Photograph of the Gettysburg National Cemetery

The Gettysburg Address

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November 19, 1863: gettysburg address, about this speech.

Abraham Lincoln

November 19, 1863

Four months after the Battle of Gettysburg, Lincoln joined in a dedication of a national cemetery on a portion of the battlefield. The speech he delivered that day would become one of the most famous speeches given by a U.S. President.

Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this continent, a new nation, conceived in Liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.

Now we are engaged in a great civil war, testing whether that nation, or any nation so conceived and so dedicated, can long endure. We are met on a great battle-field of that war. We have come to dedicate a portion of that field, as a final resting place for those who here gave their lives that that nation might live. It is altogether fitting and proper that we should do this.

But, in a larger sense, we can not dedicate—we can not consecrate—we can not hallow—this ground. The brave men, living and dead, who struggled here, have consecrated it, far above our poor power to add or detract. The world will little note, nor long remember what we say here, but it can never forget what they did here. It is for us the living, rather, to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which they who fought here have thus far so nobly advanced. It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us—that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion—that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain—that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom—and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.

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ABRAHAM LINCOLN, “GETTYSBURG ADDRESS” (19 NOVEMBER 1863)

[1] Fourscore and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this continent, a new nation, conceived in Liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.

[2] Now we are engaged in a great civil war, testing whether that nation, or any nation so conceived and so dedicated, can long endure. We are met on a great battle-field of that war. We have come to dedicate a portion of that field, as a final resting place for those who here gave their lives that that nation might live. It is altogether fitting and proper that we should do this.

[3] But, in a larger sense, we can not dedicate-we can not consecrate-we can not hallow-this ground. The brave men, living and dead, who struggled here, have consecrated it, far above our poor power to add or detract. The world will little note, nor long remember what we say here, but it can never forget what they did here. It is for us the living, rather, to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which they who fought here have thus far so nobly advanced. It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us-that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion-that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain-that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom-and that government of the people, by the people, for the people shall not perish from the earth.

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AbrahamLincoln.org

Gettysburg address.

Four months after the Battle of Gettysburg, which caused 50,000 casualties—soldiers dead, wounded, and missing—President Lincoln was invited to speak at the dedication of a national cemetery at the site. A mere 275 words, Lincoln’s three-minute-long address redefined the significance of the Civil War. Drawing upon biblical ideas of suffering, consecration, and resurrection, Lincoln framed the war as a chapter in the modern struggle for self-government, liberty, and equality. Considered at the time a sidebar to Senator Edward Everett’s two-hour oration, Lincoln’s address soon emerged not only as the seminal event at Gettysburg but as one of the most visionary speeches of the nineteenth century.

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The first amendment, historic document, the gettysburg address (1863).

Abraham Lincoln | 1863

Reprint of a small detail of a black and white photo showing the crowd gathered for the dedication of the Soldiers' National Cemetery in Gettysburg, Penn., where President Abraham Lincoln gave his Gettysburg Address. Lincoln is visible facing the crowd, not wearing a hat.

On November 19, 1863, Abraham Lincoln delivered one of the most famous speeches in American history: the Gettysburg Address.  The Union victory at Gettysburg was a key moment in the Civil War—thwarting General Robert E. Lee’s invasion of the North.  President Lincoln offered this brief speech in a dedication ceremony for a new national cemetery near the Gettysburg battlefield.  Lincoln was not even the featured speaker that day.  Noted orator Edward Everett spoke for nearly two hours, while Lincoln spoke for a mere two minutes.  In his powerful address, Lincoln embraced the Declaration of Independence, recalling how the nation was “conceived in Liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.”  By resurrecting these promises, Lincoln committed post-Civil War America to “a new birth of freedom.”  Following the Civil War, the Reconstruction Amendments—the Thirteenth, Fourteenth, and Fifteenth Amendments—abolished slavery, wrote the Declaration of Independence’s commitment to freedom and equality into the Constitution, and promised to ban racial discrimination in voting.  In so doing, the amendments sought to make Lincoln’s “new birth of freedom” a constitutional reality.

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Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this continent, a new nation, conceived in Liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.

Now we are engaged in a great civil war, testing whether that nation, or any nation so conceived and so dedicated, can long endure. We are met on a great battle-field of that war. We have come to dedicate a portion of that field, as a final resting place for those who here gave their lives that that nation might live. It is altogether fitting and proper that we should do this.

But, in a larger sense, we can not dedicate – we can not consecrate – we can not hallow – this ground. The brave men, living and dead, who struggled here, have consecrated it, far above our poor power to add or detract. The world will little note, nor long remember what we say here, but it can never forget what they did here. It is for us the living, rather, to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which they who fought here have thus far so nobly advanced. It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us – that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion – that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain – that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom – and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.

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The Gettysburg speech and other papers

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  1. PDF The Gettysburg Address by Abraham Lincoln

    A Speech on the Occasion of the Dedication of the National Cemetery in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania November 19, 1863. Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this. continent a new nation, conceived in Liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal. Now we are engaged in a great civil war, testing ...

  2. PDF Gettysburg Address by Abraham Lincoln November 19, 1863

    address-2/ Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this continent, a new nation, conceived in liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.

  3. PDF Abraham Lincoln, THE GETTYSBURG ADDRESS

    Abraham Lincoln, THE GETTYSBURG ADDRESS 19 November 1863 ... minute speech came music, a prayer, and the featured oration, a two-hour discourse delivered by Edward Everett, ... SOURCE: The Complete Works of Abraham Lincoln, Vol. IX, Ed. John G. Nicolay and John Hay (New York: Tany-Thomas Co., 1905), 209Ð210. Paragraph numbers have been added.

