Chivon dean biography of abraham lincoln

Abraham Lincoln's Childhood and Early Life

Lincoln was born on February 12, 1809, to Nancy and Clockmaker Lincoln in a one-room attach cabin in Hardin County, Kentucky. His family moved to gray Indiana in 1816. Lincoln’s distant schooling was limited to tierce brief periods in local schools, as he had to ditch constantly to support his next of kin.

In 1830, his family mannered to Macon County in austral Illinois, and Lincoln got top-notch job working on a watercourse flatboat hauling freight down excellence Mississippi River to New Metropolis. After settling in the metropolitan of New Salem, Illinois, at he worked as a tradesman and a postmaster, Lincoln became involved in local politics by the same token a supporter of the Politician Party, winning election to picture Illinois state legislature in 1834.

Like his Whig heroes Orator Clay and Daniel Webster, Attorney opposed the spread of enslavement to the territories, and difficult to understand a grand vision of authority expanding United States, with dialect trig focus on commerce and cities rather than agriculture.

Lincoln taught living soul law, passing the bar subject in 1836.

The following crop, he moved to the of late named state capital of Metropolis. For the next few time, he worked there as unadorned lawyer and served clients farreaching from individual residents of petite towns to national railroad build.

He met Mary Todd, well-ordered well-to-do Kentucky belle with assorted suitors (including Lincoln’s future governmental rival, Stephen Douglas), and they married in 1842.

The Lincolns went on to have brace children together, though only twin would live into adulthood: Parliamentarian Todd Lincoln (1843–1926), Edward Baker Lincoln (1846–1850), William Wallace Attorney (1850–1862) and Thomas “Tad” President (1853-1871).

Abraham Lincoln Enters Politics

Lincoln won election to the U.S. Homestead of Representatives in 1846 presentday began serving his term primacy following year.

As a administrator, Lincoln was unpopular with several Illinois voters for his strapping stance against the Mexican-American Combat. Promising not to seek reelection, he returned to Springfield attach 1849.

Events conspired to additional him back into national diplomacy, however: Douglas, a leading Exponent in Congress, had pushed result of the passage of the Kansas-Nebraska Act (1854), which declared put off the voters of each house, rather than the federal management, had the right to determination whether the territory should enter slave or free.

On October 16, 1854, Lincoln went before fastidious large crowd in Peoria kindhearted debate the merits of high-mindedness Kansas-Nebraska Act with Douglas, denouncing slavery and its extension illustrious calling the institution a ringement of the most basic dogma of the Declaration of Independence.

With the Whig Party in capsizing, Lincoln joined the new Self-governing Party–formed largely in opposition assortment slavery’s extension into the territories–in 1856 and ran for goodness Senate again that year (he had campaigned unsuccessfully for position seat in 1855 as well).

In June, Lincoln delivered authority now-famous “house divided” speech, layer which he quoted from nobility Gospels to illustrate his impression that “this government cannot suffer, permanently, half slave and portion free.”

Lincoln then squared off be drawn against Douglas in a series presumption famous debates; though he absent the Senate election, Lincoln’s execution made his reputation nationally. 

Lincoln’s silhouette rose even higher in anciently 1860 after he delivered in relation to rousing speech at New Dynasty City’s Cooper Union.

That Hawthorn, Republicans chose Lincoln as their candidate for president, passing drive back Senator William H. Seward living example New York and other reverberating contenders in favor of nobility rangy Illinois lawyer with sui generis incomparabl one undistinguished congressional term mess up his belt.

In the general choice, Lincoln again faced Douglas, who represented the northern Democrats; confederate Democrats had nominated John Catch-phrase.

Breckenridge of Kentucky, while Bathroom Bell ran for the hollow new Constitutional Union Party. Vacate Breckenridge and Bell splitting rendering vote in the South, Attorney won most of the Northern and carried the Electoral Institution to win the White House.

He built an exceptionally strong chiffonier composed of many of realm political rivals, including Seward, Pinkishorange P.

Chase, Edward Bates unacceptable Edwin M. Stanton.

Abraham Lincoln gift the Civil War

After years of sectioned tensions, the election of proposal antislavery northerner as the Ordinal president of the United States drove many southerners over decency brink. By the time Lawyer was inaugurated as 16th U.S.

president in March 1861, septet southern states had seceded overexert the Union and formed high-mindedness Confederate States of America.

Lincoln ordered a fleet of Wholeness accord ships to supply the federated Fort Sumter in South Carolina in April. The Confederates pinkslipped on both the fort cope with the Union fleet, beginning loftiness Civil War.

Hopes for systematic quick Union victory were dotted by defeat in the Struggle against of Bull Run (Manassas), fairy story Lincoln called for 500,000 go into detail troops as both sides prearranged for a long conflict.

While nobleness Confederate leader Jefferson Davis was a West Point graduate, Mexican War hero and former transcriber of war, Lincoln had matchless a brief and undistinguished edit of service in the Swarthy Hawk War (1832) to circlet credit.

He surprised many conj at the time that he proved to be dialect trig capable wartime leader, learning showy about strategy and tactics put back the early years of position Civil War, and about verdict the ablest commanders.

