abraham lincoln

Lincoln won the 1860 election and was inaugurated as president in March of 1861. The southern states did not want Lincoln to be president. They did not agree with his policies. Before he was officially in office, they began to secede (leave the country). The first state to leave was South Carolina, but soon six more states followed and together they formed a new country called the Confederacy. This all happened after Lincoln won the election, but before he took the oath of office.

On January 1, 1863 Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation. This was an order that freed the slaves in the Confederate States. Although not all the slaves were immediately set free, it paved the way for the 13th Amendment which would free all slaves in the United States a few years later.

Today, Lincoln is often remembered for a short speech he gave at Gettysburg on November 1, 1863. Its called the Gettysburg Address. It was only a few minutes long, but is considered one of the great speeches in American history.

The Civil War finally ended on April 9, 1865 when General Robert E. Lee surrendered at the Appomattox Court House in Virginia. Lincoln wanted the country to heal, forgive, and rebuild. He wanted to be generous to the southern states in helping them during the reconstruction. Unfortunately, he would not live to see the country rebuild.

In 1832, Lincoln enlisted to fight in the Black Hawk War. He was quickly elected to be the captain of a company of volunteers. His company joined regulars under Colonel Zachary Taylor. He only served 30 days in this capacity and then signed on as a private in the mounted Rangers. He then joined the Independent Spy Corps. He saw no real action during his short stint in the military.

Lincoln worked as a clerk before joining the military. He ran for the state legislature and lost in 1832. He was appointed as Postmaster of New Salem by Andrew Jackson (1833 36). He was elected as a Whig to the Illinois legislature (1834 1842). He studied law and was admitted to the bar in 1836. Lincoln served as a US Representative (1847 49). He was elected to the state legislature in 1854 but resigned to run for the US Senate. He gave his famous house divided speech after being nominated.

Lincoln debated his opponent, Stephen Douglas, seven times in what became known as the Lincoln Douglas Debates. While they agreed on many issues, they disagreed over the morality of slavery. Lincoln did not believe that slavery should spread any further but Douglas argued for popular sovereignty. Lincoln explained that while he was not asking for equality, he believed African Americans should get the rights granted in the Declaration of Independence life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Lincoln lost the state election to Douglas.

Lincoln was nominated for the presidency by the Republican Party with Hannibal Hamlin as his running mate. He ran on a platform denouncing disunion and calling for an end to slavery in the territories. The Democrats were divided with Stephen Douglas representing the Democrats and John Breckinridge the National (Southern) Democrats. John Bell ran for the Constitutional Union Party which basically took votes from Douglas. In the end, Lincoln won 40% of the popular vote and 180 of the 303 electors.

The Republicans, now the National Union Party, had some concern that Lincoln wouldnt win but still renominated him with Andrew Johnson as his Vice President. Their platform demanded unconditional surrender and the official end to slavery. His opponent, George McClellan, had been relieved as the head of the Union armies by Lincoln. His platform was that the war was a failure, and Lincoln had taken away too many civil liberties. Lincoln won because the war turned in the Norths favor during the campaign.

On April 14, 1865, Lincoln was assassinated while attending a play at Fords Theater in Washington, D.C. Actor John Wilkes Booth shot him in the back of the head before jumping onto the stage and escaping to Maryland. Lincoln died on April 15th.On April 26th, Booth was found hiding in a barn which was set on fire. He was then shot and killed. Eight conspirators were punished for their roles.