What did the Emancipation Proclamation do?

Question 95 of 128 · The 1800s · also on the 2008 test (question 76)

Accepted answers

Freed the slaves
Freed slaves in the Confederacy
Freed slaves in the Confederate states
Freed slaves in most Southern states

Explanation

The Emancipation Proclamation was an order by President Lincoln in 1863 that freed slaves in the Confederate (Southern) states. It did not free slaves in the border states that stayed in the Union.

Source: USCIS 2025 Civics Test — 128 Questions and Answers (PDF).

Last verified against USCIS on 2026-08-25.