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The Civil War

The Gettysburg Address

Lincoln feels he has failed the American people, his audience at Gettysburg, and the memory of the dead with his short address, yet the eloquence and grandeur of the 269 words became enshrined as a standard against which all speeches that came thereafter were measured.

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1865: "War Is All Hell"/"The Better Angels of Our Nature"
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2:14:38
Richmond falls to Grant's army, Lee surrenders, Lincoln is assassinated, and the war ends.
1864: "Valley of the Shadow of Death"/"Most Hallowed Ground"
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2:18:35
While causalities mount, Lincoln’s re-election chances dim.
1863: "Simply Murder"/"The Universe of Battle"
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2:34:49
Follow the Battle of Gettysburg, draft riots, and the first African-American troops.
1862: "A Very Bloody Affair"/"Forever Free"
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2:21:25
Lincoln’s war to preserve the Union transforms to a war to emancipate the slaves.
1861: "The Cause"
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1:40:58
Find out what caused the war, examining slavery and questions of union and states’ rights.
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