...Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation is one of the most revered documents in United States history. In its time, the document effectively freed the slaves but also marked the first step in creating an America with racial equality. Therefore, because of its significance in shaping the ideals of the United States, many people assume that future leaders of the nation would view the Emancipation Proclamation in the same way. However, in looking at speeches made by Franklin Roosevelt, John F. Kennedy, and Barack Obama during some of the most notable time periods in United States history, it becomes evident that presidents did not approach Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation in the same way. Instead, circumstances surrounding each particular administration...
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...During the end of slavery in United States, Lincoln played a big role of the Great Emancipator but was not trusted and yet so energetically vilified by the party of abolition. He did not believe in Christian religion but preferred to believe human minds and law and order was the key. Also he was not open-minded but want do things on his own way. At least he did come to conclusion on how to end slavery using the Emancipation Proclamation Act. “He was Skeptical as to the great truths of Christian religion”, says Lincoln. He was very uncertain and did not believe about the Separates’ God, but believed that human minds is impelled to action that is held over by some power that has no control. All his life he continued to keep a vivid sense of a superintending and overruling Providence that will guide and control the operation of the world. In his midlife, Lincoln had an attitude towards some of early religious skepticism because of his political tax. He attended some churches due to his political appearance and for the sake of his family reputation that were Presbyterian. The abolitionists did not like Lincoln because he was a Republican who supported the slavery in the southern states. As he continued with his presidency he joined a political allegiance, which was the Whig party that showed how Lincoln was a liberal nationalists. Lincoln attacked a proposal that was criticized by Henry Clay how abolitionists have become enemies of the constitutional government. Once he disowned...
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...The Radical Republicans, a group of Abraham Lincoln’s own Republican Party aided the President to make some large decisions. The group lasted for 23 years, from 1854 to 1877 and were a faction of American politicians with the Republican Party. This group agreed and disagreed with many opinions with President Lincoln, which made an impact on the result of the war and occurrences throughout it. One of the tasks the Radical Republicans and Lincoln disagreed on was the Reconstruction plan. The Radical Republicans were critical to the foundation of American because they guided an answer to a few of the important questions that Lincoln needed a second opinion on. The Radical Republicans agreed with Abraham Lincoln that the Union needed to enter and fight in the Civil War to...
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...later, Lincoln moved and settled in the town of New Salem, Illinois. He was a self-taught lawyer and legislator. Soon he became engaged in local politics. He worked as a supporter of the “Whig Party” and won the election to the Illinois State legislator in 1834. Lincoln was a staunch advocate of internal improvements, a national banking system, and frontier settlement. During his presidency, he continued to support these causes, and implemented policies to further them. He opposed to the idea of spreading slavery to the territories. His vision was to expand the united states with a focus on commerce and cities; rather than agriculture. An unsuccessful bill to abolish slavery in the District of Columbia later became law during his first term as president. So, generally, with reguard to domestic policy, Lincoln's presidency was of a piece with his previous political activity. The main difference between Lincoln the legislator and Lincoln the president lies in his attitude toward the balance of power between the executive and legislative branches of the federal government. As a Member of Congress, Lincoln had been extremely critical of President Polk's sweeping executive privileges during the Mexican War, arguing that only the legislature had the power to declare and direct the course of war; But during the Civil War, Lincoln himself seized a considerable amount of Congressional authority, wielding more power than any president before. Lincoln was respected for leading for being...
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...American Civil War The American Civil War is a very misunderstood war. It is known for the war that ended slavery. What most people don’t know is the war was not originally fought for the abolition of slavery. The South, or the Confederate, wanted to exercise their rights as states and split from the north. Well Abraham Lincoln thought that would be the downfall of the United States. The Civil War was fought to between the Union and the Confederacy on the issue of splitting up the United States. The country was divided between two philosophies, either they thought the country could only survive and prosper as a whole, or they believed the south had the right to split from the union. The country was divided between two different philosophies. The North believed if the South seceded from the North the country would crumble. While the South believed they had the right as states to separate themselves from the Union. (Malvasi) Abraham Lincoln was the head of the Unions thinking. He had a great sense of political knowledge. He realized if the south did secede the Union wouldn’t stand a chance against attack because half of the country essentially would have been gone. Lincoln originally had no plans of abolishing slavery all his focus was on keeping the country together in one strong unit. (Malvasi) The South on the other hand felt they had been mistreated by the Union and were being taken advantage of. Soon the idea of secession came around ...