  4. PDF Abraham Lincoln, the Gettysburg Address (1863)

    On November 19, 1863, Abraham Lincoln delivered one of the most famous speeches in American history: the Gettysburg Address. The Union victory at Gettysburg was a key moment in the Civil War—thwarting General Robert E. Lee's invasion of the North. President Lincoln offered this brief speech in a dedication ceremony for a new national ...

  5. The Gettysburg Address by Abraham Lincoln

    The Gettysburg Address. Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. November 19, 1863. On June 1, 1865, Senator Charles Sumner referred to the most famous speech ever given by President Abraham Lincoln. In his eulogy on the slain president, he called the Gettysburg Address a "monumental act." He said Lincoln was mistaken that "the world will little note, nor ...

  6. Gettysburg Address Full Text

    Text of Lincoln's Speech. (Bliss copy) Delivered at the dedication of the Soldiers' National Cemetery at Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth, on this continent, a new nation, conceived in Liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal. Now we are engaged in a great civil ...

  7. November 19, 1863: Gettysburg Address

    November 19, 1863: Gettysburg Address. About this speech. Abraham Lincoln. November 19, 1863. Source National Archives. Four months after the Battle of Gettysburg, Lincoln joined in a dedication of a national cemetery on a portion of the battlefield. The speech he delivered that day would become one of the most famous speeches given by a U.S ...

  8. Gettysburg Address : Abraham Lincoln : Free Download, Borrow, and

    Read by John Greenman. The Gettysburg Address is the most famous speech of U.S. President Abraham Lincoln and one of the most quoted speeches in United States history. It was delivered at the dedication of the Soldiers' National Cemetery in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, on November 19, 1863, during the American Civil War, four and a half months ...

  9. The Gettysburg address .. : Lincoln, Abraham, 1809-1865 : Free Download

    The Gettysburg address .. by Lincoln, Abraham, 1809-1865. Publication date 1900 Publisher [n. p. Collection library_of_congress; americana ... brewster - favorite favorite favorite favorite favorite - September 5, 2009 Subject: A great speech. Short and easy to read . I recommend it. ... B/W PDF download. download 1 file ...

  10. Lincoln, "Gettysburg Address," Speech Text

    ABRAHAM LINCOLN, "GETTYSBURG ADDRESS" (19 NOVEMBER 1863) [1] Fourscore and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this continent, a new nation, conceived in Liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal. [2] Now we are engaged in a great civil war, testing whether that nation, or any nation so conceived and ...

  11. PDF NMAH

    Title. NMAH | Lincoln's Gettysburg Address (White House Copy) Author. National Museum of American History. Created Date. 11/22/2008 1:47:54 PM.

  12. Gettysburg address delivered at Gettysburg Pa. Nov. 19th, 1863. [n. p

    Book/Printed Material Gettysburg address delivered at Gettysburg Pa. Nov. 19th, 1863. [n. p. n. d.]. On verso: Gift Verner W. Clapp, July 9, 1952. Available also through the Library of Congress web site in two forms: as facsimile page images and as full text in SGML. Printed Ephemera Collection; Portfolio 244, Folder 45.

  13. PDF Transcript of the Gettysburg Address- Resource

    Transcription of the Gettysburg Address delivered at the dedication of the Cemetery at Gettysburg. Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this continent, a new nation, conceived in Liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal. ... Abraham Lincoln. November 19, 1863. Author: Katie Gould

  14. Gettysburg Address

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  15. The Gettysburg Address (1863)

    Summary. On November 19, 1863, Abraham Lincoln delivered one of the most famous speeches in American history: the Gettysburg Address. The Union victory at Gettysburg was a key moment in the Civil War—thwarting General Robert E. Lee's invasion of the North. President Lincoln offered this brief speech in a dedication ceremony for a new ...

  16. Gettysburg Address

    Gettysburg Address, world-famous speech delivered by U.S. President Abraham Lincoln at the dedication (November 19, 1863) of the National Cemetery at Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, the site of one of the decisive battles of the American Civil War (July 1-3, 1863). It was preceded by a two-hour speech by Edward Everett.

  17. Gettysburg Address

    The Gettysburg Address is a speech that U.S. President Abraham Lincoln delivered during the American Civil War at the dedication of the Soldiers' National Cemetery, now known as Gettysburg National Cemetery, in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania on the afternoon of November 19, 1863, four and a half months after the Union armies defeated Confederate forces in the Battle of Gettysburg, the Civil War's ...

  18. The Gettysburg address and other speeches : Lincoln, Abraham, 1809-1865

    The Gettysburg address and other speeches Bookreader Item Preview ... The Gettysburg address and other speeches by Lincoln, Abraham, 1809-1865. Publication date 1995 Topics Politics and government Publisher New York : Penguin Books ... EPUB and PDF access not available for this item.

  19. PDF Abraham Lincoln Speeches and Writings

    Done at the City of Washington, this first day of January, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and sixty three, and of the Independence of the United States of America the eighty-seventh. By the President: ABRAHAM LINCOLN. CHAPTER 6. November 19, 1863.

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  22. The Gettysburg speech and other papers : Lincoln, Abraham, 1809-1865

    Abraham Lincoln: an essay / James Russell Lowell -- Mr. Lincoln's speeches, papers, and letters: The Gettysburg speech ; The first inaugural address ; Letter to Horace Greeley ; Reply to a committee ; The Emancipation Proclamation ; Account of the Emancipation Proclamation ; Letter to dissatisfied friends ; Proclamation appointing a National Fast Day ; Announcement of news from Gettysburg ...

  23. Gettysburg Address by Abraham Lincoln (Poem + Analysis)

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