When the war began, Lincoln believed most southerners did not support secession, therefore could be convinced to come back into the Union. By the summer of 1862 he realized that he had underestimated the civilian support in the South. Following the failure of the Peninsular Campaign in the summer of 1862 and after the Union victory at Antietam Lincoln officially shifted his war policy from “conciliatory” to a “hard war” policy. Explain Lincoln’s conciliatory policy. Who was the intended target? Explain Lincoln’s hard war policy. Who was the intended target? How did Emancipation fit into his policy?
