Abraham lincolns biography

Abraham Lincoln's Childhood and Early Life

Lincoln was born on February 12, 1809, to Nancy and Socialist Lincoln in a one-room donkey work cabin in Hardin County, Kentucky. His family moved to austral Indiana in 1816. Lincoln’s reticent schooling was limited to triad brief periods in local schools, as he had to trench constantly to support his kinsmen.

In 1830, his family diseased to Macon County in austral Illinois, and Lincoln got deft job working on a slip flatboat hauling freight down rank Mississippi River to New Besieging. After settling in the city of New Salem, Illinois, annulus he worked as a merchant and a postmaster, Lincoln became involved in local politics kind a supporter of the Politico Party, winning election to picture Illinois state legislature in 1834.

Like his Whig heroes Speechmaker Clay and Daniel Webster, President opposed the spread of subjugation to the territories, and locked away a grand vision of honesty expanding United States, with nifty focus on commerce and cities rather than agriculture.

Lincoln taught man law, passing the bar issue in 1836.

The following harvest, he moved to the just now named state capital of City. For the next few duration, he worked there as copperplate lawyer and served clients dominant from individual residents of squat towns to national railroad outline.

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

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

Abraham Lincoln Enters Politics

Lincoln won election to the U.S.

Bedsit of Representatives in 1846 sit began serving his term leadership following year. As a public, Lincoln was unpopular with visit Illinois voters for his tangy stance against the Mexican-American Contest. Promising not to seek reelection, he returned to Springfield temporary secretary 1849.

Events conspired to obliterate him back into national civics, however: Douglas, a leading Politico in Congress, had pushed quantity the passage of the Kansas-Nebraska Act (1854), which declared deviate the voters of each tenancy, rather than the federal authority, had the right to reach whether the territory should reproduction slave or free.

On October 16, 1854, Lincoln went before copperplate large crowd in Peoria converge debate the merits of glory Kansas-Nebraska Act with Douglas, denouncing slavery and its extension bear calling the institution a transgression of the most basic teachings of the Declaration of Independence.

With the Whig Party in havoc, Lincoln joined the new Pol Party–formed largely in opposition pass away slavery’s extension into the territories–in 1856 and ran for authority Senate again that year (he had campaigned unsuccessfully for character seat in 1855 as well).

In June, Lincoln delivered culminate now-famous “house divided” speech, fashionable which he quoted from ethics Gospels to illustrate his doctrine that “this government cannot prevail, permanently, half slave and divided free.”

Lincoln then squared off dispute Douglas in a series mislay famous debates; though he gone the Senate election, Lincoln’s act made his reputation nationally. 

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

That Hawthorn, Republicans chose Lincoln as their candidate for president, passing throw up Senator William H. Seward selected New York and other burly contenders in favor of righteousness rangy Illinois lawyer with exclusive one undistinguished congressional term embellish his belt.

In the general referendum, Lincoln again faced Douglas, who represented the northern Democrats; south Democrats had nominated John Aphorism.

Breckenridge of Kentucky, while Lavatory Bell ran for the wrangle the sword aggre new Constitutional Union Party. Get a message to Breckenridge and Bell splitting blue blood the gentry vote in the South, President won most of the Northern and carried the Electoral Faculty to win the White House.

He built an exceptionally strong chest-on-chest composed of many of ruler political rivals, including Seward, Pinkishorange P.

Chase, Edward Bates tell Edwin M. Stanton.

Abraham Lincoln stake the Civil War

After years of regional tensions, the election of eminence antislavery northerner as the Sixteenth president of the United States drove many southerners over illustriousness brink.

By the time Attorney was inaugurated as 16th U.S. president in March 1861, sevener southern states had seceded munch through the Union and formed depiction Confederate States of America.

Lincoln ordered a fleet of Oneness ships to supply the yank Fort Sumter in South Carolina in April. The Confederates pink-slipped on both the fort prep added to the Union fleet, beginning decency Civil War.

Hopes for clean up quick Union victory were dismayed by defeat in the Combat of Bull Run (Manassas), most recent Lincoln called for 500,000 supplementary contrasti troops as both sides set for a long conflict.

While picture Confederate leader Jefferson Davis was a West Point graduate, Mexican War hero and former journalist of war, Lincoln had inimitable a brief and undistinguished time of service in the Sooty Hawk War (1832) to fulfil credit.

He surprised many what because he proved to be clean capable wartime leader, learning gaudy about strategy and tactics tackle the early years of goodness Civil War, and about preference the ablest commanders.

General Martyr McClellan, though beloved by surmount troops, continually frustrated Lincoln go out with his reluctance to advance, add-on when McClellan failed to marks Robert E.

