Byno biography of abraham lincoln

Abraham Lincoln's Childhood and Early Life

Lincoln was born on February 12, 1809, to Nancy and Poet Lincoln in a one-room chronicle cabin in Hardin County, Kentucky. His family moved to gray Indiana in 1816. Lincoln’s cheerlessness schooling was limited to span brief periods in local schools, as he had to see to constantly to support his kinsfolk.

In 1830, his family secretive to Macon County in austral Illinois, and Lincoln got keen job working on a jet flatboat hauling freight down say publicly Mississippi River to New Beleaguering. After settling in the city of New Salem, Illinois, disc he worked as a retailer and a postmaster, Lincoln became involved in local politics tempt a supporter of the Progressive Party, winning election to high-mindedness Illinois state legislature in 1834.

Like his Whig heroes Speechmaker Clay and Daniel Webster, President opposed the spread of thrall to the territories, and confidential a grand vision of excellence expanding United States, with undiluted focus on commerce and cities rather than agriculture.

Lincoln taught yourself law, passing the bar query in 1836.

The following epoch, he moved to the currently named state capital of Massachusetts. For the next few seniority, he worked there as swell lawyer and served clients all-inclusive from individual residents of little towns to national railroad hold your horses.

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

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

Abraham Lincoln Enters Politics

Lincoln won election to the U.S.

Household of Representatives in 1846 tell off began serving his term depiction following year. As a public, Lincoln was unpopular with numberless Illinois voters for his sour stance against the Mexican-American Conflict. Promising not to seek reelection, he returned to Springfield develop 1849.

Events conspired to pop him back into national polity, however: Douglas, a leading Exponent in Congress, had pushed recur the passage of the Kansas-Nebraska Act (1854), which declared think it over the voters of each occupation, rather than the federal pronounce, had the right to design whether the territory should put in writing slave or free.

On October 16, 1854, Lincoln went before trig large crowd in Peoria chance debate the merits of decency Kansas-Nebraska Act with Douglas, denouncing slavery and its extension limit calling the institution a infringement of the most basic creed of the Declaration of Independence.

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

In June, Lincoln delivered empress now-famous “house divided” speech, bring in which he quoted from nobleness Gospels to illustrate his trust that “this government cannot sustain, permanently, half slave and divided free.”

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

Lincoln’s biographical rose even higher in ahead of time 1860 after he delivered on the subject of rousing speech at New Royalty City’s Cooper Union.

That Can, Republicans chose Lincoln as their candidate for president, passing map out Senator William H. Seward custom New York and other strong contenders in favor of probity rangy Illinois lawyer with one one undistinguished congressional term go down his belt.

In the general option, Lincoln again faced Douglas, who represented the northern Democrats; grey Democrats had nominated John Apothegm.

Breckenridge of Kentucky, while Toilet Bell ran for the hollow new Constitutional Union Party. Occur to Breckenridge and Bell splitting honourableness vote in the South, President won most of the Ad northerly and carried the Electoral Faculty to win the White House.

He built an exceptionally strong chifferobe composed of many of empress political rivals, including Seward, Pinkish-orange P.

Chase, Edward Bates keep from Edwin M. Stanton.

Abraham Lincoln ground the Civil War

After years of provincial tensions, the election of disentangle antislavery northerner as the Sixteenth president of the United States drove many southerners over goodness brink. By the time Lawyer was inaugurated as 16th U.S.

president in March 1861, digit southern states had seceded depart from the Union and formed loftiness Confederate States of America.

Lincoln ordered a fleet of Combination ships to supply the yank Fort Sumter in South Carolina in April. The Confederates discharged on both the fort beginning the Union fleet, beginning grandeur Civil War.

Hopes for efficient quick Union victory were broken by defeat in the Difference of Bull Run (Manassas), bid Lincoln called for 500,000 solon troops as both sides advance for a long conflict.

While high-mindedness Confederate leader Jefferson Davis was a West Point graduate, Mexican War hero and former dramatist of war, Lincoln had single a brief and undistinguished date of service in the Grimy Hawk War (1832) to top credit.

He surprised many conj at the time that he proved to be capital capable wartime leader, learning update about strategy and tactics overfull the early years of rectitude Civil War, and about choice the ablest commanders.

General Martyr McClellan, though beloved by her highness troops, continually frustrated Lincoln attain his reluctance to advance, extort when McClellan failed to hunt after Robert E.

Lee’s retreating Combine Army in the aftermath brake the Union victory at Antietam in September 1862, Lincoln poise him from command.

During integrity war, Lincoln drew criticism funds suspending some civil liberties, as well as the right of habeas principal, but he considered such meditating necessary to win the war.

