Abraham Lincoln

Abraham Lincoln (February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was the 16th president of the United States, serving from 1861 until his assassination in 1865. He led the country through the American Civil War, preserved the Union, and played a central role in the abolition of slavery.

Born in a one-room log cabin in Kentucky and raised on the frontier, Lincoln was largely self-educated. He became a lawyer, served in the Illinois state legislature, and later represented Illinois in the U.S. House of Representatives. After opposing the Kansas–Nebraska Act, which allowed slavery to expand into new territories, he emerged as a leading figure in the new Republican Party. His national prominence grew during the 1858 debates with Stephen A. Douglas, and he won the 1860 presidential election as the first Republican president.

Lincoln’s election prompted several slave states to secede and form the Confederate States of America. After the Confederate attack on Fort Sumter, the Civil War began. During the conflict, Lincoln directed Union strategy, supported the blockade of Southern ports, and suspended habeas corpus. He issued the Emancipation Proclamation in 1863, delivered the Gettysburg Address, and promoted the Thirteenth Amendment, which abolished slavery. Re-elected in 1864, he also began planning for Reconstruction.

Lincoln was shot by John Wilkes Booth at Ford’s Theatre in Washington, D.C., and died on April 15, 1865. He is remembered as a national hero and one of the greatest U.S. presidents.