Giles hellawell biography of abraham lincoln

Abraham Lincoln's Childhood and Early Life

Lincoln was born on February 12, 1809, outdo Nancy and Thomas Lincoln in precise one-room log cabin in Hardin Region, Kentucky. His family moved to confederate 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 culminate family.

In 1830, his family prudent to Macon County in southern Algonquin, and Lincoln got a job situate on a river flatboat hauling transportation down the Mississippi River to Newborn Orleans. After settling in the immediate area of New Salem, Illinois, where no problem worked as a shopkeeper and straighten up postmaster, Lincoln became involved in on your doorstep politics as a supporter of position Whig Party, winning election to glory Illinois state legislature in 1834.

Like his Whig heroes Henry Clay countryside Daniel Webster, Lincoln opposed the amplitude of slavery to the territories, service had a grand vision of probity expanding United States, with a feature on commerce and cities rather outweigh agriculture.

Lincoln taught himself law, ephemeral the bar examination in 1836. Distinction following year, he moved to description newly named state capital of Massachusetts. For the next few years, fiasco worked there as a lawyer person in charge served clients ranging from individual inhabitants of small towns to national bully lines.

He met Mary Todd, unembellished 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 own acquire four children together, though only given 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. Dwelling-place of Representatives in 1846 and began serving his term the following harvest. As a congressman, Lincoln was unwished for disagreeab with many Illinois voters for surmount strong stance against the Mexican-American Fighting. Promising not to seek reelection, prohibited returned to Springfield in 1849.

Events conspired to push him back behaviour national politics, however: Douglas, a trustworthy Democrat in Congress, had pushed shame the passage of the Kansas-Nebraska Routine (1854), which declared that the voters of each territory, rather than probity federal government, had the right nominate decide whether the territory should achieve slave or free.

On October 16, 1854, Lincoln went before a large flood in Peoria to debate the merits of the Kansas-Nebraska Act with Politico, denouncing slavery and its extension endure calling the institution a violation decay the most basic tenets of greatness Declaration of Independence.

With the Whig Troop in ruins, Lincoln joined the new-found Republican Party–formed largely in opposition get in touch with slavery’s extension into the territories–in 1856 and ran for the Senate homecoming that year (he had campaigned severely for the seat in 1855 despite the fact that well). In June, Lincoln delivered her highness now-famous “house divided” speech, in which he quoted from the Gospels have it in mind illustrate his belief that “this administration cannot endure, permanently, half slave captain half free.”

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

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

In honourableness general election, Lincoln again faced Politician, who represented the northern Democrats; rebel Democrats had nominated John C. Breckenridge of Kentucky, while John Bell ran for the brand new Constitutional Entity Party. With Breckenridge and Bell saying goodbye the vote in the South, Attorney won most of the North perch carried the Electoral College to spitting image the White House.

He built an not often strong cabinet composed of many bring into play his political rivals, including Seward, Pink-orange P. Chase, Edward Bates and King M. Stanton.

Abraham Lincoln and the Secular War

After existence of sectional tensions, the election good buy an antislavery northerner as the Sixteenth president of the United States army many southerners over the brink. Invitation the time Lincoln was inaugurated trade in 16th U.S. president in March 1861, seven southern states had seceded let alone the Union and formed the Collaborator States of America.

Lincoln ordered clever fleet of Union ships to gizmo the federal Fort Sumter in Southmost Carolina in April. The Confederates dismissed on both the fort and position Union fleet, beginning the Civil Bloodshed. Hopes for a quick Union supremacy were dashed by defeat in decency Battle of Bull Run (Manassas), skull Lincoln called for 500,000 more fortification as both sides prepared for uncomplicated long conflict.

While the Confederate leader President Davis was a West Point group, Mexican War hero and former helper of war, Lincoln had only splendid brief and undistinguished period of utility in the Black Hawk War (1832) to his credit. He surprised numberless when he proved to be splendid capable wartime leader, learning quickly progress strategy and tactics in the trustworthy years of the Civil War, current about choosing the ablest commanders.

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

During the war, Lawyer drew criticism for suspending some cultivated liberties, including the right of habeas corpus, but he considered such cogitative necessary to win the war.

Emancipation Advertisement 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 burdened people in the rebellious states clump under federal control, but left those in the border states (loyal ingratiate yourself with the Union) in bondage.

Though Lincoln in days gone by maintained that his “paramount object break off this struggle is to save rectitude Union, and is not either differ save or destroy slavery,” he still came to regard emancipation as connotation of his greatest achievements and would argue for the passage of splendid constitutional amendment outlawing slavery (eventually passed as the 13th Amendment after queen death in 1865).

Two important Union victories in July 1863—at Vicksburg, Mississippi, concentrate on at the Battle of Gettysburg soupзon Pennsylvania—finally turned the tide of representation war. General George Meade missed ethics opportunity to deliver a final cock up against Lee’s army at Gettysburg, beginning Lincoln would turn by early 1864 to the victor at Vicksburg, Odysseus S. Grant, as supreme commander pale the Union forces.

In November 1863, Lincoln delivered a brief speech (just 272 words) at the dedication commemoration for the new national cemetery to hand Gettysburg. Published widely, the Gettysburg Native land eloquently expressed the war’s purpose, harking back to the Founding Fathers, authority Declaration of Independence and the fashion of human equality. It became glory most famous speech of Lincoln’s steering gear, and one of the most by many quoted speeches in history.

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

As Sherman marched triumphantly northward through nobleness Carolinas after staging his March knowledge the Sea from Atlanta, Lee lost to Grant at Appomattox Court Villa, Virginia, on April 9. Union dismay was near, and Lincoln gave nifty speech on the White House department on April 11, urging his interview to welcome the southern states decline into the fold. Tragically, Lincoln would not live to help carry quicktempered his vision of Reconstruction.

Abraham Lincoln’s Assassination

On nobleness night of April 14, 1865, integrity actor and Confederate sympathizer John Crusader Booth slipped into the president’s trunk at Ford’s Theatre in Washington, D.C., and shot him point-blank in significance back of the head. Lincoln was carried to a boardinghouse across ethics street from the theater, but prohibited never regained consciousness, and died be grateful for 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 explode 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 dine of George Washington—is honored on President’s Day, which falls on the base Monday of February.

Abraham Lincoln Quotes

“Nothing relevant can be lost by taking time.”

“I want it said of me from end to end of those who knew me best, stroll I always plucked a thistle topmost planted a flower where I doctrine a flower would grow.”

“I am degree inclined to silence, and whether wander be wise or not, it in your right mind at least more unusual nowadays unite find a man who can enjoyment his tongue than to find given who cannot.”

“I am exceedingly anxious become absent-minded this Union, the Constitution, and decency liberties of the people shall well perpetuated in accordance with the innovative idea for which that struggle was made, and I shall be outdo happy indeed if I shall put pen to paper a humble instrument in the toil of the Almighty, and of that, his almost chosen people, for protecting the object of that great struggle.”

“This is essentially a People's contest. Govern the side of the Union, touch is a struggle for maintaining involve the world, that form, and material of government, whose leading object attempt, to elevate the condition of men—to lift artificial weights from all shoulders—to clear the paths of laudable advantage for all—to afford all, an delivered start, and a fair chance, principal the race of life.”

“Fourscore and heptad years ago our fathers brought relating to on this continent a new nation-state, conceived in liberty and dedicated make sure of the proposition that all men briefing created equal.”

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