Abraham Lincoln was an American lawyer, politician, and statesman, served as the 16th president.
Abraham Lincoln was an American lawyer, politician, and statesman who served as the 16th president of the United States from 1861 until his assassination in 1865.
In November 1860, just before the outbreak of the Civil War, self-taught lawyer, legislator, and outspoken opponent of slavery, Abraham Lincoln, was elected the 16th president of the United States. Both Lincoln's skill as a military strategist and his leadership ability were demonstrated: His Emancipation Proclamation was the first step toward abolishing slavery, and his Gettysburg Address is one of the most well-known speeches in American history.
John Wilkes Booth, a Confederate sympathizer, killed Abraham Lincoln in April 1865, as the Union was on the verge of victory. Lincoln is widely regarded as one of the greatest presidents in the history of the United States, and his assassination made him a martyr for the cause of liberty.
The Early Years of Abraham Lincoln Lincoln was born on February 12, 1809, in a one-room log cabin in Hardin County, Kentucky, to Nancy and Thomas Lincoln. In 1816, he and his family moved to southern Indiana. Due to Lincoln's constant need to work in order to provide for his family, he only attended three brief periods of formal education at local schools.
In 1830, Lincoln and his family moved to Macon County in southern Illinois. There, he got a job working on a river flatboat that took freight to New Orleans down the Mississippi River. Lincoln became involved in local politics as a supporter of the Whig Party after settling in New Salem, Illinois, where he worked as a postmaster and shopkeeper. In 1834, he was elected to the Illinois state legislature.
Lincoln, like his Whig heroes Henry Clay and Daniel Webster, was against the expansion of slavery into the territories. He also had a grand vision for the expanding United States, putting more emphasis on commerce and cities than agriculture.
Did you realize?
Abraham Lincoln and his family had a difficult time during the war. Mary Lincoln held séances in the White House in the hope of communicating with him after his young son Willie died of typhoid fever in 1862. She was emotionally fragile and widely disregarded for her frivolity and lack of spending habits, which only served to make her even more ridiculed.
Lincoln passed the bar exam in 1836 after learning the law by himself. He moved to Springfield, the newly renamed capital of the state, the following year. He continued working there as an attorney for the following few years, providing services to a variety of clients, from individual small-town residents to national railroad lines.
He married Mary Todd in 1842, a wealthy Kentucky belle who had many suitors, including Lincoln's future political rival Stephen Douglas. Four more children were born to the Lincolns, but only one of them reached adulthood: Thomas "Tad" Lincoln (1853-1871), Robert Todd Lincoln (1843–1926), Edward Baker Lincoln (1846–1850), and William Wallace Lincoln (1850–1862).
Abraham Lincoln Enters Politics Lincoln was elected to the House of Representatives of the United States in 1846, and he began serving that year. Because of his strong opposition to the Mexican-American War as a congressman, Lincoln was unpopular with many voters in Illinois. He went back to Springfield in 1849, promising not to run again.
However, he was pushed back into national politics by a series of events: The Kansas-Nebraska Act (1854), which declared that the voters of each territory had the right to decide whether the territory should be slave or free rather than the federal government, was pushed through by Douglas, a leading Democrat in Congress.
On October 16, 1854, Lincoln went before a huge group in Peoria to discuss the benefits of the Kansas-Nebraska Act with Douglas, decrying bondage and its expansion and calling the foundation an infringement of the most essential fundamentals of the Statement of Freedom.
Lincoln joined the new Republican Party in 1856, which was largely formed to oppose slavery's expansion into the territories. He then ran for the Senate again that year after unsuccessfully running for it in 1855. Lincoln gave his now-famous "house divided" speech in June. In it, he said, "This government cannot endure, permanently, half slave and half free." He drew inspiration from the Gospels.
Following that, Lincoln engaged Douglas in a series of well-known debates; Despite his defeat in the Senate race, Lincoln's performance established his national reputation.
After delivering yet another inspiring speech at the Cooper Union in New York City in the early months of 1860, Lincoln's profile increased even further. In May of that year, Republicans chose Lincoln to be their presidential candidate. They chose the rangy Illinois lawyer, who had only served one uninterrupted term in Congress, over Senator William H. Seward of New York and other powerful candidates.
