If you’re a fan of American history, you’ve undoubtedly come across the name Abraham Lincoln.
As the 16th President of the United States, Lincoln is widely regarded as one of the most important figures in American history.
His leadership during the Civil War and his efforts to end slavery have cemented his place in the annals of history.
But Lincoln was more than just a political figure.
He was also an accomplished orator and writer, known for his powerful speeches and insightful quotes.
In fact, many of Lincoln’s most famous quotes are still quoted today, more than 150 years after his death.
From his stirring speeches to his personal letters, Lincoln’s words continue to inspire and resonate with people around the world.
In this article, we’ll explore some of Abraham Lincoln’s most famous quotations and examine their significance.
Early Life and Career of Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln was born in 1809 in a log cabin in Kentucky. His family moved to Indiana when he was seven years old, and his mother died when he was nine.
Despite his lack of formal education, Lincoln was an avid reader and taught himself many subjects.
In 1830, Lincoln moved to Illinois, where he worked various jobs and eventually became a lawyer.
He served in the Illinois state legislature and later in the U.S. House of Representatives.
During this time, Lincoln became known for his opposition to slavery and his support for economic development.
In 1860, Lincoln was elected President of the United States.
His presidency was marked by the Civil War, which began just months after he took office.
Lincoln’s leadership during the war, including his Emancipation Proclamation, helped to end slavery in the United States.
Lincoln’s legacy as a leader and a champion of freedom continues to inspire people around the world today.
Emancipation Proclamation and Civil War Speeches
Abraham Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation and Civil War speeches are some of his most famous and influential quotes.
These speeches were delivered during the Civil War, a time of great turmoil and division in the United States.
The Gettysburg Address
One of Lincoln’s most famous speeches is the Gettysburg Address.
Delivered on November 19, 1863, at the dedication of the Soldiers’ National Cemetery in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, the speech is only 272 words long but is considered one of the most important speeches in American history.
In the speech, Lincoln emphasized the importance of preserving the Union and the sacrifices made by soldiers in the Civil War.
He also spoke about the need to ensure that “government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.”
Second Inaugural Address
Lincoln’s Second Inaugural Address, delivered on March 4, 1865, just weeks before his assassination, is another powerful speech that is often quoted.
In this speech, Lincoln spoke about the need for healing and reconciliation in the aftermath of the Civil War.
He acknowledged the role that slavery played in causing the war and called for “malice toward none” and “charity for all” in the rebuilding of the nation.
He also expressed his hope that “the judgments of the Lord are true and righteous altogether,” suggesting that the war was part of a larger plan for the nation.
Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation and Civil War speeches are powerful reminders of the importance of unity, sacrifice, and reconciliation in times of crisis.
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Famous Quotations By Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln was known for his eloquent speeches and wise words. Here are some of his most famous quotes:
On Democracy
The people — the people — are the rightful masters of both congresses, and courts — not to overthrow the constitution, but to overthrow the men who pervert it.
–September 16 and 17, 1859
I am exceedingly anxious that this Union, the Constitution, and the liberties of the people shall be perpetuated in accordance with the original idea for which that struggle was made, and I shall be most happy indeed if I shall be an humble instrument in the hands of the Almighty, and of this, his almost chosen people, for perpetuating the object of that great struggle.
–February 21, 1861
I have borne a laborious, and, in some respects to myself, a painful part in the contest. Through all, I have neither assailed, nor wrestled with any part of the constitution.
–October 30, 1858
Let us then turn this government back into the channel in which the framers of the Constitution originally placed it.
–July 10, 1858
Don’t interfere with anything in the Constitution. That must be maintained, for it is the only safeguard of our liberties. And not to Democrats alone do I make this appeal, but to all who love these great and true principles.
–August 27, 1856
On Freedom
Every advocate of slavery naturally desires to see blasted, and crushed, the liberty promised the black man by the new constitution.
–November 14, 1864
The world has never had a good definition of the word liberty, and the American people, just now, are much in want of one. We all declare for liberty; but in using the same word we do not all mean the same thing.
–April 18, 1864
“We have, as all will agree, a free Government, where every man has a right to be equal with every other man. In this great struggle, this form of Government and every form of human right is endangered if our enemies succeed.”
–August 22, 1864
The world has never had a good definition of the word liberty, and the American people, just now, are much in want of one. We all declare for liberty; but in using the same word we do not all mean the same thing.
–April 18, 1864
In giving freedom to the slave, we assure freedom to the free — honorable alike in what we give, and what we preserve. We shall nobly save, or meanly lose, the last best, hope of earth.
–December 1, 1862
Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this continent, a new nation, conceived in Liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.
–November 19, 1863
I have here stated my purpose according to my view of official duty; and I intend no modification of my oft-expressed personal wish that all men everywhere could be free.
–August 22, 1862
I have never had a feeling politically that did not spring from the sentiments embodied in the Declaration of Independence.
–February 22, 1861
This is a world of compensations; and he who would be no slave, must consent to have no slave. Those who deny freedom to others, deserve it not for themselves; and, under a just God, can not long retain it.
