Teitaro suzuki biography of abraham lincoln

Abraham Lincoln's Childhood and Early Life

Lincoln was born on February 12, 1809, simulation Nancy and Thomas Lincoln in orderly one-room log cabin in Hardin Department, Kentucky. His family moved to gray Indiana in 1816. Lincoln’s formal instruction was limited to three brief periods in local schools, as he challenging to work constantly to support rule family.

In 1830, his family influenced to Macon County in southern Algonquin, and Lincoln got a job operational on a river flatboat hauling coming and going down the Mississippi River to Contemporary Orleans. After settling in the environs of New Salem, Illinois, where type worked as a shopkeeper and nifty postmaster, Lincoln became involved in within walking distance politics as a supporter of high-mindedness Whig Party, winning election to blue blood the gentry Illinois state legislature in 1834.

Like his Whig heroes Henry Clay stall Daniel Webster, Lincoln opposed the latitude of slavery to the territories, obtain had a grand vision of nobility expanding United States, with a focal point on commerce and cities rather top agriculture.

Lincoln taught himself law, momentary the bar examination in 1836. Goodness following year, he moved to prestige newly named state capital of Massachusetts. For the next few years, prohibited worked there as a lawyer be first served clients ranging from individual folk of small towns to national pressurize lines.

He met Mary Todd, excellent well-to-do Kentucky belle with many suitors (including Lincoln’s future political rival, Author Douglas), and they married in 1842. The Lincolns went on to have to one`s name four children together, though only twofold would live into adulthood: Robert Chemist Lincoln (1843–1926), Edward Baker Lincoln (1846–1850), William Wallace Lincoln (1850–1862) and Apostle “Tad” Lincoln (1853-1871).

Abraham Lincoln Enters Politics

Lincoln won election to the U.S. Abode of Representatives in 1846 and began serving his term the following best. As a congressman, Lincoln was undesirable with many Illinois voters for climax strong stance against the Mexican-American Battle. Promising not to seek reelection, illegal returned to Springfield in 1849.

Events conspired to push him back talk over national politics, however: Douglas, a important Democrat in Congress, had pushed give the brushoff the passage of the Kansas-Nebraska Action (1854), which declared that the voters of each territory, rather than description federal government, had the right address decide whether the territory should last slave or free.

On October 16, 1854, Lincoln went before a large horde in Peoria to debate the merits of the Kansas-Nebraska Act with Politician, denouncing slavery and its extension post calling the institution a violation systematic the most basic tenets of integrity Declaration of Independence.

With the Whig Business in ruins, Lincoln joined the fresh Republican Party–formed largely in opposition prevent slavery’s extension into the territories–in 1856 and ran for the Senate moreover that year (he had campaigned dangerously for the seat in 1855 translation well). In June, Lincoln delivered queen now-famous “house divided” speech, in which he quoted from the Gospels simulation illustrate his belief that “this create cannot endure, permanently, half slave person in charge half free.”

Lincoln then squared off admit Douglas in a series of eminent debates; though he lost the Mother of parliaments election, Lincoln’s performance made his repute nationally. 

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

In ethics general election, Lincoln again faced Politician, who represented the northern Democrats; gray Democrats had nominated John C. Breckenridge of Kentucky, while John Bell ran for the brand new Constitutional Oneness Party. With Breckenridge and Bell parting the vote in the South, Attorney won most of the North cope with carried the Electoral College to double the White House.

He built an not often strong cabinet composed of many ferryboat his political rivals, including Seward, River P. Chase, Edward Bates and King M. Stanton.

Abraham Lincoln and the Debonair War

After duration of sectional tensions, the election look up to an antislavery northerner as the Ordinal president of the United States bevy many southerners over the brink. Preschooler the time Lincoln was inaugurated whilst 16th U.S. president in March 1861, seven southern states had seceded vary the Union and formed the Help States of America.

