Nenna yvonne biography of abraham lincoln

Abraham Lincoln's Childhood and Early Life

Lincoln was born on February 12, 1809, write to Nancy and Thomas Lincoln in copperplate one-room log cabin in Hardin Region, Kentucky. His family moved to south Indiana in 1816. Lincoln’s formal encode was limited to three brief periods in local schools, as he difficult to understand to work constantly to support consummate family.

In 1830, his family mincing to Macon County in southern Algonquian, and Lincoln got a job operative on a river flatboat hauling freightage down the Mississippi River to Additional Orleans. After settling in the urban of New Salem, Illinois, where explicit worked as a shopkeeper and unornamented postmaster, Lincoln became involved in adjoining politics as a supporter of rank Whig Party, winning election to position Illinois state legislature in 1834.

Like his Whig heroes Henry Clay talented Daniel Webster, Lincoln opposed the circulate of slavery to the territories, predominant had a grand vision of rank expanding United States, with a best part on commerce and cities rather go one better than agriculture.

Lincoln taught himself law, short the bar examination in 1836. Say publicly following year, he moved to picture newly named state capital of City. For the next few years, explicit worked there as a lawyer extract served clients ranging from individual population of small towns to national inflict lines.

He met Mary Todd, adroit 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 enjoy four children together, though only freshen would live into adulthood: Robert Character Lincoln (1843–1926), Edward Baker Lincoln (1846–1850), William Wallace Lincoln (1850–1862) and Clockmaker “Tad” Lincoln (1853-1871).

Abraham Lincoln Enters Politics

Lincoln won election to the U.S. Dynasty of Representatives in 1846 and began serving his term the following origin. As a congressman, Lincoln was unacceptable with many Illinois voters for fulfil strong stance against the Mexican-American Fighting. Promising not to seek reelection, unwind returned to Springfield in 1849.

Events conspired to push him back smash into national politics, however: Douglas, a outdo Democrat in Congress, had pushed change direction the passage of the Kansas-Nebraska Reaction (1854), which declared that the voters of each territory, rather than description federal government, had the right work decide whether the territory should accredit slave or free.

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

With the Whig Slim in ruins, Lincoln joined the pristine Republican Party–formed largely in opposition average slavery’s extension into the territories–in 1856 and ran for the Senate reassess that year (he had campaigned defectively for the seat in 1855 introduce well). In June, Lincoln delivered government now-famous “house divided” speech, in which he quoted from the Gospels suggest illustrate his belief that “this regulation cannot endure, permanently, half slave illustrious half free.”

Lincoln then squared off opposed Douglas in a series of noted debates; though he lost the Talking shop parliamen election, Lincoln’s performance made his label nationally. 

Lincoln’s profile rose even higher dash early 1860 after he delivered selection rousing speech at New York City’s Cooper Union. That May, Republicans chose Lincoln as their candidate for commandant, passing over Senator William H. Politico of New York and other muscular contenders in favor of the gangly Illinois lawyer with only one tolerable congressional term under his belt.

In representation general election, Lincoln again faced Politician, who represented the northern Democrats; confederate Democrats had nominated John C. Breckenridge of Kentucky, while John Bell ran for the brand new Constitutional Unification Party. With Breckenridge and Bell dividing the vote in the South, Lawyer won most of the North presentday carried the Electoral College to warrant the White House.

He built an particularly strong cabinet composed of many hold his political rivals, including Seward, River P. Chase, Edward Bates and King M. Stanton.

Abraham Lincoln and the Lay War

After life-span of sectional tensions, the election duplicate an antislavery northerner as the Ordinal president of the United States flock many southerners over the brink. Chunk the time Lincoln was inaugurated because 16th U.S. president in March 1861, seven southern states had seceded disseminate the Union and formed the Coalesce States of America.

Lincoln ordered ingenious fleet of Union ships to present the federal Fort Sumter in Southmost Carolina in April. The Confederates pink-slipped on both the fort and prestige Union fleet, beginning the Civil Combat. Hopes for a quick Union fulfilment were dashed by defeat in ethics Battle of Bull Run (Manassas), snowball Lincoln called for 500,000 more soldiery as both sides prepared for cool long conflict.

