Quote Originally Posted by Pannonian View Post
The Gettysburg address might have something to do with his legacy as a secular saint.
Fair point, and it is such public pronouncements as that, plus the tone of his second inaugural, that leave me uncertain as to how much credence to give the "just another politician and racist like others of his times" revisionism that fisherking is bringing into the discussion.

American reaction the Gettysburg address was mixed -- with editors panning it or praising it according to their editorial stance, if they were anti-Lincoln before, the speech did not move them. Persons in attendance were pleased with its eloquence and style, but rather surprised by its brevity.

When I read his words, I hear pain and a man consumed with sorrow and duty. It is hard for me to dismiss that aspect of Lincoln, even as I deplore his creation of the modern "imperial" presidency as he prosecuted the war.