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A. Lincoln, Soldier

A. Lincoln, Soldier

A. Lincoln, Soldier

At Lincoln’s Tomb, as you leave the entrance way and walk the hallway to the antechamber where the sarcophagus is, you are shown a number of statutes that represent certain periods of Lincoln’s life. The one above is of Lincoln the soldier. While his actual time spent in that role was short, it shaped him in a number of ways.

In early 1832 Black Hawk and a band, his followers crossed the Mississippi River in an attempt to reclaim their lands from the white settlers. This attack caused Illinois to call out there militia, among them a young man named Abraham Lincoln who would serve over the next couple of months.

Lincoln served in a number of roles during the war as he came in out of the service. At one point he was elected captain of his company, his first brush with an electoral process. Most accounts show he was a well thought of and capable leader. While he never actually saw combat during the war, he was on hand for the aftermath of several battles, tasked with helping to bury the dead each time.

Later in life, Lincoln would reflect on his time in the service. It would be one of the many starting points for his famous stories. During this period he made a number of contacts that would serve him in his career. The images of the aftermath of the war would never stray far from his mind. Of the many roles, Lincoln undertook in his life this was one of the smallest. Certainly not a legendary one. Still, that brief time did help make the 23-year-old into the man he would later become.

Mexican-American War

The Spot Resolution – Mexican American War

Lincoln the Congressman Spot Resolution

 

The Spot Resolution – Mexican American War

In August 1846 Abraham Lincoln was elected to Congress as the Whig representative for his Illinois district and officially embarked on his national political career. When he took his seat in December 1847 he was a freshman representative he found himself in quite a quandary.  Most of his supporters back home were supporters of the current Mexican-American War, Lincoln not so much.

While he was not outright opposed to the war he did question how it was being fought and the reasons why it was being fought. Sort of an early version of “I support the troops, but not the war” that has been all the rage the last twenty years by people in Washington. For Lincoln though one particular thing sort of stuck out to him. In most ways the Mexican War was fought over the disputed border between Texas, now a state, and Mexico.  Tensions ran hot on both sides.  It was not until a unit of the US Army was “bushwhacked’ by the Mexican Army on American soil did the war actually start-up. At least that was the story given by President Polk in 1846 when he asked Congress for a declaration of war.

Lincoln and The Spot

Lincoln decided to challenge the President’s version of events. He requested to be shown on a map the exact spot where the soldiers had been killed. The Spot Resolution, as it became known, was Lincoln’s first real taste of the national stage. It did not go over well. His own party sort of back away from any support for him.  The Democrats accused him of being unpatriotic for questioning the President.  The resolutions were tabled, never debated or voted upon. Lincoln only ended up serving one term in the House before retiring back to his law practice.

For the record it should be noted that the “spot” of the actual ambushed happened well inside the disputed area. So “technically” the attack happened on Mexican soil. Truth be told it was not the first, nor the last time the US went to war under questionable circumstances.