(A) It convinced the South that they could win the war.
(B) It convinced President Lincoln to issue the Emancipation Proclamation.
(C) It forced Robert E. Lee to evacuate Georgia.
(D) ** It left a path of destruction from Atlanta to Savannah that crippled the Confederacy.
EXPLANATIONS BELOW
Concept note-1: -His forces followed a “scorched earth” policy, destroying military targets as well as industry, infrastructure, and civilian property, disrupting the Confederacy’s economy and transportation networks. The operation debilitated the Confederacy and helped lead to its eventual surrender.
Concept note-2: -Sherman’s march frightened and appalled Southerners. It hurt morale, for civilians had believed the Confederacy could protect the home front. Sherman had terrorized the countryside; his men had destroyed all sources of food and forage and had left behind a hungry and demoralized people.
Concept note-3: -The purpose of Sherman’s March to the Sea was to frighten Georgia’s civilian population into abandoning the Confederate cause. Sherman’s soldiers did not destroy any of the towns in their path, but they stole food and livestock and burned the houses and barns of people who tried to fight back.
Concept note-4: -As late as 1920, agricultural investment in Southern counties in the 10-mile-wide path of devastation lagged behind investment in counties that were spared. In the fall of 1864, General William Tecumseh Sherman wrought havoc on the economy of the Confederacy with his march to the sea through Georgia and the Carolinas.