No one would have expected this man to become one of the greatest leaders and presidents of all time. Lincoln was born and raised in a one-room log cabin in Hodgenville, Kentucky. If he was not inaugurated as the sixteenth president of the United …show more content…
Even before taking office, the South threatened to secede from the Union, if Lincoln was elected. He faced a divided country with strong differences in core beliefs about slavery, sectionalism and protectionism. How he handled this conflict would impact the future for all. Once taking office in 1861, the South seceded from the Union and Lincoln boldly determined that the only response was to declare war. America could not be strong and be divided. The Civil War was fought from 1861 to 1865, between the United States and the Confederate States; over the main issue of expansion of slavery. In the beginning of Lincoln’s presidency, he was not focused solely on the issue of slavery, but focused on preserving the Union. However as the Civil War began, he quickly realized the core issue at hand was slavery. Beliefs of whether or not to abolish slavery in all American states divided the country, creating civil anarchy. Lincoln was a firm believer in abolishing slavery everywhere, people are people; not property. “I am naturally anti-slavery. If slavery is not wrong, nothing is wrong. I cannot remember when I did not so think, and feel.” (Lincoln) Many presidents would have ignored or put in place temporary solutions to their country’s problems, but Lincoln was no average