Biography on president abraham lincoln
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U.S. Presidents / Abraham Lincoln
When Abraham Lincoln was elected President in 1860, seven slave states left the Union to form the Confederate States of America, and four more joined when hostilities began between the North and South. A bloody civil war then engulfed the nation as Lincoln vowed to preserve the Union, enforce the laws of the United States, and end the secession. The war lasted for more than four years with a staggering loss of more than 600,000 Americans dead. Midway through the war, Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation, which freed all slaves within the Confederacy and changed the war from a battle to preserve the Union into a battle for freedom. He was the first Republican President, and Union victory ended forever the claim that state sovereignty superseded federal authority. Killed by an assassin's bullet less than a week after the surrender of Confederate forces, Lincoln left the nation a more perfect Union and thereby earned the admiration of mo
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Abraham Lincoln
1809-1865
Who Was Abraham Lincoln?
Abraham Lincoln was the 16thpresident of the United States, serving from 1861 to 1865, and is regarded as one of America’s greatest heroes due to his roles in guiding the Union through the Civil War and working to emancipate enslaved people. His eloquent support of democracy and insistence that the Union was worth saving embody the ideals of self-government that all nations strive to achieve. In 1863, he issued the Emancipation Proclamation, which freed slaves across the Confederacy. Lincoln’s rise from humble beginnings to achieving the highest office in the land is a remarkable story, and his death is equally notably. He was assassinated by John Wilkes Booth in 1865, at age 56, as the country was slowly beginning to reunify following the war. Lincoln’s distinctively humane personality and incredible impact on the nation have endowed him with an enduring legacy.
Quick Facts
FULL NAME: Abraham Lincoln
BORN: February 12, 1
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Abraham Lincoln was born in 1809 on a small farm nära Hodgenville, Kentucky. Due to the remoteness of his upbringing and lack of available public education, Lincoln was mostly self-educated. In 1836, after years of study, he qualified as a lawyer and went to work in a law practice in Springfield, Illinois. He sat in the Illinois state legislature from 1834 to 1842, and in 1846 was elected to Congress, representing the Whig Party for a two-year term. In 1856, he joined the new Republican Party, and in 1858 he ran as their candidate for the US Senate. Though he lost the election, his series of debates with Stephen A. Douglas thrust him into the national spotlight, and in 1860 he was nominated as the Republican candidate for president.
In the presidential campaign, Lincoln made his motstånd to the expansion of slavery very clear. His victory provoked a crisis for the southern states, with many fearing that he would attempt to abolish slavery. Seven southern states left the Union to