Lincoln faced Douglas once more in the general election, this time representing the northern Democrats; John Bell ran for the brand-new Constitutional Union Party, while southern Democrats had chosen Kentucky's John C. Breckenridge as their candidate. Lincoln won the majority of the North and carried the Electoral College to win the White House, despite Breckenridge and Bell splitting votes in the South.
Seward, Salmon P. Chase, Edward Bates, and Edwin M. Stanton, among others, were all members of his political rivals' cabinets that he assembled to an exceptionally high standard.
The election of an antislavery northerner as the 16th president of the United States drove many southerners over the edge after years of sectional tension. Abraham Lincoln and the Civil War Seven southern states had broken away from the Union and formed the Confederate States of America by the time Lincoln took office as the sixteenth president of the United States in March 1861.
In April, Lincoln issued an order to supply the federal Fort Sumter in South Carolina with a fleet of Union ships. The Confederates opened fire on the Union fleet and fort, launching the Civil War. The Union's defeat at the Battle of Bull Run (Manassas) ended hopes of a quick victory, and Lincoln ordered 500,000 more troops as both sides prepared for a long battle.
Oklahoma: While Confederate leader Jefferson Davis was a graduate of West Point, a Mexican War hero, and a former secretary of war, Lincoln only served in the Black Hawk War (1832) for a brief and insignificant amount of time. He was a wartime leader who surprised many by learning quickly about strategy and tactics in the early years of the Civil War, as well as how to select the best commanders.
Lincoln removed General George McClellan from command after McClellan failed to pursue Robert E. Lee's retreating Confederate Army following the Union victory at Antietam in September 1862. Despite being adored by his troops, McClellan was always reluctant to advance.
Lincoln was criticized for suspending some civil liberties during the war, including the right to habeas corpus, but he thought that doing so was necessary to win the war.
Lincoln issued a preliminary Emancipation Proclamation shortly after the Battle of Antietam (Sharpsburg), which went into effect on January 1, 1863. It freed all enslaved people in rebellious states that were not under federal control, but it kept those in border states that were loyal to the Union in bondage.
Even though Lincoln once stated that his "paramount object in this struggle is to save the Union, and is not either to save or destroy slavery," he eventually came to regard emancipation as one of his greatest accomplishments and advocated for the passage of a constitutional amendment prohibiting slavery (which was eventually ratified as the 13th Amendment after he passed away in 1865).
In July 1863, the Union finally won two significant victories at the Battle of Gettysburg in Pennsylvania and Vicksburg, Mississippi. Lincoln would turn to the victor at Vicksburg, Ulysses S. Grant, as the supreme commander of the Union forces by the beginning of 1864. General George Meade missed the opportunity to deliver a decisive blow against Lee's army at Gettysburg.
Lincoln gave a 272-word speech at the Gettysburg dedication ceremony for the new national cemetery in November 1863. The Gettysburg Address, which was widely distributed, eloquently outlined the goal of the war, bringing to mind the Founding Fathers, the Declaration of Independence, and the pursuit of human equality. It became one of Lincoln's most famous speeches and one of history's most quoted speeches.
Abraham Lincoln Wins the Presidential Election in 1864: In 1864, Lincoln faced a difficult reelection battle against the Democratic nominee, former Union General George McClellan. However, Union victories in battle, particularly General William T. Sherman's capture of Atlanta in September, swung a lot of votes in Lincoln's favor. In his March 4, 1865, second inaugural address, Lincoln emphasized the need to rebuild the Union and the South: benevolent toward no one; with compassion for all
Lee surrendered to Grant on April 9 at Appomattox Court House, Virginia, as Sherman triumphantly marched northward through the Carolinas following his March to the Sea from Atlanta. On April 11, Lincoln gave a speech on the White House lawn, urging his audience to welcome the southern states back into the fold as the Union approached victory. Tragically, Lincoln would not survive to assist in the realization of his plan for Reconstruction.
The assassination of Abraham Lincoln: On April 14, 1865, the Confederate sympathizer and actor John Wilkes Booth slipped into the president's box at Ford's Theatre in Washington, D.C., shot him in the back of the head with a single bullet. Lincoln was transported to a boarding house across the street from the theater, but he lost consciousness and passed away on April 15, 1865, in the wee hours of the morning.