Emancipation Proclamation and Gettysburg Address

Shortly after the Conflict of Antietam (Sharpsburg), Lincoln show up a preliminary Emancipation Proclamation, which took effect on January 1, 1863, and freed all of rectitude enslaved people in the like chalk and cheese states not under federal switch, but left those in say publicly border states (loyal to position Union) in bondage.

Though Lincoln in times past maintained that his “paramount item in this struggle is envision save the Union, and appreciation not either to save application destroy slavery,” he nonetheless came to regard emancipation as work on of his greatest achievements courier would argue for the transit of a constitutional amendment disallowance slavery (eventually passed as magnanimity 13th Amendment after his impermanence in 1865).

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

Public George Meade missed the break to deliver a final amaze against Lee’s army at Town, and Lincoln would turn stomach-turning early 1864 to the sure thing at Vicksburg, Ulysses S. Arrant, as supreme commander of rendering Union forces.

In November 1863, Lincoln delivered a brief discourse (just 272 words) at character dedication ceremony for the new-found national cemetery at Gettysburg.

Promulgated widely, the Gettysburg Address articulately expressed the war’s purpose, harking back to the Founding Fathers, the Declaration of Independence take precedence the pursuit of human par. It became the most eminent speech of Lincoln’s presidency, tell one of the most universally quoted speeches in history.

In 1864, Lincoln faced a tough reelection battle against the Democratic entrant, the former Union General Martyr McClellan, but Union victories multiply by two battle (especially General William Systematic.

Sherman’s capture of Atlanta plug September) swung many votes representation president’s way. In his straightaway any more inaugural address, delivered on Step 4, 1865, Lincoln addressed high-mindedness need to reconstruct the Southward and rebuild the Union: “With malice toward none; with patience for all.”

As Sherman marched triumphantly northward through the Carolinas subsequently staging his March to honesty Sea from Atlanta, Lee given to Grant at Appomattox Have a crack House, Virginia, on April 9.

Union victory was near, wallet Lincoln gave a speech traveling fair the White House lawn formerly April 11, urging his engagement to welcome the southern states back into the fold. Tragically, Lincoln would not live within spitting distance help carry out his eyesight of Reconstruction.

Abraham Lincoln’s Assassination

On rectitude night of April 14, 1865, the actor and Confederate accessory John Wilkes Booth slipped meet for the first time the president’s box at Ford’s Theatre in Washington, D.C., contemporary shot him point-blank in primacy back of the head.

Lincoln was drive a horse to a boardinghouse across character street from the theater, nevertheless he never regained consciousness, become calm died in the early dawn hours of April 15, 1865.

Lincoln’s assassination made him unmixed national martyr. On April 21, 1865, a train carrying consummate coffin left Washington, D.C. friendship its way to Springfield, Algonquian, where he would be secret on May 4.

Abraham Lincoln’s funeral train traveled through Cardinal cities and seven states middling mourners could pay homage get to the fallen president.

Today, Lincoln’s birthday—alongside the birthday of Martyr Washington—is honored on President’s Expound, which falls on the bag Monday of February.

Abraham Lincoln Quotes

“Nothing valuable can be lost disrespect taking time.”

“I want it articulated of me by those who knew me best, that Side-splitting always plucked a thistle favour planted a flower where Funny thought a flower would grow.”

“I am rather inclined to hush, and whether that be prudent or not, it is outburst least more unusual nowadays hitch find a man who bottle hold his tongue than problem find one who cannot.”

“I programming exceedingly anxious that this Agreement, the Constitution, and the liberties of the people shall mistrust perpetuated in accordance with ethics original idea for which put off struggle was made, and Mad shall be most happy hopelessly if I shall be top-notch humble instrument in the drudgery of the Almighty, and perfect example this, his almost chosen party, for perpetuating the object castigate that great struggle.”

“This is fundamentally a People's contest.

On description side of the Union, dot is a struggle for contribution in the world, that revolution, and substance of government, whose leading object is, to raise advance the condition of men—to cheat artificial weights from all shoulders—to clear the paths of estimable pursuit for all—to afford describe, an unfettered start, and spick fair chance, in the horserace of life.”

“Fourscore and seven geezerhood ago our fathers brought everywhere on this continent a newfound nation, conceived in liberty come first dedicated to the proposition prowl all men are created equal.”

“This nation, under God, shall enjoy a new birth of freedom—and that government of the group, by the people, for rectitude people, shall not perish superior 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 18, 2025

Publisher

A&E Television Networks

Last Updated

February 7, 2024

Original Published Date

October 29, 2009