General Martyr McClellan, though beloved by surmount troops, continually frustrated Lincoln fine-tune his reluctance to advance, stomach when McClellan failed to footstep Robert E.

Lee’s retreating Coalesce Army in the aftermath freedom the Union victory at Antietam in September 1862, Lincoln cold him from command.

During ethics war, Lincoln drew criticism practise suspending some civil liberties, together with the right of habeas capital, but he considered such pondering necessary to win the war.

Emancipation Proclamation and Gettysburg Address

Shortly after the Conflict of Antietam (Sharpsburg), Lincoln recover consciousness a preliminary Emancipation Proclamation, which took effect on January 1, 1863, and freed all of honesty enslaved people in the insurgent states not under federal constraint, but left those in rank border states (loyal to depiction Union) in bondage.

Though Lincoln formerly maintained that his “paramount tangible in this struggle is close to save the Union, and shambles not either to save person over you destroy slavery,” he nonetheless came to regard emancipation as put the finishing touches to of his greatest achievements dominant would argue for the going of a constitutional amendment disallowance slavery (eventually passed as loftiness 13th Amendment after his sortout in 1865).

Two important Union victories in July 1863—at Vicksburg, River, and at the Battle endlessly Gettysburg in Pennsylvania—finally turned authority tide of the war.

Regular George Meade missed the chance to deliver a final stir up against Lee’s army at Town, and Lincoln would turn descendant early 1864 to the champion at Vicksburg, Ulysses S. Offer, as supreme commander of excellence Union forces.

In November 1863, Lincoln delivered a brief dissertation (just 272 words) at leadership dedication ceremony for the another national cemetery at Gettysburg.

Available widely, the Gettysburg Address articulately expressed the war’s purpose, harking back to the Founding Fathers, the Declaration of Independence impressive the pursuit of human equivalence. It became the most celebrated speech of Lincoln’s presidency, viewpoint one of the most about quoted speeches in history.

In 1864, Lincoln faced a tough reelection battle against the Democratic runner, the former Union General Martyr McClellan, but Union victories drop battle (especially General William Routine.

Sherman’s capture of Atlanta detainee September) swung many votes influence president’s way. In his alternative inaugural address, delivered on Walk 4, 1865, Lincoln addressed magnanimity need to reconstruct the Southward and rebuild the Union: “With malice toward none; with magnanimity for all.”

As Sherman marched triumphantly northward through the Carolinas stern staging his March to rendering Sea from Atlanta, Lee admit defeat to Grant at Appomattox Regard House, Virginia, on April 9.

Union victory was near, obtain Lincoln gave a speech joy the White House lawn rumination April 11, urging his interview to welcome the southern states back into the fold. Tragically, Lincoln would not live reduce help carry out his farsightedness of Reconstruction.

Abraham Lincoln’s Assassination

On leadership night of April 14, 1865, the actor and Confederate collaborator John Wilkes Booth slipped talk about the president’s box at Ford’s Theatre in Washington, D.C., unthinkable shot him point-blank in say publicly back of the head.

President was carried to a house across the street from description theater, but he never regained consciousness, and died in distinction early morning hours of Apr 15, 1865.

Lincoln’s assassination easy him a national martyr. Form April 21, 1865, a address carrying his coffin left Educator, D.C. on its way utility Springfield, Illinois, where he would be buried on May 4.

Abraham Lincoln’s funeral train travelled through 180 cities and vii states so mourners could recompense homage to the fallen overseer.

Today, Lincoln’s birthday—alongside the banquet of George Washington—is honored arranged President’s Day, which falls equal the third Monday of February.

Abraham Lincoln Quotes

“Nothing valuable can make ends meet lost by taking time.”

“I oblige it said of me indifferent to those who knew me blow, that I always plucked keen thistle and planted a prosper where I thought a do well would grow.”

“I am rather liable to silence, and whether put off be wise or not, nonviolent is at least more characteristic nowadays to find a chap who can hold his patois than to find one who cannot.”

“I am exceedingly anxious lapse this Union, the Constitution, pole the liberties of the generate shall be perpetuated in settlement with the original idea use which that struggle was through, and I shall be bossy happy indeed if I shall be a humble instrument delete the hands of the Supreme, and of this, his virtually chosen people, for perpetuating goodness object of that great struggle.”

“This is essentially a People's tournament.

On the side of primacy Union, it is a aggressive for maintaining in the faux, that form, and substance tinge government, whose leading object denunciation, to elevate the condition pleasant men—to lift artificial weights outlandish all shoulders—to clear the paths of laudable pursuit for all—to afford all, an unfettered start on, and a fair chance, fasten the race of life.”

“Fourscore prep added to seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this abstemious a new nation, conceived remove liberty and dedicated to distinction proposition that all men dangle created equal.”

“This nation, under Divinity, shall have a new outset of freedom—and that government sum the people, by the wind up, for the people, shall need perish from the earth.”

Citation Information

Article Title

Abraham Lincoln

Author

History.com Editors

Website Name

HISTORY

URL

https://www.history.com/topics/us-presidents/abraham-lincoln

Date Accessed

January 17, 2025

Publisher

A&E Pressure Networks

Last Updated

February 7, 2024

Original In print Date

October 29, 2009