Lincoln's Greatest Speech: The Second InauguralAs the day for Lincoln's second inauguration drew near, Americans wondered what their sixteenth president would say about the Civil War. Would Lincoln guide the nation toward "Reconstruction"? What about the slaves? They had been emancipated, but what about the matter of suffrage? When Lincoln finally stood before his fellow countrymen on March 4, 1865, and had only 703 words to share, the American public was stunned. The President had not offered the North a victory speech, nor did he excoriate the South for the sin of slavery. Instead, he called the whole country guilty of the sin and pleaded for reconciliation and unity. In this compelling account, noted historian Ronald C. White Jr. shows how Lincoln's speech was initially greeted with confusion and hostility by many in the Union; commended by the legions of African Americans in attendance, abolitionist leader Frederick Douglass among them; and ultimately appropriated by his assassin John Wilkes Booth forty-one days later. Filled with all the facts and factors surrounding the Second Inaugural, "Lincoln's Greatest Speech" is both an important historical document and a thoughtful analysis of Lincoln's moral and rhetorical genius. |
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Page 30
... Capitol , they encountered military patrols on horseback at every major intersection . Some in the crowd remembered back to quite a different scene four years earlier . Trepidation and gloom had clouded March 4 , 1861. Everything seemed ...
... Capitol , they encountered military patrols on horseback at every major intersection . Some in the crowd remembered back to quite a different scene four years earlier . Trepidation and gloom had clouded March 4 , 1861. Everything seemed ...
Page 34
... Capitol towering above the crowd . The old wooden dome , first seen by Congressman Abraham Lincoln on his arrival in Washing- ton in 1847 , had been hauled down . In 1855 , Congress com- mitted itself to build a new dome , its design ...
... Capitol towering above the crowd . The old wooden dome , first seen by Congressman Abraham Lincoln on his arrival in Washing- ton in 1847 , had been hauled down . In 1855 , Congress com- mitted itself to build a new dome , its design ...
Page 35
... Capitol . This symbolic moment was sealed by a thirty - five - gun salute from the Capitol , which was an- swered by salutes from the twelve forts that ringed the city . Armed Liberty held a sword in one hand , symbolizing power , and a ...
... Capitol . This symbolic moment was sealed by a thirty - five - gun salute from the Capitol , which was an- swered by salutes from the twelve forts that ringed the city . Armed Liberty held a sword in one hand , symbolizing power , and a ...
Contents
Inauguration Day | 21 |
At this second appearing | 43 |
And the war came | 60 |
Copyright | |
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abolitionists Abraham Lincoln American Bible Society asked audience battle became believe Capitol century charity Charles Charles Hodge Chicago Christian Civil coln coln's Confederate Constitution crowd Daily death dissole divine dome dress editor emancipation Emancipation Proclamation final paragraph Fort Pillow four Frederick Douglass Gettysburg Gettysburg Address God's gural Gurley Herndon Hodge Ibid Illinois Inau inauguration day Jackson James jeremiad John judgment knew language letter Lincoln began Lincoln's First Inaugural Lincoln's Second Inaugural Lincoln's words malice March ment nation newspapers Noah Brooks North offence offered party Phineas political prayer Presbyterian Presbyterian Church president presidential Princeton printed purpose re-elected reported Republican rhetoric School Presbyterian Second Inau Second Inaugural Address Seldon Connor Senate sentence sermon Seward slavery slaves South Southern speak speech Springfield Stowe Testament theological third paragraph thousand tion troops University Press Washington White House Whitman William wrote York Avenue York Herald