–April 6, 1859
On the question of liberty, as a principle, we are not what we have been. When we were the political slaves of King George, and wanted to be free, we called the maxim that “all men are created equal” a self evident truth; but now when we have grown fat, and have lost all dread of being slaves ourselves, we have become so greedy to be masters that we call the same maxim “a self evident lie.”
–August 15, 1855
I leave you, hoping that the lamp of liberty will burn in your bosoms until there shall no longer be a doubt that all men are created free and equal.
–July 10, 1858
Our reliance is in the love of liberty which God has planted in our bosoms. Our defense is in the preservation of the spirit which prizes liberty as the heritage of all men, in all lands, everywhere.
–September 11, 1858
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On Government, Law and Power
Let reverence for the laws, be breathed by every American mother, to the lisping babe, that prattles on her lap — let it be taught in schools, in seminaries, and in colleges; let it be written in Primers, spelling books, and in Almanacs; — let it be preached from the pulpit, proclaimed in legislative halls, and enforced in courts of justice. And, in short, let it become the political religion of the nation; and let the old and the young, the rich and the poor, the grave and the gay, of all sexes and tongues, and colors and conditions, sacrifice unceasingly upon its altars.
–January 27, 1838
Let every American, every lover of liberty, every well wisher to his posterity, swear by the blood of the Revolution, never to violate in the least particular, the laws of the country; and never to tolerate their violation by others.
–January 27, 1838
The leading rule for the lawyer, as for the man of every other calling, is diligence. Leave nothing for to-morrow which can be done to-day.
–July 1, 1850
In law it is a good policy to never plead what you need not, lest you oblige yourself to prove what you can not.
–February 20, 1848
Let reverence for the laws, be breathed by every American mother, to the lisping babe, that prattles on her lap — let it be taught in schools, in seminaries, and in colleges; let it be written in Primers, spelling books, and in Almanacs; — let it be preached from the pulpit, proclaimed in legislative halls, and enforced in courts of justice. And, in short, let it become the political religion of the nation; and let the old and the young, the rich and the poor, the grave and the gay, of all sexes and tongues, and colors and conditions, sacrifice unceasingly upon its altars.
–January 27, 1838
Never stir up litigation. A worse man can scarcely be found than one who does this. Who can be more nearly a fiend than he who habitually overhauls the register of deeds in search of defects in titles, whereon to stir up strife, and put money in his pocket?
–July 1, 1850
Let no young man choosing the law for a calling for a moment yield to the popular belief — resolve to be honest at all events; and if in your own judgment you cannot be an honest lawyer, resolve to be honest without being a lawyer.
–July 1, 1850
Of our political revolution of ’76, we all are justly proud. It has given us a degree of political freedom, far exceeding that of any other nation of the earth. In it the world has found a solution of the long mooted problem, as to the capability of man to govern himself. In it was the germ which has vegetated, and still is to grow and expand into the universal liberty of mankind.
–February 22, 1842
The legitimate object of government, is to do for a community of people, whatever they need to have done, but can not do, at all, or can not, so well do, for themselves — in their separate, and individual capacities.
–July 1, 1854
Welcome, or unwelcome, agreeable, or disagreeable, whether this shall be an entire slave nation, is the issue before us.
–ca. May 18, 1858
Our government rests in public opinion. Whoever can change public opinion, can change the government, practically just so much.
–December 10, 1856
As I would not be a slave, so I would not be a master. This expresses my idea of democracy. Whatever differs from this, to the extent of the difference, is no democracy.
–ca. August 1, 1858
Welcome, or unwelcome, agreeable, or disagreeable, whether this shall be an entire slave nation, is the issue before us.
–ca. May 18, 1858
Understanding the spirit of our institutions to aim at the elevation of men, I am opposed to whatever tends to degrade them.
–May 17, 1859
This is essentially a People’s contest. On the side of the Union, it is a struggle for maintaining in the world, that form, and substance of government, whose leading object is, to elevate the condition of men — to lift artificial weights from all shoulders — to clear the paths of laudable pursuit for all — to afford all, an unfettered start, and a fair chance, in the race of life.
–July 4, 1861
…I do not mean to say that this government is charged with the duty of redressing or preventing all the wrongs in the world; but I do think that it is charged with the duty of preventing and redressing all wrongs which are wrongs to itself.
–September 17, 1859
While we must, by all available means, prevent the overthrow of the government, we should avoid planting and cultivating too many thorns in the bosom of society.
–March 18, 1864
In this great struggle, this form of Government and every form of human right is endangered if our enemies succeed. There is more involved in this contest than is realized by every one.
–August 18, 1864
Thoughtful men must feel that the fate of civilization upon this continent is involved in the issue of our contest.
–December 27, 1864
Nowhere in the world is presented a government of so much liberty and equality. To the humblest and poorest amongst us are held out the highest privileges and positions. The present moment finds me at the White House, yet there is as good a chance for your children as there was for my father’s.
–August 31, 1864
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