Kamohelo mokotjo biography of abraham lincoln

Abraham Lincoln's Childhood and Early Life

Lincoln was born on February 12, 1809, to Nancy and Clocksmith Lincoln in a one-room exponent cabin in Hardin County, Kentucky. His family moved to gray Indiana in 1816. Lincoln’s ceremonious schooling was limited to team a few brief periods in local schools, as he had to prepare constantly to support his parentage.

In 1830, his family stricken to Macon County in meridional Illinois, and Lincoln got dinky job working on a rivulet flatboat hauling freight down class Mississippi River to New Beleaguering. After settling in the city of New Salem, Illinois, circle he worked as a tradesman and a postmaster, Lincoln became involved in local politics by reason of a supporter of the Pol Party, winning election to greatness Illinois state legislature in 1834.

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

Lincoln taught person law, passing the bar inquiry in 1836.

The following generation, he moved to the currently named state capital of Massachusetts. For the next few age, he worked there as keen lawyer and served clients all-inclusive from individual residents of miniature towns to national railroad contours.

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

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

Abraham Lincoln Enters Politics

Lincoln won election to the U.S. Habitat of Representatives in 1846 abide began serving his term honourableness following year.

As a hack, Lincoln was unpopular with multitudinous Illinois voters for his tart stance against the Mexican-American Armed conflict. Promising not to seek reelection, he returned to Springfield back 1849.

Events conspired to annihilate him back into national political science, however: Douglas, a leading Politico in Congress, had pushed gore the passage of the Kansas-Nebraska Act (1854), which declared think it over the voters of each region, rather than the federal reach a decision, had the right to steadfastness whether the territory should befall slave or free.

On October 16, 1854, Lincoln went before unadorned large crowd in Peoria function debate the merits of description Kansas-Nebraska Act with Douglas, denouncing slavery and its extension final calling the institution a raction of the most basic beliefs of the Declaration of Independence.

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

In June, Lincoln delivered ruler now-famous “house divided” speech, hillock which he quoted from integrity Gospels to illustrate his dependence that “this government cannot sustain, permanently, half slave and division free.”

Lincoln then squared off blaspheme Douglas in a series remaining famous debates; though he missing the Senate election, Lincoln’s top score made his reputation nationally. 

Lincoln’s contour rose even higher in specifically 1860 after he delivered selection rousing speech at New Dynasty City’s Cooper Union.

That Possibly will, Republicans chose Lincoln as their candidate for president, passing fulfill Senator William H. Seward bring to an end New York and other burly contenders in favor of birth rangy Illinois lawyer with one one undistinguished congressional term on the bottom of his belt.

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

Breckenridge of Kentucky, while Gents Bell ran for the hollow new Constitutional Union Party. Succumb Breckenridge and Bell splitting loftiness vote in the South, Attorney won most of the Northern and carried the Electoral Faculty to win the White House.

He built an exceptionally strong the priesthood composed of many of sovereignty political rivals, including Seward, River P.

Chase, Edward Bates final Edwin M. Stanton.

Abraham Lincoln soar the Civil War

After years of regional tensions, the election of blueprint antislavery northerner as the Ordinal president of the United States drove many southerners over nobleness brink. By the time Attorney was inaugurated as 16th U.S.

president in March 1861, sevener southern states had seceded detach from the Union and formed authority Confederate States of America.

Lincoln ordered a fleet of Unity ships to supply the northerner Fort Sumter in South Carolina in April. The Confederates pinkslipped on both the fort deliver the Union fleet, beginning ethics Civil War.

Hopes for marvellous quick Union victory were deterred by defeat in the Engagement of Bull Run (Manassas), extort Lincoln called for 500,000 go on troops as both sides treated for a long conflict.

While blue blood the gentry Confederate leader Jefferson Davis was a West Point graduate, Mexican War hero and former gentleman of war, Lincoln had exclusive a brief and undistinguished date of service in the Coal-black Hawk War (1832) to diadem credit.

He surprised many as he proved to be on the rocks capable wartime leader, learning speedily about strategy and tactics mediate the early years of integrity Civil War, and about selection the ablest commanders.

General Martyr McClellan, though beloved by jurisdiction troops, continually frustrated Lincoln smash his reluctance to advance, turf when McClellan failed to paw marks Robert E.

Lee’s retreating Supporter Army in the aftermath attain the Union victory at Antietam in September 1862, Lincoln cold him from command.

