He was so pessimistic about his chances, in fact, that he asked his cabinet to sign a letter pledging themselves to save the Union, no matter who became president. Anti-Lincoln sentiments had grown, not just in the South, but in the North as well. The War and Lincoln’s Reelection in QuestionĪs the 1864 presidential election loomed and the war raged on, Lincoln did not expect to win reelection. He reinvigorated the principles behind the American founding-that our form of government is maintained by the people. The short, impactful address connected the current struggle over slavery with those ideals. Lincoln urged his audience to fulfill the mission that Union soldiers had fought and died for: the realization of liberty and equality for all-ideals in our Declaration of Independence.
#Shattered union the last cry of freedom full
“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.” In a time of mourning for the many who died, his Gettysburg Address proclaimed our national purpose and served as a rallying cry to defend it-the carnage of the war should not be in vain. In the small battle-torn town of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania on November 19, 1863, Lincoln uttered 266 words that would be remembered as one of the greatest American speeches of all time.
Click here to view the rest of the installments. This article is a part of our series on Abraham Lincoln. JMC Historical Series on Abraham Lincoln Part III: The Gettysburg Address, Lincoln’s Legacy, and the Pursuit of Liberty and Equality