“How could Lincoln free the slaves in the Confederate states before the end of the war? He had no control over them”
Is this a serious question? Lincoln’s army was in the process of conquering the South. That’s how. He already had control over a decent portion of the rebellious territory the moment emancipation was proclaimed. Which explains why some 50,000 souls were manumitted immediately. As for the rest, their time would come.
You are trotting out a tired, specious criticism. Since the proclamation is full of the sort of compromises and legalisms that accompany all political acts, it’s easy to parse it. To understand it, you’d have to drudge through all the archaisms of its historical context, which is complicated. So I can understand people being flippant about it.
However, a cursory examination of history would inform them that Lincoln still operated under the authority of Dred Scott, and that no avenue but that open to him as commander in chief was available for action on the slavery issue. Consequently, he couldn’t do anything about slaves within the Union. History would also inform them that Lincoln did control territory in the South as of January ‘63, and that much more of the South would be conquered as the war continued. I’d expect you to know as much, but since it’s apparently slipped by you, I suggest if nothing else doing a quick google search.
2)Was the Civil War still on-going?
3)Since the South hadn't surrendered a case can be made that the EP had no effect. It was a proclamation, not a law.
Not so. The EP did not free a single slave. It wasn't meant to. The purpose of the EP was to keep the British and the French from recognizing the Confederacy.
Not only did slaves in captured areas remain slaves, but many were actually rounded up and concentrated into so-called "contraband camps" where they were pressed into unpaid labor for the Union.
"Did the Emancipation Proclamation free all the slaves in the United States? Many people think it did, but the Emancipation Proclamation did not free all the slaves in the United States and here is why. The Emancipation Proclamation didn't actually free any slaves because it related only to areas under the control of the Confederacy. The South broke away from the North, and President Lincoln couldn't make slave owners living in the Confederate states of America obey the Emancipation Proclamation. After the Civil War ended and the South became part of the United States again, the South had to obey Lincoln. The Emancipation Proclamation didn't include slaves in the border states and in some southern areas under the North's control, such as Tennessee and parts of Virginia and Louisiana. Although no slaves were actually freed by the Emancipation Proclamation in 1863, it did lead to the 13th Amendment to the Constitution. The 13th Amendment became a law on December 18, 1865, and ended slavery in all parts of the United States."
See:Here
The emancipation proclamation was a convienent way to conscript blacks into the US Army as the supply of willing Irish was runnong low. Lincoln needed more bodies to put between DC and the CSA’a Army of NoVa.