Abstract

The Emancipation Proclamation is arguably the cornerstone of President Abraham Lincoln’s wartime diplomacy. In Lincoln’s view, the emancipation of slaves was a military necessity for the Union. While others believed the proclamation validated the idea that slavery was the major cause of the war and that it expanded war aims to include abolition for its own sake, Lincoln remained firm that the Emancipation Proclamation was a military necessity. The declaration is significant because it shaped the outcome of the war, as well as American society and culture after the conflict.