Mrs. Mahlman
History 1301
18 November 2014
Abraham Lincoln as Commander in Chief President Abraham Lincoln was not exactly prepared to be commander in chief in the civil war. There were times where you can clearly see President Lincoln is inexperienced, but then you can see him being a true real commander in chief. When time comes President Lincoln will step up to the challenge and be our leader. As you all know the union wins the civil war all thanks to one of our greatest presidents. Abraham Lincoln did have some positive things going for him being a commander. He is a quick learning which helps Lincoln in the Civil War. He read and studied works of military history and strategy. Lincoln during the war also studied his fails and wins during the war, as well as his enemy or confederation flaws and success. In times Lincoln uses his common since at times which pays off for Lincoln more than you would think. Lincoln stands out as a Great War president, one of the greatest in our history, and a great natural, strategist, a better one than any of his generals. Lincoln commissioned important ethnic leaders as generals with little regard to their military merits. During the first year of the civil the volunteer Union army had grown to 637,000 men. The mobilization could not taken place without an enormous effort by local and state politicians as well as by prominent ethnic leaders. (“Abraham Lincoln”) Lincoln being the smart commander he was realized that if they lost Kentucky is nearly the same as to lose the whole war. Lincoln knew his priorities he also knew what he had to get done and what not to lose. Now Lincoln might not always know how to get the job done but he would try his best. Many northerners or Unionist , including Lincoln became aware that to win the war they would need bolder steps. (“Abraham Lincoln”) So Lincoln would do something that makes him famous today. Lincoln would strike at slavery to get rid of it for good. Now Lincoln being a commander would use this in his favor by setting some of the slaves free they would join the Union for more troops. Some slaves would even fight for their freedom. If a slave fought for a cretin amount of year they would be considered free to the union. This was called the Emancipation proclamation. Lincoln told his members of the cabinet that Emancipation was a “military necessity, absolutely necessary to the preservation of the Union. We must free the slaves or be ourselves subdued.” Lincoln has had more train as a military leader then most people think. He graduated from the US Military Academy at West Point, he had a distinguished record during the Mexican War. He has been secretary of War during the administration of Franklin Pierce, and as a US senator from Mississippi, he had chaired the Committee on military Affairs. Lincoln has served as a leader in the Black Hawk War, which he had seen no action. (“Lincoln as Commander-in-Chief”) Lincoln in the campaign of 1948 turned Lewis Cass of Michigan into a military hero comparable the Whig’s Zachary Taylor, almost as a joke. “By the way, Mr. Speaker, did you know I am military hero? Yes sir; in the days of the Black Hawk war, I fought, bled, and came away. Speaking of General Cass’ career reminds me of my own. I was not at Stallman’s defeat, but I was about as near it, as Cass was to Hull’s surrender; and like him, I saw the place very soon afterwards…. If Gen. Cass went in advance of me in picking huckleberries, I guess I surpassed him in charge upon the wood onions. If he saw any live fighting Indians, it was more than I did; but I had a good many bloody struggles with the mosquitoes; and although I never fainted from loss of blood, I can truly say I was often very hungry.” This just goes to show that Lincoln never did tell a lie. (Lincoln as a Commander-in-Chief) Which clearly a great leader needs this. Lincoln made it his effort to go to camps to support the troops. Lincoln also