Abraham Lincoln's Second Inaugural Address
- Reading level
- Plain English
- Price
- Free
About the book
"Abraham Lincoln's Second Inaugural Address" by Abraham Lincoln is a speech delivered on March 4, 1865, as the Civil War neared its end. Rather than celebrating impending victory, Lincoln spoke with somber reflection on the war's meaning and divine purpose. He identified slavery as the war's cause and suggested the conflict might be God's punishment for the nation's sins. The address contemplates unknowable divine will and calls for reconciliation, urging Americans to "bind up the nation's wounds" without harsh treatment of the defeated South.
- United States
- Presidents
Updated September 2026. Public domain in the USA. Text and summary from Project Gutenberg eBook #8. Abraham Lincoln's Second Inaugural Address on Wikipedia.
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