Abraham Lincoln
L for LibertyQuotes: "That on the first day of January, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and sixty-three, all persons held as slaves within any State or designated part of a State, the people whereof shall then be in rebellion against the United States, shall be then, thenceforward, and forever free.”
Summary: It states that the slaves that have been living in the Confederate States are finally free. U for UnionQuotes: "With malice toward none; with charity toward all; with firmness in the right, as God gives us to see the right, let us strive on to finish the work we are in; to bind up the nation’s wounds; to care for him who shall have borne the battle, and for his widow, and his orphan—to do all which may achieve and cherish a just, and a lasting peace, among ourselves, and with all nations."
Summary: This quote states that we must end our war and rebuild our cities to create a lasting peace. |
E for EqualityQuotes: "The Constitution which guarantees that the citizen of each State shall be entitled to all privileged and immunities of citizens in the several states?”
Summary: The quote states that the Constitution guarantees citizens equal rights no mater what state you are in. G for GovernmentQuotes: "It follows from these views that no State upon its own mere motion can lawfully get out of the Union; that Resolves and Ordinances to that effect are legally void; and that acts of violence, within any State or States, against the authority of the United States, are insurrectionary or revolutionary, according to circumstances…”
Summary: The quote informs the South that a small motion cannot legally separate themselves from the Union. |
First Inaugural Address
Lincoln stated that he supported the North, but he would not alienate the South. He did not mention anything about the Union government interfering with slave institutions where it existed and denied the authority of Congress or a territorial legislature to legalize slavery in any territories.
The Emancipation Proclamation
Stated that the slaves in the Confederate states were freed, but the slaves in the border states were not. It was both favorable and unfavorable in the North, but Lincoln stated that, “I never, in my life, felt more certain that I was doing right, than I do in signing this paper.”
The Gettysburg Address
An example of Lincoln's finest words, a brief address delivered at a dedication of the cemetery at Gettysburg, this addressed the true purpose and the meaning of the Civil War.
Second Inaugural Address
Delivered on March 4, 1865, a few weeks after the Civil War had ended, it was known for it's vision of peace and harmony between the North and the South. One of the last speeches Lincoln ever made. He was assassinated little over 1 month later.