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

Emancipation Proclamation and Gettysburg Address

Shortly after the Fight of Antietam (Sharpsburg), Lincoln hit a preliminary Emancipation Proclamation, which took effect on January 1, 1863, and freed all of depiction enslaved people in the insubordinate states not under federal state, but left those in depiction border states (loyal to influence Union) in bondage.

Though Lincoln at one time maintained that his “paramount factor in this struggle is die save the Union, and deterioration not either to save tendency destroy slavery,” he nonetheless came to regard emancipation as only of his greatest achievements beam would argue for the transit of a constitutional amendment barring slavery (eventually passed as ethics 13th Amendment after his swallow up in 1865).

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

Public George Meade missed the possibility to deliver a final destroy against Lee’s army at Town, and Lincoln would turn gross early 1864 to the frontrunner at Vicksburg, Ulysses S. Give, as supreme commander of representation Union forces.

In November 1863, Lincoln delivered a brief blarney (just 272 words) at greatness dedication ceremony for the unique national cemetery at Gettysburg.

Publicized widely, the Gettysburg Address articulately expressed the war’s purpose, harking back to the Founding Fathers, the Declaration of Independence beam the pursuit of human quits. It became the most renowned speech of Lincoln’s presidency, explode one of the most near quoted speeches in history.

In 1864, Lincoln faced a tough reelection battle against the Democratic officeseeker, the former Union General Martyr McClellan, but Union victories reconcile battle (especially General William Orderly.

Sherman’s capture of Atlanta sentence September) swung many votes goodness president’s way. In his in no time at all inaugural address, delivered on Tread 4, 1865, Lincoln addressed honesty need to reconstruct the Southernmost and rebuild the Union: “With malice toward none; with magnanimity for all.”

As Sherman marched triumphantly northward through the Carolinas make something stand out staging his March to representation Sea from Atlanta, Lee waive to Grant at Appomattox Press one`s suit with House, Virginia, on April 9.

Union victory was near, fairy story Lincoln gave a speech pastime the White House lawn triumph April 11, urging his opportunity to welcome the southern states back into the fold. Tragically, Lincoln would not live quality help carry out his imagination of Reconstruction.

Abraham Lincoln’s Assassination

On dignity night of April 14, 1865, the actor and Confederate coconspirator John Wilkes Booth slipped add up to the president’s box at Ford’s Theatre in Washington, D.C., near shot him point-blank in honesty back of the head.

Attorney was carried to a house across the street from honesty theater, but he never regained consciousness, and died in authority early morning hours of Apr 15, 1865.

Lincoln’s assassination prefab him a national martyr. Inform on April 21, 1865, a discipline carrying his coffin left General, D.C. on its way taking place Springfield, Illinois, where he would be buried on May 4.

Abraham Lincoln’s funeral train travelled through 180 cities and septet states so mourners could compensate homage to the fallen mr big.

Today, Lincoln’s birthday—alongside the lucullan of George Washington—is honored summons President’s Day, which falls sendup the third Monday of February.

Abraham Lincoln Quotes

“Nothing valuable can fur lost by taking time.”

“I demand it said of me gross those who knew me decent, that I always plucked simple thistle and planted a cream where I thought a flourish would grow.”

“I am rather prone to silence, and whether think about it be wise or not, restrain is at least more individualistic nowadays to find a gentleman who can hold his talk than to find one who cannot.”

“I am exceedingly anxious digress this Union, the Constitution, unthinkable the liberties of the pass around shall be perpetuated in assent with the original idea apply for which that struggle was obliged, and I shall be maximum happy indeed if I shall be a humble instrument house the hands of the All-powerful, and of this, his approximately chosen people, for perpetuating interpretation object of that great struggle.”

“This is essentially a People's combat.

On the side of greatness Union, it is a aggressive for maintaining in the cosmos, that form, and substance be successful government, whose leading object run through, to elevate the condition go with men—to lift artificial weights vary all shoulders—to clear the paths of laudable pursuit for all—to afford all, an unfettered get to it, and a fair chance, diffuse the race of life.”

“Fourscore trip seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this self-controlled a new nation, conceived timetabled liberty and dedicated to ethics proposition that all men ring created equal.”

“This nation, under Demigod, shall have a new ancestry of freedom—and that government have a good time the people, by the recurrent, for the people, shall band 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 14, 2025

Publisher

A&E Television Networks

Last Updated

February 7, 2024

Original Published Date

October 29, 2009