Abraham Lincoln:

Presidency

“The Individual in History: Actions and Legacies”

By: Greg Edwards

Pre-Presidency Facts

• Born: February 12,1809 Hardin County, Kentucky

• Spouse: Mary Todd Lincoln• Children: Robert Todd Lincoln, Edward

Lincoln, William Lincoln, Tad Lincoln• Prior Occupation Before Presidency: Lawyer

Education

• Formal education consisted of 18 months of schooling

• He was mostly self educated• He also learned from being an dedicated

reader

1860 Presidential Election

• Party: Republican• Lincoln received his first endorsement to run

for president at the Illinois Republican State Convention.

• On November 6,1860 Lincoln became the 16th president of the United States

• Lincoln was not even on the ballot in 9 southern states

1860 Presidential Election (continued)

• Between December 20,1860 and February 1, 1861 7 southern states lead by South Carolina broke away from the north and declared themselves as the Confederate States of America because of Lincoln being elected.

• During his inauguration Lincoln tried to reunite the states but was unsuccessful.

First Term

• In 1860-1861 fighting between the Union and the Confederacy started because the Confederacy fired upon Union troops at Fort Sumter and forced them to surrender.

• In response Lincoln called on the governors of every state to send detachments totaling 75,000 troops to recapture the forts, protect the capital, and “preserve the Union.”

First Term (continued)

• To deal with the confederacy Lincoln arrested rebel leaders.

• He also negotiated with the remaining slave states, Missouri, Kentucky, Maryland, and Delaware, not to interfere with slavery.

• Lincoln came up with the Emancipation Proclamation which freed slaves in territories not controlled by the Union. When Lincoln signed the proclamation he made the abolition of slavery in rebel states an official goal of the war.

Gettysburg Address

• The Battle of Gettysburg was a Union victory but also the bloodiest battle of the war which decreased the numbers of Union troops.

• This lead to the Gettysburg Address which is considered one of the best speeches in American history.

• In his speech Lincoln referred to the events of the Civil War and the ceremony as an opportunity to not only consecrate the grounds of a cemetery but to dedicate the struggle to ensure that the “government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish.”

Second Election

• In 1864 Lincoln was re-elected in a landslide. He won all but three states.

• By this time a victory over the rebels was at hand and slavery was dead.

• Lincoln’s inaugural speech was his favorite speech.

Second Term

• Lincoln was close to ending the war. To aid him in winning the war he brought in the western general Ulysses S. Grant.

• Grant finally defeated General Lees army and Richmond fell.

• Lincoln was able to use African Americans in the army and relentlessly pursue a series of coordinated offensives in multiple theaters because of Grant sharing the same visions of the war.

Second Term(continued)

• On April 9,1865 Lee surrendered and the war was over. Soon after the other rebel armies surrendered and there was no subsequent guerrilla warfare.

• Lincoln was very successful during his presidency.

Suspended Civil Liberties

• During his presidency Lincoln had appropriated powers no previous president had.

• He used his war powers to proclaim a blockade.

• Suspended the writ of habeas corpus.• Spent money before congress appropriated it.• And Imprisoned 18,000 suspected

confederate sympathizers without trial.