Introduction
Abraham Lincoln who was born in 1809 and was assassinated in 1865, he was the 16th president of the United States of America. He commandeered the country through the civil war and was the first republican elected to the presidency, he abolished slavery inn 1863 by issuing the emancipation proclamation.
Lincoln was not that comfortable at the white house at first having been brought up and leaved in a wooden cabin; it was due to the fact that at the white house he was compelled by tradition and customs to hold luncheons and large dinner sittings which were in contrast to his normal life.
Relations with family and friends
It should be noted that family plays a key role in a person life and in Lincoln’s case it was no different. Some of his closest friends have been quoted as saying that Lincoln was an extraordinarily kind and indulgent parent his family included his wife Mary Todd Lincoln and his three sons Robert who was the oldest, William Wallace and lastly Thomas, he had had a fourth son Edward baker who died in 1846 died. In an interview that Mrs. Lincoln gave to Lincoln’s law partner after his apparent assassination she described him as “Mr. Lincoln was the kindest, most tender, and loving husband and father in the world. He gave us all unbounded liberty. Said to me always when I asked him for anything: you know what you want – go and get it. He never asked me if it was necessary. He was very, very indulgent to his children – chided or praised for it he always
said, ‘It is my pleasure that my children are free, happy, and unrestrained by parental tyranny. Love is the chain whereby to lock a child to its parent.”
As he was writing his autobiography in 1860, he remembered that after the failure of his business “He was now without means and out of business, but was anxious to remain with his friends who had treated him with so much generosity.” It should be brought to focus that Lincolns relationship with some of his Washington officials was not purely indulgent, as one of his dinner party guest Charles Francis Adams had said that if Lincoln caught at the dinner his wife the caught it at the reception. There was a conflict of interest when Lyman Trumbull was elected to the Senate in 1855; Lincoln was in favor of his friend Congressman Richard Yates to win reelection. Lincoln and his friends united in order to defeat the democratic force of Stephen A Douglas and his friends; this was accomplished by some of Lincoln friends nominating others where Stephen Logan nominated Mr. Lincoln. Lyman Trumbull eventually won thanks to Lincolns votes; this angered many of Lincoln’s friends including his wife who became permanently alienated from longtime intimate Julia Trumbull.
His relation to his friends was greatly demonstrated by Lincoln in this statement he made “These [supporters] would never desert me except by my direction; but I became satisfied that if we could prevent Matteson’s election one or two ballots more, we could not possibly do so a single ballot after my friends should begin to return to me from Trumbull. So I determined to strike at once; and accordingly advised my remaining friends to go for him, which they did & elected him on that 10th. Ballot.”
The person who Lincoln was close to was the Assistant Private Secretary John Hay; it was a very close relationship as described by Historian Michael Burlingame who
wrote “The relationship between Hay and Lincoln was like that which had developed between Alexander Hamilton and George Washington.” Another example is when Ben Hardin Helm the husband to Half-sister of Mary Todd Lincoln, Emily Todd Helm, was killed in the Battle of Chickamauga in 1863. As Judge David Davis recalled that he had never seen Lincoln so moved than when he heard of the death of his young brother-in-law.
Another good example is when George P. Floyd went to meet President Lincoln so as to plea for protection of property he held at Illinois. To his surprise Lincoln invited him for tea that night, after which he issued directive in the protection of the said property that was after he had studied the letter that George had come with that contained general Benjamin’s recommendations.
Relations with Politics and politicians
Abraham Lincoln started his political career at the age of 23 where he ran for a position in the Illinois general assembly and failed as a member of the Whig party. He also taught himself law after coming across the commentaries on the laws of England and then graduated in to the bar in 1837.In 1846 he was elected to the house of representative from Sangamon County where he served four years and later became a leader of the Illinois Whig party. Some of the politicians in which he spoke against were President Polk’s Mexican American war which he attributed to his desire for military glory. But the move that almost put an end to his political career was this speech “God of Heaven has forgotten to defend the weak and innocent, and permitted the strong band of murderers
and demons from hell to kill men, women, and children, and lay waste and pillage the land of the just.”
Lincoln was chosen the republican nominee fore the presidency which he later went to win; in November 6 1860 he became the 16th president of the US beating democrat Stephen A Douglas who was the main challenge. The emancipation of slaves was the greatest act of the Lincoln administration but in order to win the war, reunite the nation and free the slaves Lincoln had to do away with the habeas corpus. Also the trial of civilians by military courts, institution of the draft and forms of warfare that were destructive to private property of which to him were unthinkable.
He pushed for the emancipation of slaves and later the Thirteenth Amendment was passed in to the constitution in January 1865 which led to the abolishment of slavery. It should be noted that Stephen A Douglas was against Lincoln’s national abolishment of slave trade as he wanted the settlers in various individual states to choose if they want to abolish slavery in their states. “Emancipation by itself ran counter to the President’s policy of enticing Southerners back into the Union through economic means. Lincoln knew that no Rebels were likely to choose the expropriation of billions of dollars worth of their property. He nonetheless took the emancipation road because, over the long run, it was inherent to the American Dream, and therefore slavery he saw as the root evil,” wrote Lincoln historian Gabor Boritt
Some of his political critics included Senator Benjamin wade who tried to convince Lincoln on the replacement of General George McClellan. Lincoln ask wade who wound he choose as a replacement, he said “anybody”. Lincoln told him Senator Wade that “anybody” will do for the senator but for him he must have “somebody”. The other was Congressman Henry Winter Davis backed by Senator B. Wade who had tabled a bill to restrict Lincoln’s freedom to reconstruct the south, but Lincoln “pocket-vetoed” it. “Again Lincoln had served upon the Radicals and their politician herd that he didn’t want to quarrel with them, but the facts were that he and the people were running the government. What were they going to do about it?” wrote Lincoln historian Lloyd Lewis.
It should also good to note some Lincolns friends who shifted alliance to the Democratic Party included. James W. Singleton, John Todd Stuar, Benjamin S. Edwards, Lyle Dickey, and Usher F. Linder
Abraham Lincoln illustrators’ political career came to an abrupt end when he was assassinated at the fords theater by John Wilkes Booth on April 14th 1865. His initial plan was to kidnap Lincoln in exchange for the release of confederate prisoners, this failed because on the planned day Lincoln didn’t show up at the expected site.
Reference
http://www.mrlincolnswhitehouse.org
