What was one important thing that Abraham Lincoln did?

Why This Matters

This question asks what one important thing Abraham Lincoln did. The accepted answers are: freed the slaves (Emancipation Proclamation), saved or preserved the Union, or led the United States during the Civil War. You only need to give one answer.

Abraham Lincoln became the sixteenth President of the United States in 1861, just as the country was falling apart. Southern states had begun to secede from the Union because they feared Lincoln would end slavery. Within weeks of his taking office, the Civil War began. Lincoln faced the greatest crisis any American President has ever dealt with, a war that threatened to destroy the country entirely.

Lincoln's most famous action was issuing the Emancipation Proclamation on January 1, 1863. This executive order declared that all enslaved people in the Confederate states were free. While it did not immediately free every enslaved person, it changed the purpose of the war. The Union was now fighting not just to stay together, but also to end slavery. Lincoln also led the country through four years of brutal war. His leadership held the Union together when many people wanted to give up and let the South go. When the war ended in 1865, the United States was still one nation. Tragically, Lincoln was assassinated by John Wilkes Booth on April 14, 1865, just days after the war ended. He is remembered as one of the greatest Presidents in American history.

Key Facts

• Lincoln freed the slaves through the Emancipation Proclamation in 1863
• He preserved the Union by winning the Civil War
• He was the sixteenth President of the United States
• He led the country through the Civil War from 1861 to 1865
• He was assassinated in April 1865, shortly after the war ended

Common Mistakes

• Saying "He wrote the Constitution", the Constitution was written in 1787, long before Lincoln
• Saying "He ended the Revolutionary War", that was George Washington
• Confusing the Emancipation Proclamation with the Thirteenth Amendment, the Proclamation was Lincoln's executive order; the Amendment permanently abolished slavery

Study Tip

Think of Lincoln as the President who did three connected things: he led the Civil War, saved the Union, and freed the slaves. All three happened during the same period (1861-1865). Pick whichever one is easiest for you to say clearly, and practice it. Any one of the three is correct.