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1. Defend Maryland: Lee hoped his invasion of Maryland would draw the Union Army out of Washington D.C. thereby securing the Confederate Captital Richmond, VA from invasion by the Union.
2. Encouragement for European Powers: Lee believed successfully conducting campaigns into the North would convince Britian and/or France to recognize Southern Independence and possibly offer direct support to the Confederate States of America.
3. Revive Southern Morale: Lee's invasion aimed to boost the Confederate troops' morale and rally new Southern men to the Confederate cause.
4. Seek decisive battle: After Lee's victory at the Second Battle of Bull Run, Lee sought to draw the Army of the Potomac into an open battle on terrain of the Confederate's choosing. The victory would strengthen the Confederate position and enable them to negotiate a successful end to the war on favorable terms.
The Battle of Antietam was the result of Lee's invasion into Maryland and subsequent clashes between his army and the Army of the Potomac:
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The battle took place on September 17, 1862, near Sharpsburg, Maryland, and was one of the bloodiest single-day battles in American history.
The Union and Confederate armies fought each other to a standstill, and Lee was forced to retreat back into Virginia.
Though tactically inconclusive, the battle had several significant consequences:
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* Stopped Confederate Incursion: The Battle of Antietam effectively halted Lee's invasion into the North and secured Washington, D.C., from potential attack.
* Union Emancipation Proclamation: Lincoln took the opportunity to issue the Emancipation Proclamation on September 22, 1862, declaring freedom for all enslaved African Americans in the Confederate States.
* Foreign Intervention Dissuade: The Union victory convinced European powers that a Confederate victory was unlikely, deterring them from intervening in the war on Confederacy's behalf.