Which executive order issued by Abraham Lincoln declared the freedom of slaves in rebelling states?

Which executive order issued by Abraham Lincoln declared the freedom of slaves in rebelling states?

• A. Emancipation Proclamation
• B. Gettysburg Address
• C. Emancipation Act
• D. Civil Rights Act

Answer: (A)

The main idea is how Lincoln used his presidential powers during the Civil War to change the war’s purpose by targeting slavery. The Emancipation Proclamation was issued as a military measure and declared that enslaved people in states in rebellion against the United States were freed. It redefined the conflict as a fight not only over preserving the Union but also ending slavery, and it allowed Black soldiers to join the Union Army, which strengthened the Union war effort. It didn’t free enslaved people in border states or areas already under Union control, and it wasn’t a nationwide law—that would come later with the Thirteenth Amendment. The other options don’t fit because they refer to a speech, a non-existent act, or postwar legislation, none of which are executive orders that proclaimed freedom for enslaved people.

The main idea is how Lincoln used his presidential powers during the Civil War to change the war’s purpose by targeting slavery. The Emancipation Proclamation was issued as a military measure and declared that enslaved people in states in rebellion against the United States were freed. It redefined the conflict as a fight not only over preserving the Union but also ending slavery, and it allowed Black soldiers to join the Union Army, which strengthened the Union war effort. It didn’t free enslaved people in border states or areas already under Union control, and it wasn’t a nationwide law—that would come later with the Thirteenth Amendment. The other options don’t fit because they refer to a speech, a non-existent act, or postwar legislation, none of which are executive orders that proclaimed freedom for enslaved people.