SNIP
Antietam was a masterpiece of defense. That's accurate if you look only at the battlefield," Frye said. "But if you consider the consequences of Antietam and Lee's failure to gain or earn time for Confederate independence, then perhaps Antietam should be viewed as Lee's greatest mistake."
One of the main reasons Lee made his first invastion onto northern soil on Sept. 4, 1862, was to gain time for Confederate independence, Frye said.
Here's why:
Politics - It was a congressional election year. The Democrats, who favored peace, were a minority in both the Senate and House. By maintaining a Confederate presence on northern soil, the Democrats may have gained enough votes to oust the Republican majority in the House and push for an end to the war.
Diplomatic recognition - At no time during the Civil War were England and France closer to recognizing the Confederacy as an independent nation than in the fall of 1862. By keeping a presence in the North, Lee could have proved to the two world powers that the Confedercy was determined to become its own country. Diplomatic recognition would likely have brought foreign aid to the South and doomed President Lincoln's goal to reunite the country.
Harvest - September and October marked the biggest harvest months in the Shenandoah Valley. Maintaining an army in the North would prevent Union armies from occupying Virginia, allowing the farmers to gather their harvest to feed the Confederate during the winter and spring of 1863.
Fear - The invasion into Maryland frightened many Northerners since it brought the war into their front yards. Northerners knew that their personal property was now at risk and that they could suffer the consequences of war. "In wartime, fear is the greatest weapon," Frye said.
Lincoln administration - Until now, the war effort had not received unanimous support in the North. The will of the people to continue the war was tenuous. "By invading the North, Lee allowed the people of the North to further question and doubt the Lincoln adminstration's capability to bring victory," Frye said.
Relieve Virginia of enemy occupation - Virginia had been ocupied by Union forces since the spring of 1861. By invading the North, Lee was able to shift the Union's strategy from invading the South to defending the North. "This relieved Virginia of virtually all Union soldiers on Old Dominion soil," he said.
Frye said Lee needed time to accomplish all six objectives, something he lost when he chose to fight.
"None of these objectives were accomplished when Lee decided to fight at Antietam," Frye said.
The Sept. 17, 1862, battle ended the invasion and later swayed the election in the House to the Republicans since it was seen as a Union victory.
Union troops, in pursuit of a retreating Lee, occupied Virginia in October 1862. That made it harder for local farmers to harvest and also dissipated the fear of Northerners who worried about the invasion.
Lincoln seized the moment to issue the preliminary Emancipation Proclamation, which injected slavery into the war as an offical government position.
England and France never seriously considered recognizing the South after Antietam, primarily because they didn't want to get involved in the moral issue of slavery.
When Lee left Maryland just 14 days after crossing the Potomac, he lost valuable time he needed for the Confederacy to survive, Frye said.
Time is usually on the side of the underdog.
SNIP
I wonder if the Presidents who use Camp David have visited the battlefield, which is in the same area?