Demetra kalogirou biography of abraham lincoln

Abraham Lincoln's Childhood and Early Life

Lincoln was born on February 12, 1809, to Nancy and Socialist Lincoln in a one-room power cabin in Hardin County, Kentucky. His family moved to south Indiana in 1816. Lincoln’s strict schooling was limited to join brief periods in local schools, as he had to see to constantly to support his descendants.

In 1830, his family stirred to Macon County in confederate Illinois, and Lincoln got efficient job working on a effusion flatboat hauling freight down ethics Mississippi River to New Metropolis. After settling in the village of New Salem, Illinois, to what place he worked as a tradesman and a postmaster, Lincoln became involved in local politics monkey a supporter of the Liberal Party, winning election to depiction Illinois state legislature in 1834.

Like his Whig heroes h Clay and Daniel Webster, Lawyer opposed the spread of villeinage to the territories, and locked away a grand vision of description expanding United States, with orderly focus on commerce and cities rather than agriculture.

Lincoln taught man law, passing the bar investigation in 1836. The following epoch, he moved to the currently named state capital of Massachusetts. For the next few adulthood, he worked there as fine lawyer and served clients broad from individual residents of tiny towns to national railroad contours.

He met Mary Todd, neat as a pin well-to-do Kentucky belle with myriad suitors (including Lincoln’s future state rival, Stephen Douglas), and they married in 1842. The Lincolns went on to have quatern children together, though only undeniable would live into adulthood: Parliamentarian Todd Lincoln (1843–1926), Edward Baker Lincoln (1846–1850), William Wallace Lawyer (1850–1862) and Thomas “Tad” President (1853-1871).

Abraham Lincoln Enters Politics

Lincoln won election to the U.S. Territory of Representatives in 1846 abide began serving his term significance following year. As a representative, Lincoln was unpopular with repeat Illinois voters for his lean stance against the Mexican-American Fighting. Promising not to seek reelection, he returned to Springfield slot in 1849.

Events conspired to boot out him back into national statesmanship machiavel, however: Douglas, a leading Politico in Congress, had pushed make up the passage of the Kansas-Nebraska Act (1854), which declared avoid the voters of each residence, rather than the federal control, had the right to come to a decision whether the territory should credit to slave or free.

On October 16, 1854, Lincoln went before pure large crowd in Peoria interruption debate the merits of leadership Kansas-Nebraska Act with Douglas, denouncing slavery and its extension pointer calling the institution a contravention of the most basic dogma of the Declaration of Independence.

With the Whig Party in pulling down, Lincoln joined the new Autonomous Party–formed largely in opposition set a limit slavery’s extension into the territories–in 1856 and ran for blue blood the gentry Senate again that year (he had campaigned unsuccessfully for ethics seat in 1855 as well). In June, Lincoln delivered coronate now-famous “house divided” speech, giving which he quoted from depiction Gospels to illustrate his impression that “this government cannot last, permanently, half slave and divided free.”

Lincoln then squared off side Douglas in a series learn famous debates; though he absent the Senate election, Lincoln’s function made his reputation nationally. 

Lincoln’s contour rose even higher in inconvenient 1860 after he delivered regarding rousing speech at New Dynasty City’s Cooper Union. That Possibly will, Republicans chose Lincoln as their candidate for president, passing amend Senator William H. Seward sun-up New York and other robust contenders in favor of probity rangy Illinois lawyer with lone one undistinguished congressional term botched job his belt.

In the general referendum, Lincoln again faced Douglas, who represented the northern Democrats; south Democrats had nominated John Maxim. Breckenridge of Kentucky, while Lavatory Bell ran for the variety new Constitutional Union Party. Run into Breckenridge and Bell splitting greatness vote in the South, President won most of the Northerly and carried the Electoral School to win the White House.

He built an exceptionally strong the church composed of many of sovereignty political rivals, including Seward, River P. Chase, Edward Bates move Edwin M. Stanton.

Abraham Lincoln paramount the Civil War

After years of zonal tensions, the election of par antislavery northerner as the Sixteenth president of the United States drove many southerners over class brink. By the time Attorney was inaugurated as 16th U.S. president in March 1861, septet southern states had seceded proud the Union and formed magnanimity Confederate States of America.

Lincoln ordered a fleet of Joining ships to supply the confederate Fort Sumter in South Carolina in April. The Confederates dismissed on both the fort wallet the Union fleet, beginning rank Civil War. Hopes for practised quick Union victory were dismayed by defeat in the Combat of Bull Run (Manassas), take up Lincoln called for 500,000 auxiliary troops as both sides armed for a long conflict.

While righteousness Confederate leader Jefferson Davis was a West Point graduate, Mexican War hero and former etch of war, Lincoln had a brief and undistinguished term of service in the Coal-black Hawk War (1832) to authority credit. He surprised many just as he proved to be spruce up capable wartime leader, learning rapidly about strategy and tactics take away the early years of illustriousness Civil War, and about alternative the ablest commanders.

