landmark moment in American history. Abraham Lincoln supposedly said, upon issuing it as an executive order on January 1, 1863, “If my name ever goes into history it will be for this act, and my whole soul is in it.”
Despite the significance of this famous document in helping to establish America as a “land of the free,” analyzing it reveals a much more complex and detailed story. As historian David Blight has noted, “…the traditional, one might even say legendary, narrative…is that Abraham Lincoln one day freed the slaves and that all across the South slaves were gathered together and told about this proclamation and from that day forward they were free, which is, of course, nonsense.”
Write down what you already know about the Emancipation Proclamation. Then watch the video. As you watch, note any new information you learn about how the Emancipation Proclamation came to be issued.
| Keyboard Shortcut | Action |
|---|---|
| Space | Pause/Play video playback |
| Enter | Pause/Play video playback |
| m | Mute/Unmute video volume |
| Up and Down arrows | Increase and decrease volume by 10% |
| Right and Left arrows | Seek forward or backward by 5 seconds |
| 0-9 | Fast seek to x% of the video. |
| f | Enter or exit fullscreen. (Note: To exit fullscreen in flash press the Esc key. |
| c | Press c to toggle captions on or off |
Take Notes
What do you already know about the Emancipation Proclamation? What new information did you learn about how it came to be issued? (Click "Save" when you have finished. To see your saved or submitted work again, click "My Work" at the top of the page.)
Calderwood Writing Course: U.S. History
