Event of 1862: Abraham Lincoln reaffirms the necessity of ending slavery in his State of the Un
- When
- 1862
- Where
- 37th United States Congress
- Episodes
- 2
Abraham Lincoln delivered his 1862 State of the Union Address to the 37th Congress on December 1, amid the Civil War. This address, his longest, coined the phrase 'last best hope of Earth,' influencing later presidents. The specific claim regarding the necessity of ending slavery is not supported by the supplied passages.
Episodes
- Delivery of the 1862 State of the Union Address
Lincoln delivered his longest State of the Union Address to the 37th Congress on December 1, 1862, during the Civil War.
- Coining the 'Last Best Hope' Phrase
Lincoln coined the phrase 'last best hope of Earth' in the closing paragraphs of the address.
Background and detail
Background. The 1862 State of the Union Address was written by President Abraham Lincoln and delivered to the 37th United States Congress on Monday, December 1, 1862. It occurred amid the ongoing American Civil War, serving as a critical communication to the legislative branch during a period of national conflict.
Content and Legacy. This address was Lincoln's longest State of the Union Address, consisting of 8,385 words. In the closing paragraphs, Lincoln penned words frequently remembered and quoted by presidents and other American political figures, including the phrase that the United States is the 'last best hope of Earth.'
Later Influence. The phrase 'last best hope of Earth' coined by Lincoln in this address has been echoed by many US presidents. Roosevelt closed his 1939 State of the Union Address by quoting these words, and later presidents alluded to it in multiple State of the Union Addresses and inaugural speeches.
People involved
- Abraham Lincoln · 16th President of the United States
- 37th United States Congress · Legislative body receiving the address
Sources
- 1862 State of the Union Address Wikipedia, revision of 2026-06-27
Machine-drafted from the cited Wikipedia passages and checked by a reviewing model, not by a human editor. Every passage cites the revision it was written from; dates and places follow those passages.