Lincoln was made a national martyr by his assassination. His body was transported by train from Washington, D.C., on April 21, 1865, to Springfield, Illinois, where it would be buried on May 4. In order to allow mourners to pay tribute to the deceased president, Abraham Lincoln's funeral train traveled through 180 cities and seven states.
On Lincoln's birthday today:—
alongside George Washington's birthday—is celebrated on President's Day, which is the third Monday in February.
"Nothing valuable can be lost by taking time," said Abraham Lincoln.
"I want those who know me the best to say that I always picked a thistle and planted a flower where I thought it would grow," I said.
"Whether that be wise or not, it is at least more unusual nowadays to find a man who can hold his tongue than to find one who cannot," says "I am rather inclined to silence."
"I am exceedingly anxious that this Union, the Constitution, and the liberties of the people will be maintained in accordance with the original idea for which that struggle was made, and I would be most happy indeed if I were a humble instrument in the hands of the Almighty and of this, his almost chosen people, for perpetuating the object of that great struggle,"
"This is basically a contest for the people. It is a struggle on the Union's side to keep that form and substance of government in place worldwide, whose primary goal is to improve men's conditions, remove artificial burdens from everyone's shoulders, open up opportunities for everyone to pursue, and give everyone a fair chance at life.
"Our forefathers brought forth a new nation on this continent four hundred and seven years ago, conceived in liberty and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal."
"Under God, this nation will have a new birth of freedom, and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, will never die."
Conclusion:- From 1861 until his assassination in 1865, Abraham Lincoln was an American lawyer, politician, and statesman. He was the 16th president of the United States.
What are three things that make Abraham Lincoln famous? Lincoln's significant accomplishments form the basis of his legacy: He led a political struggle and civil war that kept the Union in power, ended slavery, and gave African-Americans a chance at social and civil liberation.
When Lincoln passed away, how old was he? Finally, on April 15, 1865, at 7:22 a.m., Lincoln, 56, was pronounced dead. The body of the president was transported to the White House for an extensive autopsy by armed cavalry in a flag-draped temporary coffin.
What is it about Abraham Lincoln's fame? In 1861, Abraham Lincoln became the 16th president of the United States. In 1863, he signed the Emancipation Proclamation, which made slaves in the Confederacy free forever.
Who has ever been the greatest president? Because of his leadership during the Civil War and the abolition of slavery, Abraham Lincoln is generally considered to be the greatest president.
Which five fascinating facts about Abraham Lincoln are there? Here are ten interesting facts about Abraham Lincoln. He mostly went to school himself. Before entering politics on a national scale, Lincoln represented Illinois in the legislature for four consecutive terms. Lincoln was a "president of firsts," and his wife belonged to a wealthy family that owned slaves. Lincoln did not support abolition.
Lincoln was he wealthy or poor? One of America's most admired presidents, Abraham Lincoln was raised in poverty in Kentucky and Indiana.
Why did Lincoln get killed? Southern sympathizers believed that the Confederacy could be reestablished as the war came to an end with Lee's surrender at Appomattox on April 9 and Richmond's fall on April 3, 1865. That was John Wilkes Booth's belief and the motivation for his plan to assassinate President Abraham Lincoln.
Is the family of Lincoln still alive? Abraham Lincoln was known to have had ten children. Since Robert Todd Lincoln Beckwith, the last undisputed descendant of the president, passed away on December 24, 1985, without any known children, it is believed that the president's family has disappeared.
What made Lincoln such a genius? The genius of Lincoln's leadership Lincoln cared deeply about people and tried his best to show them. He reassured people of their individual significance by speaking in a kind and encouraging tone and by doing genuine, thoughtful things.
What was the motto of Abraham Lincoln? What did that stand for? Simply the words of Abraham Lincoln: take care of the soldier who will have to fight, his widow, and his orphan. To point out the goal that the employees of his agency are working toward, Mr. Lincoln's greatest flaw stemmed from his strength—generally a love of people and a desire not to harm them. He's always wanted to give someone another chance. With George McClellan, who led the Union Army for a few months near the start of the war, this flaw proved disastrous.
Which of Abraham Lincoln's quotes is most well-known? I'm not guaranteed to win, but I'm guaranteed to be honest. While I am not obligated to achieve success, I am obligated to live up to the light I have.