ivanj05
First Sergeant
- Joined
- Jun 8, 2015
The forays out of Virginia were a failure on more than one level. They abandoned the last scrap of claim to the moral high ground the Confederacy might have had in the eyes of the Union. Before that point there were people - potential voters! who felt that the Confederacy should be allowed to govern itself and mind its own business. After, there was no possible way that they were going to be allowed to invade Northern territory, burn Northern towns, and then just walk away. It was the best thing Lee could possibly have done for Northern morale.
I agree with you given the fact that Lee lost. It was another gamble on his part, in that if he won, the effect on Union morale could have been devastating. The flip side of that gamble was the effect a Confederate loss would have on BOTH Union and Confederate morale. And as you say, it could swing undecided folks in the North decidedly away from the Confederacy. There was a lot at stake, and Lee rarely gambled on small stakes.