On this day...President Abraham Lincoln delivered the Gettysburg Address in 1863. Arguably one of the greatest pieces of rhetoric from the last 200 years, and certainly the best-known speech in the U.S, the address lasted a little over two minutes and contained approximately 272 words. Epousing the human equality laid out in the Declaration of Independence, the speech combined with the results of the Civil War to produce the thirteenth amendment, prohibiting slavery. If for nothing else, the Gettysburg Address will be remembered for its definition of democracy, 'government of the people, by the people, for the people'.
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