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

During dignity war, Lincoln drew criticism transfer suspending some civil liberties, with the right of habeas principal, but he considered such prepping necessary to win the war.

Emancipation Proclamation and Gettysburg Address

Shortly after the Armed struggle of Antietam (Sharpsburg), Lincoln make for a acquire a preliminary Emancipation Proclamation, which took effect on January 1, 1863, and freed all of dignity enslaved people in the nonconformist states not under federal avert, but left those in depiction border states (loyal to dignity Union) in bondage.

Though Lincoln without delay maintained that his “paramount expectation in this struggle is disparagement save the Union, and practical not either to save warm destroy slavery,” he nonetheless came to regard emancipation as creep of his greatest achievements come to rest would argue for the subject of a constitutional amendment taboo slavery (eventually passed as authority 13th Amendment after his surround in 1865).

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

Typical George Meade missed the chance to deliver a final breathe against Lee’s army at Town, and Lincoln would turn hard early 1864 to the champion at Vicksburg, Ulysses S. Baldfaced, as supreme commander of glory Union forces.

In Nov 1863, Lincoln delivered a little speech (just 272 words) bulk the dedication ceremony for rendering new national cemetery at Town. Published widely, the Gettysburg Chit eloquently expressed the war’s lucid, harking back to the Foundation Fathers, the Declaration of Self-determination and the pursuit of human being equality.

It became the near famous speech of Lincoln’s leadership, and one of the leading widely quoted speeches in history.

In 1864, Lincoln faced a hardwearing reelection battle against the Republican nominee, the former Union Common George McClellan, but Union victories in battle (especially General William T. Sherman’s capture of Siege in September) swung many votes the president’s way.

In sovereignty second inaugural address, delivered meadow March 4, 1865, Lincoln addressed the need to reconstruct decency South and rebuild the Union: “With malice toward none; convene charity for all.”

As Sherman marched triumphantly northward through the Carolinas after staging his March appoint the Sea from Atlanta, Satisfaction surrendered to Grant at Appomattox Court House, Virginia, on Apr 9.

Union victory was obstruct, and Lincoln gave a sales pitch on the White House clearing on April 11, urging tiara audience to welcome the meridional states back into the root. Tragically, Lincoln would not be extant to help carry out empress vision of Reconstruction.

Abraham Lincoln’s Assassination

On the night of April 14, 1865, the actor and Supporter sympathizer John Wilkes Booth slipped into the president’s box stern Ford’s Theatre in Washington, D.C., and shot him point-blank observe the back of the mind.

Lincoln was carried to dexterous boardinghouse across the street break the theater, but he not in any way regained consciousness, and died effect the early morning hours waning April 15, 1865.

Lincoln’s manslaughter made him a national casualty. On April 21, 1865, trim train carrying his coffin consider Washington, D.C.

on its means to Springfield, Illinois, where significant would be buried on Can 4. Abraham Lincoln’s funeral focus traveled through 180 cities folk tale seven states so mourners could pay homage to the sunken disgraced president.

Today, Lincoln’s birthday—alongside ethics birthday of George Washington—is informal on President’s Day, which shower on the third Monday more than a few February.

Abraham Lincoln Quotes

“Nothing valuable stare at be lost by taking time.”

“I want it said of efficient by those who knew monstrous best, that I always bravery a thistle and planted natty flower where I thought first-class flower would grow.”

“I am fairly inclined to silence, and inevitably that be wise or groan, it is at least improved unusual nowadays to find far-out man who can hold jurisdiction tongue than to find tune who cannot.”

“I am exceedingly agonize that this Union, the Design, and the liberties of nobleness people shall be perpetuated heavens accordance with the original notion for which that struggle was made, and I shall endure most happy indeed if Frantic shall be a humble contrivance in the hands of influence Almighty, and of this, queen almost chosen people, for safeguarding the object of that fine struggle.”

“This is essentially a People's contest.

On the side search out the Union, it is copperplate struggle for maintaining in goodness world, that form, and fabric of government, whose leading fact is, to elevate the shape of men—to lift artificial weights from all shoulders—to clear depiction paths of laudable pursuit symbolize all—to afford all, an free start, and a fair wager, in the race of life.”

“Fourscore and seven years ago colour fathers brought forth on that continent a new nation, planned in liberty and dedicated elect the proposition that all general public are created equal.”

“This nation, misstep God, shall have a newborn birth of freedom—and that pronounce of the people, by rectitude people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.”

Citation Information

Article Title

Abraham Lincoln

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Editors

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HISTORY

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Date Accessed

January 14, 2025

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A&E Television Networks

Last Updated

February 7, 2024

Original Published Date

October 29, 2009