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...who knows how our society would be like today. The fact is, the South was at a disadvantage right from the get-go, before the war even started. From then on, the south was hurt not only economically at the beginning of the war, but also with man power and many other complications to come. One being that most of the population living in the South at that time was made up of slaves. They were also far behind the North with industry, technology and transporting goods which was a huge setback because the North controlled goods coming from England and other countries. When Abraham Lincoln became president, he and the Republican Party had a long list of things they wanted to accomplish right away, which included the Homestead Act, and Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation. The ongoing bickering and intense hatred between the North and South before the civil war was so distinct that you could cut the tension with a knife. In 1820, forty years before the Civil war, it was the beginning of a monster to come. As the country rapidly moved west into new territories, there had to be a decision made. Were the new territories going to be slave states or Free states? This argument was what fueled the fire for forty years to come. The Missouri Compromise was thought to be the ultimate fix to the slave issue. Any state about the 36 30 parallel was to be a free state and any state below the line was to be a Slave State. As states started to become part of the union, both the North and the South...
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...‘remarkable ability to communicate his goals to his countrymen.’ He made concepts simple and communicated with an understanding of the concerns of the citizens” This shows that he was able to get his point through and not let anyone change his mind with useless advice like Kearns Goodwin said, “the war was not going well for the North. Members of his political party came to Lincoln and said that there was no way to win the war and he might need to compromise on slavery. Lincoln held firm on the issue of slavery and turned away from this...
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...When many Americans think of Abraham Lincoln, they think first of all, as the president who freed the slaves. He is immortalized as the "Great Emancipator," and widely regarded as a champion of black freedom who supported social equality of the races, and who fought the American Civil War (1861-1865) to free the slaves. In actuality, Abraham Lincoln did not fight the Civil War to free the slaves. He fought it to save the Union. He did not agree with slavery and one of the good things that came out of the Union being saved was the abolishment of slavery. (Gienapp, 2002). (Jenness, 2007). Abraham Lincoln was a self made man that rose mythically from humble beginnings to national greatness. He began life as a farm boy. He did not come from a family who believed in education. Despite this, Abraham Lincoln read books and done whatever he could to educate himself. He was a man that believed in honesty and caring for other people. After learning many lessons in life and climbing the ladder of success, his fine qualities landed him as the United States of America’s 16th President. He was successful in doing many great things for people and his community and eventually the United States. (Gienapp, 2002). (Jenness, 2007). He was embarrassed of his family background. He came from a poor family that was farmers. His life as a farm boy was spent doing chores, such as hauling water and chopping wood, and helping in the fields. His mother died when Abraham Lincoln was 9. His...
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...course/outcome of the civil war. Specific information was given by Freehlng to show how the anti-confederates southerners determined the course and outcome of the civil war. The information is discussed in the following paragraph. According to Freehling, the events beyond the battlefields partially determined military verdicts. Furthermore, home front and battlefront unveiled defining aspects of civil war. The division within the south also helped pave the path toward the war and also, the division among the southern and home front dissensions determined battlefield verdicts. The outcome of the war was the collapse of the confederacy that was caused by the defeat in the military sphere, rather than dissolution behind the lines. Anti-confederate southerners piled on psychological, economical and geographical burdens that ultimately helped flatten white confederate’s resiliency. President Abraham Lincoln’s statecraft, the union’s anaconda military strategy, northern democrats and English men’s attitudes seemingly tangential matters bore vitally on southern anti-confederates capacity to influence the battlefields and to illuminate important characteristics of civil war. The tale of the southern house divided, highlights under appreciated gems of civil war lore, including revealing code words, colorful luminaries, key battles and vital military orders, this tells why the war came. In conclusion, the anti-confederate southerners in so many ways that are discussed in...
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...companion volume that extends his manifesto against hindsight, what Gallagher calls the ‘Appomattox syndrome,’ to histories of the Union” (Gallagher, 79). According to Gallagher, researchers who work backward from emancipation and Reconstruction have expanded northern devotion to race, slavery, and abolition while complicating loyal Americans’ major war aim, the Union. The above quote stated by Gary Gallagher is one of the main causes as to why the North won the Civil War because with the joining of citizens who wanted to fight for their democratic government, it gave the Union more soldiers that wanted to fight than the Confederates. They won the Civil War simply because they had more people. The North won the Civil War they were on the right side of human ethical issues. They had their best interest in helping the morals of humans and this alone helps citizens be able to trust the Union’s tendencies and this can also make a citizen loyal. The North clearly had more men to fight for them and there were more people that wanted to end slavery, consisting of slaves themselves. The North managed to enlist many people for the war. Superior leadership is often seen as the main reason for Union victory. Yet, in many respects, the Confederacy was well led. While President Lincoln’s dominance to Jefferson Davis might seem self-evident, Lee could think of no one in the South who could have done a better job than Davis. Davis certainly worked...
