What did the Emancipation Proclamation declare?

What did the Emancipation Proclamation declare?

• A. All persons held as slaves within the rebellious areas are free.
• B. All enslaved people in the United States are free.
• C. Slavery was abolished nationwide by constitutional amendment.
• D. Slavery remains legal in border states.

Answer: (A)

The Emancipation Proclamation was a wartime order that declared freedom for enslaved people in the Confederate states that were in rebellion against the United States. It did not free enslaved people in border states or in areas already under Union control, and it was not a constitutional amendment. Its influence was to redefine the war’s purpose and to allow Black soldiers to enlist, setting the stage for later nationwide abolition with the 13th Amendment. This is why the statement about enslaved people within the rebellious areas being freed best captures what the proclamation actually proclaimed.

The Emancipation Proclamation was a wartime order that declared freedom for enslaved people in the Confederate states that were in rebellion against the United States. It did not free enslaved people in border states or in areas already under Union control, and it was not a constitutional amendment. Its influence was to redefine the war’s purpose and to allow Black soldiers to enlist, setting the stage for later nationwide abolition with the 13th Amendment. This is why the statement about enslaved people within the rebellious areas being freed best captures what the proclamation actually proclaimed.