Antietam

The battle of Antietam was the bloodiest day of the civil war. 2,108 Union soldiers died that day, and 10,293 more were missing. In comparison to the bloodiest battle for the US in World War I, the losses of the Union at Antietam were double those of the losses at D-Day. The total of the Union and the Confederate losses was at least nine times the amount lost at D-Day. Confederates lost less men, 10,318 to be exact, Robert E. Lee lost a quarter of his army. At Antietam, Lee failed at his attempt to infiltrate the Union and lost any support he could have gained from Europe if he had succeeded. The War of 1812's casualties, the Mexican War's casualties, and the Spanish-American war's casualties, if combined and doubled, would equal the casualties of the one day in Sharpsburg. The First Texas Infantry lost 82% of its men in a cornfield in those 12-hours in Sharpsburg. This is the highest casualty rate in any Confederate regiment in one battle. This battle led to Lincoln creating the Emancipation Proclamation which freed slaves in the Confederate states and allowed slaves to fight in battle.

Picture from:  Wikipedia