A hero and legend in American history, Abraham Lincoln was the sixteenth president of the United States. He was responsible for guiding America through a very turbulent period in time, namely the American Civil War. His actions and leadership have made him a great hero to the people, and in turn has made his life a legend.

Abraham Lincoln Early in Life

Abraham Lincoln was born on February 12, 1809 to Thomas Lincoln and Nancy Lincoln. The Lincoln family used to enjoy a favorable status, having acquired a good number of property and value thanks to Thomas. Unfortunately, the land titles were faulty, and the family lost all of it in 1816.

The Lincoln family moved and made a fresh start in Indiana. Nancy died in 1818 from sickness and, from then until the moment their father remarried, Lincoln’s sister, Sarah, took on the role of raising him.

Despite the hard times, the young future American hero had little taste for the hard working life they were forced to live, which often led those around him to label him as lazy. However, as a teenager he still took on the responsibilities that a boy his age was expected to take.

Abraham Lincoln had, in total, only a year’s worth of proper education. Nevertheless, he was an avid learner and taught himself as much as he could through any books he could find. It is said that his education and his father’s lack of one is what caused them to drift apart.

He met a woman named Mary Todd in 1839 after a move to Illinois, and they were married on November 4, 1842. The couple had a total of four children, all of which being boys. Despite their obvious love for children, only their eldest, Robert, survived to adulthood. The constant early loss of their sons affected both parents immensely.

The Start and Flow of Presidency

The start of Lincoln’s legend was when he entered the political scene in March 1832. He started his first ever campaign for the Illinois General Assembly. Although he lost, he had still gained popularity despite his obvious lack of connections and money.

Abraham Lincoln also served as a captain in the militia for the Black Hawk War, a detail that helped add the hero factor on his life. He then became New Salem’s postmaster, before moving on to become the county surveyor. Abraham Lincoln continuously fed his love of reading, and eventually he became engrossed in studying law. This budding legend won his second campaign in 1834, and after being admitted to the bar in 1836, he started to study law under his wife’s cousin’s tutelage.

A Whig since the 1830s, Lincoln was always interested in economic modernization, and actively supported the abolition of slavery. In 1846, he was elected to become a member of the U.S. House of Representatives, where, being the only Whig from Illinois, he served a full term of two years.

After his term, he returned to practicing law. His reputation during this period grew immensely.

Abraham Lincoln had always been against slavery because of it negating the statement that all men are equal, as said by the Declaration of Independence itself. In 1854, he publicly declared his opinion against it for the first time, and repeated it often during his road to presidency. Later that same year, he ran for the Illinois seat on the U.S. Senate. Although he lost it, he was still the leading cause behind the new forging of the Republican Party.

Lincoln was first encouraged to run for presidency during the Illinois Republican State Convention in May 1860. During the election, he beat his fellow contender, Stephen Douglas, and became the sixteenth president of the United States of America, and the first president ever from the Republican Party. His legacy as a hero began.

At this time, the Confederate States of America was formed, as a number of the states broke away from the Union to declare itself as a sovereign nation. Jefferson Davis was chosen to be its president in 1861. When the Confederate forces attacked the Union in April 1861, the American Civil War started. It is said that Lincoln, who had always negated the possibility of a war between the states, had severely underestimated the gravity of the situation.

Abraham Lincoln became the commander-in-chief and took immediate control of what he could. The effort that he put into ending the war is why many people today call him a hero of America. The Civil War ended when General Lee of the Confederates surrendered to the Union’s General Grant in April 1865.

That same year, Abraham Lincoln was re-elected as president, thanks to his prowess as a master politician and a great leader. He then went about reconstructing the states as they had been before, while making arrangements in dealing with the remaining Confederate leaders, leading many to consider him a hero.

As president of legend, Abraham Lincoln emphasized greatly on the importance of the Declaration of Independence and made sure that it became the foundation of all American politics. He also did the rare act of putting forth the need of following the moral values of republicanism and not its legalism.

The End of Abraham Lincoln

Even before the inauguration of this famous American legend into presidency, he was already dodging assassination attempts, and often had to travel in disguise. Unfortunately, one assassination attempt succeeded.

Abraham Lincoln, the hero and legend of the U.S., was shot from behind on April 14 by John Wilkes Booth while at the Ford’s Theater. He fell under a coma and died nine hours later, on April 15, 1865. Booth escaped for ten days before being captured and killed by Sergeant Boston Corbett on April 26.

After being put in temporary places for several years, his body was finally laid to rest in a memorial designed for him by Larkin Goldsmith Mead. His wife and sons joined him later. He was laid down as one of the best presidents in American history, and the first one to have ever been assassinated.

Facts About Abraham Lincoln

• He was the only American president to have every held a patent.
• He created the Secret Service just hours before he was assassinated.
• This legend of a hero was the tallest president in American history, standing at six feet and four inches.