Abraham Lincoln
/ˌeɪbrəhæm ˈlɪŋkən/
/ˌeɪbrəhæm ˈlɪŋkən/
- (1809-65) the 16th US President (1861-5). He is regarded by many people as America's greatest president, because he served during the American Civil War, preserved the Union and freed the slaves. He is also often referred to as 'Honest Abe'. He was a lawyer who was elected to the US House of Representatives in 1846 and then elected President as a Republican. Lincoln led the Union in the Civil War and in 1864 appointed Ulysses S Grant to lead the Union armies. He announced his Emancipation Proclamation in 1863 to free the slaves in the South. Lincoln was shot and killed by the actor John Wilkes Booth. see also Gettysburg Address, Lincoln Memorial