The Most Consequential Elections in History: Abraham Lincoln and the Election of 1860
Abraham Lincoln's victory in 1860 was probably the most consequential election in American history. It triggered the nation's worst cataclysm, the Civil War
But hope for conciliation was a futile one. With the national government finally in antislavery hands, the South proceeded to secede. By the time Lincoln took the oath of office, in fact, a Confederate government under Jefferson Davis was already in place. It represented the breakaway states of Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, and Texas. The Confederacy was joined later by Virginia, North Carolina, Arkansas, and Tennessee.
In the wake of that crucial election of 1860, America's worst crisis had begun.
More from our Most Consequential Elections series:
George Washington and the Election of 1788
Thomas Jefferson and the Election of 1800
Andrew Jackson and the Election of 1828
Abraham Lincoln and the Election of 1864
Theodore Roosevelt and the Election of 1904
Woodrow Wilson and the Election of 1912
Franklin Roosevelt and the Election of 1932
Lyndon Johnson and the Election of 1964
Ronald Reagan and the Election of 1980
Reader Comments
Revisionists and Racists Cannot Change Lincoln's Legacy
I bookmarked this page last year, but didn't get around to reading the comments until now.
I am shocked and appalled by the racist sentiments that are still in the minds of Americans. The whole idea of "why can't they get over it" is an interesting one, because, it seems, history and culture will not allow us to just "get over it".
To keep a group of people as slaves because of the color of their skin is wrong. To maintain that system, even if it is the "states right" to do so, is wrong. Morally and ethically. States and governments can, believe it or not, be wrong.
Oppression and racism still exist in the United States of America.
However, we have made progress. We used to be a country that kept Africans as slaves. Then there was the war to free the slaves and preserve the union. The 13th Amendment to the Constitution of the United States formalized the equality of the races, and guaranteed suffrage for all males. However, for 100 years, there was a defacto inequality in the United States, in the South, with the Jim Crow laws. It took Martin Luther King, jr. to lead the Civil Rights Movement to finally desegregate schools and guarantee the rights that Lincoln wished to give to all.
Forty years later, we have an African American President.
I am a white male who voted for Mr. Obama, and I am proud of him, and my country.
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hola maricas!
que onda pedasos de mierda!! soy yo alexandra aka lokiita!! you already just. just happen to be the best person in the whole wide world!!! you know!! well i love abrham lincoln and i personally think that he is the greatest president of all
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