In Overstory we have already talked to you on some occasion about the history of America and specifically of the United States and without a doubt one of the most outstanding figures in its entire history and in fact the architect of many changes was Abraham Lincoln.
Abraham Lincoln He is considered by many to be one of the best presidents the United States ever had, the first of the Republican Partyin addition to being a precursor to the end of slavery and its abolition.
The origins of Abraham Lincoln:
- The life of Lincoln was quite modest although she was born on February 12, 1809 on a farm in the current LaRue County of the State of Kentuckyand even whose parents Thomas Lincoln and Nancy Hankshad moved from Virginia looking for work.
- Although the birth of his parents occurred in the USA, it must be said that the origin of the family Lincoln was located in England. samuel lincolnhis grandfather, emigrated to USAwhere their children settled in New Jersey, Virginia, Pennsylvaniauntil finally reaching Kentucky where thomas lincoln got married with Nancy.
- Although he studied law, which began in 1833, Abraham Lincoln he worked on the construction of a railway line and in a store.
- In 1832 he was elected captain of his company in the war against the Sauk Indians led by Black Hawk.
Abraham Lincoln and politics:
- After studying law and long before reaching the presidency of the United States, Lincoln is elected deputy for Illinois and by the whig party from 1834 to 1841.
- From his beginnings as a lawyer (in 1936) and as a deputy Lincoln he stood out for being a determined man committed to change. In 1837 he promotes the transfer of the state capital to Springfieldas well as being one of two members of the lower house who voted to end slavery.
- In 1846 he is elected member of the federal Congress from where he opposes the war against Mexico and for the formulation of a plan for the gradual emancipation in the federal district of Columbia.
- After this period he returns to Springfield to return to dedicate himself to his profession, although he will soon decide to return to politics after declaring himself Kansas-Nebraska Act (for the implantation of slavery in the Northwest) of the senator, Stephen A Douglasin 1854. A year later he decides to run for the Senate although seeing that he has no options, he chooses to support the career of Lyman Trumbulla Democrat who also opposed the Kansas-Nebraska Act defended by douglas.
- Although he could not win, the heated debates he had with douglas They gave him the support of the Nation, so in 1860 he was chosen by the Republican Party as its candidate for the presidency of USA.
- Lincoln wins the elections in 1861 against the Democrats douglas Y John Breckinridge, Already John Bell, of the Constitutional Union Party.
President Lincoln:
- The arrival of Abraham Lincoln The presidency places him in a delicate situation, although the southern states were clear that secession was inevitable.
- With a heated atmosphere, and even a first assassination attempt, Lincoln It was clear to him that the Confederacy could not be allowed to continue expanding, so he asked for help from the besieged garrison, leading to what is known as the American Civil War, which the North supported in favor of Lincoln and the South in favor of the secessionists. .
- In 1862 he communicated to his cabinet that he intended to issue the Emancipation Proclamation (on slavery) although it was not applied in the same way in the border states that were excluded. The Proclamation did not become final until January 1, 1863. Enacted by the President.
- It is in 1864 when he approves an anti-slavery amendment to the United States Constitution. The amendment was passed upon his re-election, when he used all the powers of his office to ensure its passage in the House of Representatives (January 31, 1865).
Lincoln assassination:
- His efforts to abolish slavery and his desire to pass limited suffrage rights for blacks in Louisiana It was the trigger for what would be the murder of Abraham Lincoln.
- On April 14, 1865, and while Lincoln was attending the Ford’s Theater (Washington) is shot by John Wilkes Booth. He passed away a day later.
Abraham Lincoln was known as the Great Emancipator, one of the best presidents the United States had not only for the fact of abolishing slavery, but also for his Reconstruction policy through which blacks who had been slaves would have a gradual concession of political rights and suffrage.
Abraham Lincoln Video:
Other articles of interest in Overhistory:
- US intervention in Vietnam
- The Cold War
- Why did the Civil War break out in the United States?
- The first round of the Cold War
- South American dictatorships and their relationship with the United States