Battle of Antietam

Battle of Antietam, important battle of the American Civil War. About 50,000 Confederate troops led by General Robert E. Lee attempted an invasion of the North. They were intercepted on September 17, 1862, at Antietam Creek near Sharpsburg, Maryland, by a Union army of 70,000 men under the command of General George Brinton McClellan. In the ensuing action, the Union army suffered about 12,000 casualties, including 2,108 killed. Lee lost some 25 per cent of his force: at least 2,700 Confederate soldiers were killed, and about 10,000 were wounded or missing. Lee's army retreated across the Potomac River the next day, making the outcome technically a Union victory and providing the positive news that President Abraham Lincoln felt was necessary before issuing a preliminary Emancipation Proclamation. The area was designated a national battlefield site in 1890.