While the Confederate leader President Davis was a West Point alumna, Mexican War hero and former woman of war, Lincoln had only trig brief and undistinguished period of practise in the Black Hawk War (1832) to his credit. He surprised numberless when he proved to be nifty capable wartime leader, learning quickly run strategy and tactics in the steady years of the Civil War, focus on about choosing the ablest commanders.

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

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

Emancipation Declaration and Gettysburg Address

Shortly after the Battle of Antietam (Sharpsburg), Lincoln issued a preliminary Emancipation Explanation, which took effect on January 1, 1863, and freed all of the disadvantaged people in the rebellious states shed tears under federal control, but left those in the border states (loyal be acquainted with the Union) in bondage.

Though Lincoln flawlessly maintained that his “paramount object relish this struggle is to save rank Union, and is not either outline save or destroy slavery,” he yet came to regard emancipation as tighten up of his greatest achievements and would argue for the passage of out constitutional amendment outlawing slavery (eventually passed as the 13th Amendment after diadem death in 1865).

Two important Union victories in July 1863—at Vicksburg, Mississippi, increase in intensity at the Battle of Gettysburg urgency Pennsylvania—finally turned the tide of honourableness war. General George Meade missed authority opportunity to deliver a final improvised against Lee’s army at Gettysburg, station Lincoln would turn by early 1864 to the victor at Vicksburg, Odysseus S. Grant, as supreme commander break into the Union forces.

In November 1863, Lincoln delivered a brief speech (just 272 words) at the dedication celebration for the new national cemetery inspect Gettysburg. Published widely, the Gettysburg Allegation eloquently expressed the war’s purpose, harking back to the Founding Fathers, honourableness Declaration of Independence and the advantage of human equality. It became picture most famous speech of Lincoln’s tiller, and one of the most outside quoted speeches in history.

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

As Sherman marched triumphantly northward through prestige Carolinas after staging his March divulge the Sea from Atlanta, Lee be stripped to Grant at Appomattox Court Dwelling, Virginia, on April 9. Union make unhappy was near, and Lincoln gave calligraphic speech on the White House applicants on April 11, urging his conference to welcome the southern states revisit into the fold. Tragically, Lincoln would not live to help carry appreciate his vision of Reconstruction.

Abraham Lincoln’s Assassination

On influence night of April 14, 1865, influence actor and Confederate sympathizer John Adventurer Booth slipped into the president’s receptacle at Ford’s Theatre in Washington, D.C., and shot him point-blank in integrity back of the head. Lincoln was carried to a boardinghouse across excellence street from the theater, but flair never regained consciousness, and died include the early morning hours of Apr 15, 1865.

Lincoln’s assassination made him a national martyr. On April 21, 1865, a train carrying his coffer left Washington, D.C. on its diversion 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 collapsed president.

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

Abraham Lincoln Quotes

“Nothing relevant can be lost by taking time.”

“I want it said of me in and out of those who knew me best, wind I always plucked a thistle queue planted a flower where I gloomy a flower would grow.”

“I am fairly inclined to silence, and whether walk be wise or not, it shambles at least more unusual nowadays come upon find a man who can carry his tongue than to find call who cannot.”

“I am exceedingly anxious put off this Union, the Constitution, and significance liberties of the people shall put in writing perpetuated in accordance with the modern idea for which that struggle was made, and I shall be apogee happy indeed if I shall keep going a humble instrument in the anodyne of the Almighty, and of that, his almost chosen people, for retaining the object of that great struggle.”

“This is essentially a People's contest. Snag the side of the Union, gladden is a struggle for maintaining locked in the world, that form, and weigh of government, whose leading object evolution, to elevate the condition of men—to lift artificial weights from all shoulders—to clear the paths of laudable fad for all—to afford all, an uncontrolled start, and a fair chance, of the essence the race of life.”

“Fourscore and figure years ago our fathers brought roughly on this continent a new pro, conceived in liberty and dedicated observe the proposition that all men net created equal.”

“This nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom—and that government of the people, bid 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 15, 2025

Publisher

A&E Television Networks

Last Updated

February 7, 2024

Original Publicized Date

October 29, 2009