The Political Debates Between Abraham Lincoln and Stephen A. Douglas in the Senatorial Campaign of 1858 in Illinois PDF Download

Author: Abraham Lincoln
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Campaign debates
Languages : en
Pages : 714

View

Book Description

Author: Roy Morris
Publisher: Harper Collins
ISBN: 0061844268
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 427

View

Book Description
In this compelling narrative, renowned historian Roy Morris, Jr., expertly offers a new angle on two of America's most towering politicians and the intense personal rivalry that transformed both them and the nation they sought to lead in the dark days leading up to the Civil War. For the better part of two decades, Stephen Douglas was the most famous and controversial politician in the United States, a veritable "steam engine in britches." Abraham Lincoln was merely Douglas's most persistent rival within their adopted home state of Illinois, known mainly for his droll sense of humor, bad jokes, and slightly nutty wife. But from the time they first set foot in the Prairie State in the early 1830s, Lincoln and Douglas were fated to be political competitors. The Long Pursuit tells the dramatic story of how these two radically different individuals rose to the top rung of American politics, and how their personal rivalry shaped and altered the future of the nation during its most convulsive era. Indeed, had it not been for Douglas, who served as Lincoln's personal goad, pace horse, and measuring stick, there would have been no Lincoln-Douglas debates in 1858, no Lincoln presidency in 1860, and perhaps no Civil War six months later. For both men—and for the nation itself—the stakes were that high. Not merely a detailed political study, The Long Pursuit is also a compelling look at the personal side of politics on the rough-and-tumble western frontier. It shows us a more human Lincoln, a bare-knuckles politician who was not above trading on his wildly inaccurate image as a humble "rail-splitter," when he was, in fact, one of the nation's most successful railroad attorneys. And as the first extensive biographical study of Stephen Douglas in more than three decades, the book presents a long-overdue reassessment of one of the nineteenth century's more compelling and ultimately tragic figures, the one-time "Little Giant" of American politics.

Author: Douglas R. Egerton
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing USA
ISBN: 1608193519
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 406

View

Book Description
“Egerton tells the story of the dissolution of the Union as it should be told, not from the perspective of those looking back on the crisis, but from the clouded vision of those who lived through it.” -Carol Berkin, author of A Brilliant Solution: Inventing the American Constitution and Civil War Wives In early 1860, pundits across America confidently predicted the election of Illinois senator Stephen A. Douglas in the coming presidential race. Douglas, after all, was a national figure, a renowned orator, and led the only party that bridged North and South. But his Democrats fractured over the issue of slavery, creating a splintered four-way race that opened the door for the upstart Republicans, exclusively Northern, to steal the Oval Office. Dark horse Abraham Lincoln-not the first choice even of his own party-won the presidency with a record-low share of the popular vote. His victory instantly triggered the secession crisis. With a historian's keen insight and a veteran political reporter's eye for detail, Douglas R. Egerton re-creates the cascade of unforeseen events that confounded political bosses, set North and South on the road to disunion, and put not Stephen Douglas but his greatest rival in the White House. Year of Meteors delivers a vibrant cast of characters-from the gifted, flawed Douglas to the Southern “fire-eaters,” who gleefully sabotaged their own party, to the untested Abraham Lincoln-and a breakneck narrative of this most momentous year in American history.

Author: Harold Holzer
Publisher: Fordham University Press
ISBN: 0823238504
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 431

View

Book Description
The seven debates between Abraham Lincoln and Stephen Douglas held during the Illinois senatorial race of 1858 are among the most important statements in American political history, dramatic struggles over the issues that would tear apart the nation in the Civil War: the virtues of a republic and the evils of slavery. In this acclaimed book, Holzer brings us as close as possible to what Lincoln and Douglas actually said, Using transcripts of Lincoln's speeches as recorded by the pro-Douglas newspaper, and vice-versa, he offers the most reliable, unedited record available of the debates. Also included are background on the sites, crowd comments, and a new introduction. "A vivid, boisterous picture of politics during our most divisive period...This fresh, fascinating examination.... deserves a place in all American history collection."-Library Journal

Author: Rodney O. Davis
Publisher: University of Illinois Press
ISBN: 0252096959
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 393

View

Book Description
While the debates between Abraham Lincoln and Stephen A. Douglas are undoubtedly the most celebrated in American history, they may also be the most consequential as well. For the issues so fiercely debated in 1858 were about various interrelated aspects of one momentous, nation-threatening issue: slavery. The contest between Lincoln and Douglas became a testing ground for the viability of conflicting ideals in a nation deeply divided. One of the most colorful and engaging episodes in American history, this series of debates is of enduring interest as an illuminating instance of the ever-recurring dilemma of self-government: what happens when the guiding principle of democracy, "popular sovereignty," confronts a principled stand against a "moral, social, and political evil"? The tragic answer in this case came three years later: civil war. Important as they are, the Lincoln-Douglas debates have long since ceased to be self-explanatory. This edition is the first to provide a text founded on all known records, rather than following one or another of the partisan and sometimes widely-varying newspaper accounts. Meticulously edited and annotated, it provides numerous aids to help the modern reader understand the debates, including extensive introductory material, commentary, and a glossary. The fullest and most dependable edition of the Lincoln-Douglas debates ever prepared, this edition brings readers as close as possible to the original words of these two remarkable men.

Author: Abraham Lincoln
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Campaign debates
Languages : en
Pages : 584

View

Book Description

Author: Abraham Lincoln
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Lincoln-Douglas Debates, Ill., 1858
Languages : en
Pages : 330

View

Book Description

Author: Abraham Lincoln
Publisher: Courier Corporation
ISBN: 9780486435435
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 372

View

Book Description
Nominated in 1858 by the infant Republican party to oppose Stephen A. Douglas, Abraham Lincoln challenged the incumbent Democratic senator from Illinois to a series of debates. This volume contains their masterful arguments as well as two speeches, one by each candidate. Paving the way for modern debates between political candidates, the Lincoln-Douglas debates were more than formal discussions between opponents. Lincoln lost the election; but the speeches brought him to national attention and helped propel him to the Presidency in 1860.

Author: Abraham Lincoln
Publisher: Springfield, Ill. : Trustees of the Illinois State Historical Library
ISBN:
Category : Illinois
Languages : en
Pages : 698

View

Book Description

Author: Harold Holzer
Publisher: Fordham Univ Press
ISBN: 0823223418
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 619

View

Book Description
This authoritative edition of the Lincoln-Douglas debates from a leading Lincoln historian brings to life the passions that divided nineteenth-century America. The seven debates between Abraham Lincoln and Stephen Douglas held during the Illinois senatorial race of 1858 include some of the most important statements in American political history. Taken together, they embody the nation’s dramatic struggles over the issues that would lead to the Civil War: the virtues of a republic and the evils of slavery. So contentious were these debates that two newspapers attempted to record and publish the proceedings verbatim. In this acclaimed book, Lincoln historian Harold Holzer brings us as close as possible to what Lincoln and Douglas actually said. Using transcripts of Lincoln’s speeches as recorded by the pro-Douglas newspaper, and vice-versa, he offers the most reliable and accurate record of the debates available. Also included are background on the sites, crowd comments, and a new introduction. “A vivid, boisterous picture of politics during our most divisive period. . . . This fresh, fascinating examination . . . deserves a place in all American history collection[s].”—Library Journal