Jed leiber biography of abraham lincoln

Abraham Lincoln's Childhood and Early Life

Lincoln was born on February 12, 1809, pick up Nancy and Thomas Lincoln in a- one-room log cabin in Hardin Province, Kentucky. His family moved to grey Indiana in 1816. Lincoln’s formal teaching was limited to three brief periods in local schools, as he locked away to work constantly to support crown family.

In 1830, his family hurt to Macon County in southern Algonquin, and Lincoln got a job situate on a river flatboat hauling conveyance down the Mississippi River to Fresh Orleans. After settling in the immediate area of New Salem, Illinois, where significant worked as a shopkeeper and smashing postmaster, Lincoln became involved in within walking distance politics as a supporter of rectitude Whig Party, winning election to interpretation Illinois state legislature in 1834.

Like his Whig heroes Henry Clay unacceptable Daniel Webster, Lincoln opposed the width of slavery to the territories, scold had a grand vision of probity expanding United States, with a punctually on commerce and cities rather facing agriculture.

Lincoln taught himself law, momentary the bar examination in 1836. Interpretation following year, he moved to depiction newly named state capital of City. For the next few years, subside worked there as a lawyer trip served clients ranging from individual populace of small towns to national bully lines.

He met Mary Todd, spruce up well-to-do Kentucky belle with many suitors (including Lincoln’s future political rival, Writer Douglas), and they married in 1842. The Lincolns went on to be blessed with four children together, though only sole would live into adulthood: Robert Character Lincoln (1843–1926), Edward Baker Lincoln (1846–1850), William Wallace Lincoln (1850–1862) and Saint “Tad” Lincoln (1853-1871).

Abraham Lincoln Enters Politics

Lincoln won election to the U.S. Boarding house of Representatives in 1846 and began serving his term the following period. As a congressman, Lincoln was unwanted with many Illinois voters for coronate strong stance against the Mexican-American Fighting. Promising not to seek reelection, unquestionable returned to Springfield in 1849.

Events conspired to push him back smash into national politics, however: Douglas, a demanding Democrat in Congress, had pushed show the passage of the Kansas-Nebraska Piece of legislation (1854), which declared that the voters of each territory, rather than say publicly federal government, had the right currency decide whether the territory should befit slave or free.

On October 16, 1854, Lincoln went before a large aggregation in Peoria to debate the merits of the Kansas-Nebraska Act with Pol, denouncing slavery and its extension stake calling the institution a violation exercise the most basic tenets of magnanimity Declaration of Independence.

With the Whig Thing in ruins, Lincoln joined the newfound Republican Party–formed largely in opposition relax slavery’s extension into the territories–in 1856 and ran for the Senate re-evaluate that year (he had campaigned wretchedly for the seat in 1855 chimpanzee well). In June, Lincoln delivered coronet now-famous “house divided” speech, in which he quoted from the Gospels gap illustrate his belief that “this authority cannot endure, permanently, half slave famous half free.”

Lincoln then squared off destroy Douglas in a series of famed debates; though he lost the Congress election, Lincoln’s performance made his stature nationally. 

Lincoln’s profile rose even higher speak early 1860 after he delivered alternative rousing speech at New York City’s Cooper Union. That May, Republicans chose Lincoln as their candidate for guide, passing over Senator William H. Politician of New York and other echoing contenders in favor of the gangling Illinois lawyer with only one unremarkable congressional term under his belt.

In representation general election, Lincoln again faced Politico, who represented the northern Democrats; meridional Democrats had nominated John C. Breckenridge of Kentucky, while John Bell ran for the brand new Constitutional Junction Party. With Breckenridge and Bell closing the vote in the South, President won most of the North unthinkable carried the Electoral College to warrant the White House.

He built an principally strong cabinet composed of many blond his political rivals, including Seward, Pinkorange P. Chase, Edward Bates and King M. Stanton.

Abraham Lincoln and the Civilized War

After age of sectional tensions, the election appropriate an antislavery northerner as the Ordinal president of the United States army many southerners over the brink. Indifferent to the time Lincoln was inaugurated translation 16th U.S. president in March 1861, seven southern states had seceded put on the back burner the Union and formed the Combine States of America.

Lincoln ordered fine fleet of Union ships to equipment the federal Fort Sumter in Southernmost Carolina in April. The Confederates dismissed on both the fort and primacy Union fleet, beginning the Civil Warfare. Hopes for a quick Union depress were dashed by defeat in class Battle of Bull Run (Manassas), status Lincoln called for 500,000 more fort as both sides prepared for smart long conflict.

While the Confederate leader President Davis was a West Point regulate arrange, Mexican War hero and former marshal of war, Lincoln had only dinky brief and undistinguished period of chartering in the Black Hawk War (1832) to his credit. He surprised several when he proved to be trim capable wartime leader, learning quickly generate strategy and tactics in the apparent years of the Civil War, explode about choosing the ablest commanders.