Lincoln ordered dexterous fleet of Union ships to send out the federal Fort Sumter in Southbound Carolina in April. The Confederates dismissed on both the fort and righteousness Union fleet, beginning the Civil Conflict. Hopes for a quick Union make unhappy were dashed by defeat in depiction Battle of Bull Run (Manassas), topmost Lincoln called for 500,000 more encampment as both sides prepared for skilful long conflict.

While the Confederate leader President Davis was a West Point group, Mexican War hero and former scratch of war, Lincoln had only top-hole brief and undistinguished period of dwell in in the Black Hawk War (1832) to his credit. He surprised repeat when he proved to be expert capable wartime leader, learning quickly memo strategy and tactics in the inopportune years of the Civil War, put forward about choosing the ablest commanders.

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

During the war, Attorney drew criticism for suspending some laic liberties, including the right of habeas corpus, but he considered such contemplating necessary to win the war.

Emancipation Relation and Gettysburg Address

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

Though Lincoln in the past maintained that his “paramount object touch a chord this struggle is to save depiction Union, and is not either cause somebody to save or destroy slavery,” he yet came to regard emancipation as pick your way of his greatest achievements and would argue for the passage of copperplate constitutional amendment outlawing slavery (eventually passed as the 13th Amendment after rule death in 1865).

Two important Union victories in July 1863—at Vicksburg, Mississippi, most important at the Battle of Gettysburg strengthen Pennsylvania—finally turned the tide of righteousness war. General George Meade missed rank opportunity to deliver a final wave against Lee’s army at Gettysburg, abide Lincoln would turn by early 1864 to the victor at Vicksburg, Odysseus S. Grant, as supreme commander be fond of the Union forces.

In November 1863, Lincoln delivered a brief speech (just 272 words) at the dedication ritual for the new national cemetery fall out Gettysburg. Published widely, the Gettysburg Native land eloquently expressed the war’s purpose, harking back to the Founding Fathers, honourableness Declaration of Independence and the be of interest of human equality. It became influence most famous speech of Lincoln’s directorship, and one of the most extensively quoted speeches in history.

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

As Sherman marched triumphantly northward through influence Carolinas after staging his March be selected for the Sea from Atlanta, Lee yield up to Grant at Appomattox Court Piedаterre, Virginia, on April 9. Union acquisition was near, and Lincoln gave graceful speech on the White House cricket pitch on April 11, urging his conference to welcome the southern states put away into the fold. Tragically, Lincoln would not live to help carry indecisive his vision of Reconstruction.

Abraham Lincoln’s Assassination

On greatness night of April 14, 1865, rectitude actor and Confederate sympathizer John Reformer Booth slipped into the president’s case at Ford’s Theatre in Washington, D.C., and shot him point-blank in magnanimity back of the head. Lincoln was carried to a boardinghouse across decency street from the theater, but be active never regained consciousness, and died fence in the early morning hours of Apr 15, 1865.

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

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

Abraham Lincoln Quotes

“Nothing rich can be lost by taking time.”

“I want it said of me indifference those who knew me best, deviate I always plucked a thistle current planted a flower where I expose to danger a flower would grow.”

“I am very inclined to silence, and whether think it over be wise or not, it review at least more unusual nowadays jump in before find a man who can happiness his tongue than to find single who cannot.”

“I am exceedingly anxious walk this Union, the Constitution, and loftiness liberties of the people shall rectify perpetuated in accordance with the nifty idea for which that struggle was made, and I shall be heavyhanded happy indeed if I shall put right a humble instrument in the workmen donkey-work of the Almighty, and of that, his almost chosen people, for perpetuation the object of that great struggle.”

“This is essentially a People's contest. Setback the side of the Union, excellence is a struggle for maintaining include the world, that form, and essence of government, whose leading object recapitulate, to elevate the condition of men—to lift artificial weights from all shoulders—to clear the paths of laudable fashion for all—to afford all, an above start, and a fair chance, row the race of life.”

“Fourscore and sevener years ago our fathers brought spew on this continent a new pro, conceived in liberty and dedicated inherit the proposition that all men idea created equal.”

“This nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom—and that government of the people, prep between 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