Discover the timeless wisdom of one of America's greatest leaders, Abraham Lincoln. Delve into his quotes and insights that continue to inspire and enlighten us to this day.
"87 years ago, our nation was founded on the principle that all men are created equal. Now, we're in a civil war testing if such a nation can survive. We're here at Gettysburg to honor those who fought and died, recognizing that our words can't match their sacrifice. This battlefield is a reminder for us, the living, to continue the fight for freedom and ensure that democracy endures, ensuring that these deaths were not in vain and that our nation, dedicated to freedom and the people's government, will last."
Famous Speeches
Now we are engaged in a great civil war, testing whether that nation, or any nation so conceived and so dedicated, can long endure. We are met on a great battle-field of that war. We have come to dedicate a portion of that field, as a final resting place for those who here gave their lives that that nation might live. It is altogether fitting and proper that we should do this.
But, in a larger sense, we can not dedicate—we can not consecrate—we can not hallow—this ground. The brave men, living and dead, who struggled here, have consecrated it, far above our poor power to add or detract. The world will little note, nor long remember what we say here, but it can never forget what they did here. It is for us the living, rather, to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which they who fought here have thus far so nobly advanced. It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us—that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion—that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain—that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom—and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.
Abraham Lincoln's Life
● Born on February 12, 1809, in a log cabin in Hardin County, Kentucky.
● Grew up in frontier conditions, largely self-educated with a strong desire for learning.
● Moved with his family to Indiana in 1816 and then to Illinois in 1830.
● Worked as a shopkeeper, postmaster, and eventually as a surveyor, but found his calling in law and politics.
● Entered politics in 1832, losing his first political election, then served four successive terms in the Illinois State Legislature starting in 1834.
● Married Mary Todd in 1842; the couple had four sons, but only one survived into adulthood.
● Elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1846, serving one term.
● Returned to politics in the 1850s, emerging as a leader in the new Republican Party with a stance against the spread of slavery.
● Debated Stephen A. Douglas in 1858 during a campaign for the U.S. Senate; Lincoln lost the election but gained national recognition.
● Elected the 16th President of the United States in 1860; his election led to the secession of seven Southern states before his inauguration.
● Led the United States through its Civil War, the bloodiest war and greatest moral, constitutional, and political crisis in its history.
● Issued the Emancipation Proclamation on January 1, 1863, declaring all slaves in Confederate-held territory to be forever free.
● Re-elected in 1864 amid the ongoing war, advocating for a vision of national unity.
● Assassinated by John Wilkes Booth, a Confederate sympathizer, on April 14, 1865, at Ford's Theatre in Washington, D.C.; died the following day.
● Remembered as a martyr hero and the "Great Emancipator," Lincoln's leadership is celebrated for preserving the Union and beginning the process that led to the end of slavery in the United States.
Top 10 Abraham Lincoln Quotes
1. "Fourscore and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this continent, a new nation, conceived in Liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal."
2. "Government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the Earth."
3. "I am a firm believer in the people. If given the truth, they can be depended upon to meet any national crisis. The great point is to bring them the real facts."
4. "Whatever you are, be a good one."
5. "I do not think much of a man who is not wiser today than he was yesterday."
6. "Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man's character, give him power."
7. "I have always found that mercy bears richer fruits than strict justice."
8. "It is better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to speak out and remove all doubt."
9. "My great concern is not whether you have failed, but whether you are content with your failure."
10. "The best way to predict your future is to create it."