Abraham Lincoln VS. Jefferson Davis

Essay by emeraldislekidA+, March 2007

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Abraham Lincoln, the sixteenth president of the United States of America, and Jefferson Davis, the first and only President of the Confederate States of America, share many similarities and differences in their education, presidency, military experience, and political standpoint.

Both Davis and Lincoln grew up in a family of poverty-stricken standards, and had been born near each other in distance, and time. Abraham and Jefferson both served in the Black Hawk War in 1831, though Lincoln did not see any action at all. Both Lincoln and Jefferson had some experience in politics, but Lincoln clearly understood and worked out how politics worked. Lincoln served in the House of Representatives in 1846. Davis, on the other hand, made his first political appearance at the 1843 Democratic National Convention. He then won a seat in Congress as the representative for Mississippi on December 8th, 1845. Later in 1847, he was appointed to a Senate seat and served there for about nine years before becoming President of the CSA.

Lincoln, on the other hand, ran for the Senate and failed. In 1860 Lincoln ran for the Presidential Ballot, and won the third spot, and on November, 6th, 1860, he was elected President of the USA. Although Lincoln seemed beat by political service, he knew how to work the government. In their day, both Lincoln and Davis gave many inspirational and history-changing speeches, and looked at their people with respect.

Although there is much similarity between Jefferson and Lincoln, there were many differences too. The obvious difference between the two is that Lincoln was against slavery and for the Union, while Davis was for slavery and favored the Confederate States. When both served in the Black Hawk War, Lincoln never fired one shot, while Jefferson Davis was wounded and fought in many...