[BroJoeK]

"BroJoeK, check out the following. You can see my previous post here for context."

Hmmmm... is the question here Union Army desertions following Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation?
Is it being alleged that desertions increased following the Emancipation Proclamation?

Here's what we know about Union Army desertions:

1. 1861 through 1862 -- 180,000 Union Army desertions before the Emancipation Proclamation.

2. 1863 through 1865 -- 150,000 Union Army desertions after the Emancipation Proclamation.

3. Total = 330,000 desertions or roughly 15% of total Union forces.

4. Official Union records say desertions totaled only 200,000 (8%) -- so what was the difference?
   It's in the definition of "desertion", meaning many (>1/3) "deserters" eventually returned to their units and whether those were counted as "deserters" explains the difference between historians' 330,000 versus the official 200,000.

The percentage of Confederate army desertions is roughly the same = 10% or 103,000 though some historians say it should be much higher, maybe 1/3, but again, how do we define the word "desertion"?

Regardless, I can't find any evidence of increased Union (or Confederate) desertions resulting from Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation.

[central_va]

In the last few months of the ware CSA “desertions” were actually NoVa soldiers going back to GA and SC to try to stop the carnage.