Abraham Lincoln (1809-1865)

Abraham Lincoln (1809-1865), was one of the truly great men of all time. He preserved the American Union during the Civil War, and proved to the world that democracy can be a lasting form of government. Lincoln's Gettyburg Address, and many of his other speeches and writings, are classic statements of democratic beliefs and goals. In conducting a bitter war, Lincoln never became bitter himself. He showed a nobility of character which continues to grow in world-wide appeal. Lincoln was the first President elected by the Republican party. After his assassination, he was succeeded by Vice-President Andrew Johnson.

The American people knew little about Lincoln when he became President. Nothing in his past experience indicated that he could meet successfully the greatest crisis in the nation's history. He received less than 40 percent of the popular vote. As President, Lincoln was often a careless, inefficient administrator. At times, he gave way to political pressures which he might better have resisted.

But these failings mattered little when compared with Lincoln's great merits. His outstanding asset was insight. Lincoln realized at the beginning of the Civil War that the Union must be saved. The United States was the only important democracy in the world. Lincoln knew that self-government would be proved a failure if the nation could be destroyed by a minority of its own people. He determined that the nation, and democracy, would not be destroyed.

Lincoln's second great asset was his ability to express his convictions so clearly, and with such force, that millions of his countrymen made them their own. This he did in his first and second inaugural addresses, in his annual messages to Congress, in the Gettyburg Address, and in his letters. Lincoln would have been surprised that some of his speeches came to be honored as great literature. He sought only to be understood, and to convince.

Lincoln's third great source of strength was his iron will. The Civil War had to be carried on until the Union was restored. At times, people in the North wavered in this purpose. Lincoln never doubted that in the end, right would make might, and the North would triumph. His unyielding faith in victory helped to win victory.

If the Union had not been preserved, the United States would have become two nations. Neither of these nations could have attained the prosperity and importance that the United States has today. Lincoln influenced the course of world history by his leadership of the North during the Civil War. His own life story has perhapos been just as important. He rose from humble origin to the nation's highest office. Millions of persons regard his career as proof that democracy offers all men the best hope of full and free life.

Life in the United States during Lincoln's administration revolved almost entirely around the Civil War. To raise money to fight the war, Congress levied the first income tax in the history of the country. For the first time, federal officeholders had to take an oath of loyalty to the Union. Pioneers flocked to the western frontier, and mining towns sprang up overnight. The government gave free farms to settlers, and set aside land for colleges that later became state universities.

Soldiers and civilians alike sang "The Battle Hymn of the Republic" or "Dixie." Winslow Homer's painting Prisoners from the Front brought him his first fame. Patriotic literature included John Greenleaf Whittier's poem "Barbara Frietchie" and Edward Everett Hale's story "The Man Without a Country." Lincoln and thousands of other Americans chuckled at the humorous writings of Artemus Ward.