What did Lincoln's first inaugural address mean?

Question:Why was it spoken?

Best Answer - Chosen by Asker: Why was it spoken?

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I think the main point is that he was trying to reassure the South that he did not intend to free their slaves. Lincoln wanted to avoid the Civil War if at all possible. He was quite willing to leave slavery alone where it was in the Southern states.

~Have you read it? He did speak English after all - and in vocabulary intended to reach the uneducated masses. What, it's over your head or you're just too lazy to look at it?

And to Spreedog: he didn't say he was willing to leave slavery alone. He acknowledged that ownership of slaves was a right guaranteed by the constitution and that he had no right or authority to change it whether he wanted to or not. Obviously, when he needed votes and and support in January 1863, he disregarded those simple truths.