Alejandro Gallegos

History
Lubisich
07/26/2016
Document Interpretation 6: Abraham Lincoln First Inaugural Address
During 1845 and 1861, Americas political parties were harshly divided in the debate
over expanding slavery to the newly acquired territory from the Mexican-American war. In the
Compromise of 1850, the Utah and New Mexico territories were to be opened to slavery by the
ideals of popular sovereignty in return California being a free state. In 1854, Senator Stephen A.
Douglas of Illinois proposed a bill to organize the Nebraska-Kansas territory that would ultimate
destroy the Whig and divide Democratic party of the North. This bill would extend slavery on
the basis of popular sovereignty to these regions that were already free. The Nebraska-Kansas
territory disaster gave a rise to the new Republican Party; made up of Free-Soil Democrats and
Whig party members. Republicans saw the West as land of opportunity where people can
improve their social and economic position. Allowing slavery in the West would in turn give the
opportunity for slaveholders to monopolize and use their slaves to compete against free white
workers, block commercial and industrial development, and give them control of the federal
government. In the elections of 1860, Abraham Lincoln would be nominated as the Republicans
very first president of the United States.
Abrahams Lincolns first inaugural address was on March 4, 1861. In the speech,
Abraham Lincoln talks directly to the south and only talks about the slave issue that is diving the
country. His main point of the speech was to easy tension in the country and soothe southern
concerns of his presidency. He immediately starts off by acknowledging the southern states
worry in which he says, Apprehension seems to exist among the people of the Southern States

that by the accession of a Republican Administration their property and their peace and personal
security are to be endangered. Lincoln then follows up by reassuring them, I have no purpose,
directly or indirectly, to interfere with the institution of slavery in the States where it exists. I
believe I have no lawful right to do so, and I have no inclination to do so. Lincoln tried to
soothe tensions with the south by letting them know he had no intension, nor the legal right, to
change their way of life that they had. He also assured the south that past laws regarding slavery
would not be overturned. The south wanted to succeed from the rest of the United States yet
Abraham Lincoln reminds the nation, from past events in United States History, that anything but
a union of states cannot work and the Constitution legal binds all states. He reminds the nation
job as president to preserve, protect, and defend the United States Constitution and that any
threat, including that of south trying to succeed from the union would lead him to, will be
used to hold, occupy, and possess the property and places belonging to the Government and to
collect the duties and imposts;. In regards to expanding slavery to the new territories, Abraham
Lincoln says nothing in the constitution says what to do about this expansion, however it must be
left to debate and taken to the Supreme Court rather then resort to violence against country men.