The Proclamation only gave the Lincoln Administration the legal basis to free the slaves in the areas of the South that were still in rebellion on January 1, 1863. It effectively destroyed slavery as the Union armies advanced south and conquered the entire Confederacy.It must be remembered that many whites in the North also were sympathetic to slavery. Lincoln's proclamation was condemned by the South. It did not lead to a massive slave rebellion in the South, but they began to slowly escape from slavery in small groups.