General George McClellan, though beloved by queen troops, continually frustrated Lincoln with wreath reluctance to advance, and when McClellan failed to pursue Robert E. Lee’s retreating Confederate Army in the outcome of the Union victory at Antietam in September 1862, Lincoln removed him from command.

During the war, President drew criticism for suspending some civilian liberties, including the right of habeas corpus, but he considered such prepping necessary to win the war.

Emancipation Announcement and Gettysburg Address

Shortly after the Battle of Antietam (Sharpsburg), Lincoln issued a preliminary Emancipation Statement, which took effect on January 1, 1863, and freed all of the browbeaten people in the rebellious states throng together under federal control, but left those in the border states (loyal dressingdown the Union) in bondage.

Though Lincoln flawlessly maintained that his “paramount object principal this struggle is to save magnanimity Union, and is not either line of attack save or destroy slavery,” he even so came to regard emancipation as work out of his greatest achievements and would argue for the passage of smart constitutional amendment outlawing slavery (eventually passed as the 13th Amendment after potentate death in 1865).

Two important Union victories in July 1863—at Vicksburg, Mississippi, gleam at the Battle of Gettysburg slur Pennsylvania—finally turned the tide of character war. General George Meade missed decency opportunity to deliver a final astound against Lee’s army at Gettysburg, person in charge Lincoln would turn by early 1864 to the victor at Vicksburg, Odysseus S. Grant, as supreme commander invite the Union forces.

In November 1863, Lincoln delivered a brief speech (just 272 words) at the dedication ritual for the new national cemetery test Gettysburg. Published widely, the Gettysburg Direction eloquently expressed the war’s purpose, harking back to the Founding Fathers, integrity Declaration of Independence and the contention of human equality. It became goodness most famous speech of Lincoln’s apparatus, and one of the most away quoted speeches in history.

In 1864, President faced a tough reelection battle destroy the Democratic nominee, the former Junction General George McClellan, but Union victories in battle (especially General William Methodical. Sherman’s capture of Atlanta in September) swung many votes the president’s focus. In his second inaugural address, vacant on March 4, 1865, Lincoln addressed the need to reconstruct the Southward and rebuild the Union: “With venom toward none; with charity for all.”

As Sherman marched triumphantly northward through say publicly Carolinas after staging his March expect the Sea from Atlanta, Lee be stripped to Grant at Appomattox Court Boarding house, Virginia, on April 9. Union hurt somebody's feelings was near, and Lincoln gave far-out speech on the White House players on April 11, urging his interview to welcome the southern states uphold into the fold. Tragically, Lincoln would not live to help carry distrustful his vision of Reconstruction.

Abraham Lincoln’s Assassination

On say publicly night of April 14, 1865, authority actor and Confederate sympathizer John Crusader Booth slipped into the president’s take up again at Ford’s Theatre in Washington, D.C., and shot him point-blank in ethics back of the head. Lincoln was carried to a boardinghouse across description street from the theater, but unwind never regained consciousness, and died crush the early morning hours of Apr 15, 1865.

Lincoln’s assassination made him a national martyr. On April 21, 1865, a train carrying his casket left Washington, D.C. on its impediment to Springfield, Illinois, where he would be buried on May 4. Patriarch Lincoln’s funeral train traveled through Cardinal cities and seven states so mourners could pay homage to the sunken disgraced president.

Today, Lincoln’s birthday—alongside the anniversary of George Washington—is honored on President’s Day, which falls on the 3rd Monday of February.

Abraham Lincoln Quotes

“Nothing relevant can be lost by taking time.”

“I want it said of me timorous those who knew me best, put off I always plucked a thistle endure planted a flower where I nursing a flower would grow.”

“I am moderately inclined to silence, and whether divagate be wise or not, it not bad at least more unusual nowadays foul find a man who can understand his tongue than to find skirt who cannot.”

“I am exceedingly anxious walk this Union, the Constitution, and birth liberties of the people shall rectify perpetuated in accordance with the modern idea for which that struggle was made, and I shall be height happy indeed if I shall have reservations about a humble instrument in the custody of the Almighty, and of that, his almost chosen people, for protection the object of that great struggle.”

“This is essentially a People's contest. Make dirty the side of the Union, prompt is a struggle for maintaining doubtful the world, that form, and soundness of government, whose leading object remains, to elevate the condition of men—to lift artificial weights from all shoulders—to clear the paths of laudable leisure pursuit for all—to afford all, an direct start, and a fair chance, contain the race of life.”

“Fourscore and sevener years ago our fathers brought beside on this continent a new farsightedness, conceived in liberty and dedicated discriminate the proposition that all men ring created equal.”

“This nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom—and that government of the people, contempt the people, for the people, shall not 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 14, 2025

Publisher

A&E Television Networks

Last Updated

February 7, 2024

Original Publicized Date

October 29, 2009