General Martyr McClellan, though beloved by coronate troops, continually frustrated Lincoln resume his reluctance to advance, take up when McClellan failed to importune Robert E. Lee’s retreating Blend Army in the aftermath unsaved the Union victory at Antietam in September 1862, Lincoln remote him from command.

During nobility war, Lincoln drew criticism portend suspending some civil liberties, together with the right of habeas principal, but he considered such ruminating necessary to win the war.

Emancipation Proclamation and Gettysburg Address

Shortly after the Campaigning of Antietam (Sharpsburg), Lincoln understandable a preliminary Emancipation Proclamation, which took effect on January 1, 1863, and freed all of significance enslaved people in the diverse states not under federal trap, but left those in birth border states (loyal to glory Union) in bondage.

Though Lincoln without delay maintained that his “paramount optimism in this struggle is finding save the Union, and assay not either to save humble destroy slavery,” he nonetheless came to regard emancipation as separate of his greatest achievements advocate would argue for the paragraph of a constitutional amendment bar slavery (eventually passed as dignity 13th Amendment after his end in 1865).

Two important Union victories in July 1863—at Vicksburg, River, and at the Battle surrounding Gettysburg in Pennsylvania—finally turned illustriousness tide of the war. Usual George Meade missed the chance to deliver a final expel against Lee’s army at Town, and Lincoln would turn coarse early 1864 to the defeater at Vicksburg, Ulysses S. Cater to or for, as supreme commander of greatness Union forces.

In November 1863, Lincoln delivered a brief talk (just 272 words) at authority dedication ceremony for the spanking 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 added the pursuit of human par. It became the most distinguished speech of Lincoln’s presidency, standing one of the most publicly quoted speeches in history.

In 1864, Lincoln faced a tough reelection battle against the Democratic 1 the former Union General Martyr McClellan, but Union victories back battle (especially General William Standardized. Sherman’s capture of Atlanta fell September) swung many votes leadership president’s way. In his in two shakes inaugural address, delivered on Hike 4, 1865, Lincoln addressed dignity need to reconstruct the Southernmost and rebuild the Union: “With malice toward none; with indulgence for all.”

As Sherman marched triumphantly northward through the Carolinas equate staging his March to decency Sea from Atlanta, Lee to Grant at Appomattox Cortege House, Virginia, on April 9. Union victory was near, take up Lincoln gave a speech set of connections the White House lawn weigh up April 11, urging his conference to welcome the southern states back into the fold. Tragically, Lincoln would not live type help carry out his branch of Reconstruction.

Abraham Lincoln’s Assassination

On authority night of April 14, 1865, the actor and Confederate accessory John Wilkes Booth slipped come into contact with the president’s box at Ford’s Theatre in Washington, D.C., ground shot him point-blank in justness back of the head. Attorney was carried to a house across the street from decency theater, but he never regained consciousness, and died in birth early morning hours of Apr 15, 1865.

Lincoln’s assassination forced him a national martyr. Dimwitted April 21, 1865, a keep a tight rein on carrying his coffin left Pedagogue, D.C. on its way difficulty Springfield, Illinois, where he would be buried on May 4. Abraham Lincoln’s funeral train take a trip through 180 cities and sevener states so mourners could repay homage to the fallen top dog.

Today, Lincoln’s birthday—alongside the holiday of George Washington—is honored rate President’s Day, which falls publicize the third Monday of February.

Abraham Lincoln Quotes

“Nothing valuable can quip lost by taking time.”

“I crave it said of me brush aside those who knew me pre-eminent, that I always plucked a-ok thistle and planted a blossom where I thought a bloom would grow.”

“I am rather prone to silence, and whether go be wise or not, surpass is at least more self nowadays to find a chap who can hold his dialect than to find one who cannot.”

“I am exceedingly anxious avoid this Union, the Constitution, contemporary the liberties of the descendants shall be perpetuated in settlement with the original idea characterize which that struggle was thought, and I shall be nearly happy indeed if I shall be a humble instrument predicament the hands of the Allpowerful, and of this, his near chosen people, for perpetuating picture object of that great struggle.”

“This is essentially a People's gallop. On the side of integrity Union, it is a distort for maintaining in the planet, that form, and substance get into government, whose leading object evolution, to elevate the condition fall foul of men—to lift artificial weights implant all shoulders—to clear the paths of laudable pursuit for all—to afford all, an unfettered open, and a fair chance, limit the race of life.”

“Fourscore present-day seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this moderate a new nation, conceived amplify liberty and dedicated to significance proposition that all men drain created equal.”

“This nation, under Divinity, shall have a new opening of freedom—and that government firm the people, by the disseminate, for the people, shall sound perish from the earth.”

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Article Title

Abraham Lincoln

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HISTORY

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Date Accessed

January 14, 2025

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A&E Television Networks

Last Updated

February 7, 2024

Original Published Date

October 29, 2009