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...Book Report Gienapp, William E., Abraham Lincoln and Civil War America; Oxford University Press. New York, 2002. This book is a glimpse into Abraham Lincoln’s political career and personal life. His personal life was much hidden from the outside world, and his feelings and personal affairs were kept out of public scrutiny. He was neither a great husband nor a father, but was considered to be one of the greatest presidents this nation has ever seen. Lincoln was a very conservative man, and managed to provide leadership in both the political and military strategies. He is considered the man who shaped change in our nation, which led to many controversial issues being solved. It took a man of great strength and courage to lead and control the nation during this very demanding time. He was the right person at the right time. President Abraham Lincoln was born in Nolan Creek, Kentucky, on February 12, 1809. In 1811, his father moved to Indiana due to problems with land titles and to get away from slavery. However, his reason was that slaves competed directly for work opportunities for his father. Lincoln’s formal education was limited due to availability. In his later teen years he began to read anything he could. His first brush with law came in the form of a book entitled “The Revised Laws of Indiana.” In the pursuit of a career, Lincoln arrived in Springfield, Illinois in 1837, where he began his new life as a lawyer. Lincoln held that democracy was the most important...
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...leaving the country mourning for one of the greatest Presidents that ever lived. There is no doubt Abraham Lincoln was an accomplished person, so how did one man leave such a legacy and mark on the United States of America? Although he was a great man, Abraham Lincoln did not just come out of his mother’s womb and suddenly know what he wanted to do in life. Like most humans, it can take months, years, or even decades for one’s beliefs and ideals to form. How we choose what we like and do not like does not occur randomly, but through people and events that leave a great impression and influence on us. Abraham Lincoln's greatest influences in his life that shaped his beliefs and character were his close friendships with Joshua Fry Speed and William Herndon, his service in the Black Hawk War, and flatboat trips to New Orleans where he witnessed for the first time the horrors of slavery. Abraham Lincoln was born from humble origins in central Kentucky. His family moved around quite often, trying to find a stable way...
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...historic period prior to the 1860s was the most underlying era in American society as it led to the bloodiest war in the American history, the Civil war. Prior to the Civil war, the American politics were sectionally divided between the Northern Republicans and the Southern Democrats. The political culture was almost saturated as both sections had realized that the numerous compromises would only provoke questions and dissimilarities between them, with the largely interfered question of slavery and suffrage. The Missouri Compromise of 1820 had been implemented as a nationwide direction towards admitting states with reference the 36° 30´ latitude line, either as a free-state (above line) or as a slave state (below the line). Despite of the temporary success of the compromise of 1820, it was repealed by the Stephen A. Douglas in 1854 in his Kansas-Nebraska Act. Likewise, the Compromise of 1850, created by the Great Compromiser, Henry Clay, was an effort to preserve the Union by settling the issue of slavery in the newly acquired territories from the Mexican-American War. Although it assured a temporary peaceful settlement between the sections, it failed to give birth to the Civil war and the rise in sectionalism. Although all these compromises had served their desired intents, politically as well as socially, in turn, they only played a catalyst role in increasing the tensions between the Northerners and Southerners. Thereafter, the period of Reconstruction was booming, as the Republicans...
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...Running head: AMERICA’S POST-CIVIL WAR GROWING 1 America’s Post-Civil War Growing Pains Zarick L. Robinson Professor Peacock Contemporary U.S. History – Assignment #1 Strayer University July 18, 2013 AMERICA’S POST-CIVIL WAR GROWING PAINS 2 The United States experienced many growing pains during the time period of 1865 to 1900 but I’d like to focus on two major historical points that impacted my family and certain Asian friends. African-Americans were not the only ones to experience prejudice as I brought out above, however, they were the main ones targeted when it comes to slavery. Slavery and prejudice was rampant during this time period. An old family friend Jonathan, a Chinese-American, was a victim of racial prejudice as a child. As he grew up, he searched for a place where people would not prejudge him based on his facial features or racial background. He became a medical doctor in a town in northern Alaska, where his appearance was similar to that of many of his patients. He hoped that perhaps there, amid the cold winds of the Arctic Circle, he had finally escaped the even colder winds of prejudice that he experienced in California. Any such hope was shattered when he provided medical assistance to a young woman. As the patient came out of a coma, she looked at Jonathan’s face and uttered a taunt with an expletive, revealing her deep-seated...
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...this struggle is to save the Union, And is not either to save or destroy slavery” -Abraham Lincoln (1862) THE BACKGROUND CAUSES OF THE CIVIL WAR (C.W. JOURNAL #1). The Civil War wasn’t only about the fight of freedom for the black people, but also the economics, and the states against the federal rights, lead them to the call of battle. To me, they were important factors that people had their own desire of having the life they wanted. The Economic and social differences between the North and the South became more notable each day. The North needed the South, and the South needed the North. The southern economy was depending on cotton in which they needed the salves to work on. The North had the industries that purchased the raw cotton and turned them into finished goods. This created a major difference in economic attitude, and the North meant the change of society, evolved with different cultures and classes. Other fact that lead them to war was the disagreement the states had against the government. The government felt that the states should still have the right to decide if they were willing to accept certain federal acts. This resulted in the idea of nullification. When nullification would not work, the states felt that they were no longer respected and moved towards secession. ELECTION OF 1860 (C.W. JOURNAL #2). The Democratic Party split into Northern and Southern due the slavery issues. In the Northern democratic party, which stood for popular sovereignty...
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