| | Amid the fighting and Union failures in 1862, Lincoln also suffered a personal tragedy. Lincoln lost his beloved young son, William ("Willie"), after a brief illness that was probably caused by contaminated water in D.C. "Lincoln feels his loss very deeply," was understatement of the effect as reported by ''Harper's Weekly'', the prominent national magazine.<ref>http://www.sonofthesouth.net/leefoundation/civil-war/1862/march/death-lincolns-son-willie.htm</ref> In fact, Mrs. Lincoln mourned for a year and President Lincoln was profoundly shaken by this.<ref>http://www.mrlincolnswhitehouse.org/inside.asp?ID=18&subjectID=2</ref> Though Lincoln had little use for religion in his youth, this tragedy may have put him on a path towards faith. Even General McClellan did his best to console Lincoln about this personal tragedy. | | Amid the fighting and Union failures in 1862, Lincoln also suffered a personal tragedy. Lincoln lost his beloved young son, William ("Willie"), after a brief illness that was probably caused by contaminated water in D.C. "Lincoln feels his loss very deeply," was understatement of the effect as reported by ''Harper's Weekly'', the prominent national magazine.<ref>http://www.sonofthesouth.net/leefoundation/civil-war/1862/march/death-lincolns-son-willie.htm</ref> In fact, Mrs. Lincoln mourned for a year and President Lincoln was profoundly shaken by this.<ref>http://www.mrlincolnswhitehouse.org/inside.asp?ID=18&subjectID=2</ref> Though Lincoln had little use for religion in his youth, this tragedy may have put him on a path towards faith. Even General McClellan did his best to console Lincoln about this personal tragedy. |
| − | Back to the war: General McClellan's superb defensive skills came in handy when General Lee launched a massive invasion of northern territory (Maryland, which was also sympathetic to the Confederacy). Known as the "Battle of Antietam," this was the single bloodiest day in battle in all of American History. Savage combat for twelve hours resulted in the death, wounding or disappearance of 23,000 soldiers on September 17, 1862. The defense was successful by McClellan, and this led to President Lincoln's issuance of a preliminary version of the Emancipation Proclamation. General McClellan, however, should have pursued the retreating Confederate Army, but he failed to do so. | + | Back to the war: General McClellan's superb defensive skills came in handy when General Lee launched a massive invasion of northern territory (Maryland, which was also sympathetic to the Confederacy). Known as the "Battle of Antietam," this was the single bloodiest day in battle in all of American History. Savage combat for twelve hours resulted in the death, wounding or disappearance of 23,000 soldiers on September 17, 1862. The defense was successful by McClellan, and this led to President Lincoln's issuance of a preliminary version of the Emancipation Proclamation.<ref>http://www.nps.gov/anti/</ref> General McClellan, however, should have pursued the retreating Confederate Army, but he failed to do so. |