John Pope was transferred back West to suppress the Indian uprising in Minnesota. The first Federal income tax took effect. Jefferson Davis and Robert E. Lee decided to take the fight to the North, leading to the most terrible battle of the war to date. The war’s scope was radically changed, which threatened to factionalize the Republican Party in the North.
A vicious fight in driving rain ends the Second Bull Run campaign with John Pope’s Federal Army of Virginia still intact but thoroughly defeated by Robert E. Lee’s Confederate Army of Northern Virginia.
The Federal armies outside Washington suffer from demoralization following military failure, with many blaming George B. McClellan for not doing enough to help in the crisis.
With the Federals badly demoralized in and around Washington, Abraham Lincoln reluctantly restores George B. McClellan to overall command.
The Heart of Kentucky Is with the South
The Confederate incursion into Kentucky continues, with Edmund Kirby Smith’s forces taking Lexington and the state capital of Frankfort.
Robert E. Lee’s Confederate Army of Northern Virginia begins crossing the Potomac River into Maryland to take the war to the North for the first time.
The End of the Army of Virginia
John Pope’s Federal Army of Virginia is absorbed into George B. McClellan’s Army of the Potomac, and Pope is reassigned under protest.
Confederates on the Move in Mississippi
Sterling Price’s Confederates move against Iuka in northern Mississippi to threaten the flank of William S. Rosecrans’s army based at Corinth.
Robert E. Lee tries to garner support for his Confederate army from the people of Maryland, while George B. McClellan’s Federals try to track him down.
Maryland: Northerners Start Panicking
The Confederates resume their advance through Maryland as panic begins to spread through southern Pennsylvania.
Braxton Bragg’s Confederate army enters Kentucky as thousands of men volunteers to stop the Confederates from crossing the Ohio River and invading the North.
Lincoln Ponders Colonization and Emancipation
Abraham Lincoln approves a contract to deport slaves to Central America as pressure increases for him to order emancipation.
A Crisis of Confidence in Maryland
George B. McClellan begins moving his Federal army in earnest against the Confederates in Maryland, as the northern public grow increasingly impatient with the Lincoln administration’s handling of the war.
Robert E. Lee’s Confederates are divided into multiple sections as Federals entering Frederick, Maryland, discover a document that threatens to destroy them.
A portion of Robert E. Lee’s Confederate army defends key mountain passes in Maryland against George B. McClellan’s Federals.
Confederates Descend on Harpers Ferry
Three Confederate forces converge on the Federal garrison at Harpers Ferry, at the strategic confluence of the Potomac and Shenandoah rivers.
As part of Robert E. Lee’s Confederate army moves through Maryland, another part under Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson forces the largest Federal surrender of the war.
Maryland: The Armies Gather at Sharpsburg
Robert E. Lee concentrates his Confederate Army of Northern Virginia near Sharpsburg as George B. McClellan’s Federal Army of the Potomac approaches.
Robert E. Lee hastily concentrates his Confederate army at Sharpsburg, Maryland, as George B. McClellan’s Federals stand ready to attack.
The bloodiest day in American history takes place as the armies of Robert E. Lee and George B. McClellan fight to a standoff near Sharpsburg, Maryland, along Antietam Creek.
Braxton Bragg’s Confederate army captures a Federal garrison in Kentucky after a unique gesture of chivalry.
Robert E. Lee’s Confederates make a final stand against George B. McClellan’s Federal army before Lee decides to withdraw from Maryland and return to Virginia.
Greater Exertions in Behalf of Their Country
With Confederate forces operating in Maryland and Kentucky, the third prong of the overall Confederate offensive begins moving in Mississippi.
Federal forces attack Confederates in northern Mississippi but cannot prevent them from escaping to join with another force.
Robert E. Lee’s Confederates withdraw from Maryland as George B. McClellan proclaims a complete Federal victory in the Maryland campaign.
Federal forces retake Iuka, Mississippi, following the recent battle there, and two Confederate armies join forces in an effort to retake the vital railroad city of Corinth.
Calling Upon Him to Keep His Word
Following the Federal victory at the Battle of Antietam, Abraham Lincoln decides to follow through with a promise he had made to himself.
The Preliminary Emancipation Proclamation
Abraham Lincoln issues his decree stating “that all persons held as slaves” within rebellious areas “are, and henceforward shall be free” if those areas do not submit to Federal authority by January 1.
Last Updated: 9/22/2022