logo
episode-header-image
Feb 2021
42m 7s

Portrait of a Leader

CNN
About this episode

Through single-minded focus, poignant oration, political savvy, and moral conviction, Abraham Lincoln ascended from obscurity to the White House. In this episode, we look at Lincoln’s nuanced stance on slavery and equality as the issue threatened to tear the country apart.

To learn more about how CNN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy

Up next
Mar 2021
A Country on Edge
As Lincoln, the former one-term congressman prepares to take office, the South severs itself from the United States, and the country faces an unprecedented crisis.To learn more about how CNN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy 
42m 7s
Mar 2021
A Proclamation
While his family faces personal tragedy at home, men die by the thousand on the battlefield, and Lincoln is forced to make an unprecedented decision while wrestling with his own mental health.To learn more about how CNN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy 
42m 7s
Mar 2021
The Dogs of War
As the Civil War ends, Abraham Lincoln delivers the most iconic speech and piece of legislation of his career, but the successes he sees in the Oval Office and on the battlefield come at a great cost to his marriage and family. To learn more about how CNN protects listener privac ... Show More
42m 7s
Recommended Episodes
Jan 2023
Lincoln On The Verge
On this episode of Our American Stories, the story of President Abraham Lincoln's harrowing train trip to Washington, D.C., to be sworn in as the leader of a new—and divided—nation. Joining us to tell the story is Ted Widmer, author of Lincoln on the Verge: Thirteen Days to Washi ... Show More
38m 16s
Feb 2024
The Short, Happy Life of Abraham Lincoln: His Final Days
On this episode of Our American Stories, the Civil War was over, the city of Washington was in celebration and President Lincoln's life was about to take a happy and hopeful turn. His short, happy life was thwarted by John Wilkes Booth. Support the show (https://www.ouramericanst ... Show More
10m 49s
Oct 2023
The Contradictions of Abraham Lincoln
In 1855, Abraham Lincoln wrote a letter to his best friend, Joshua Speed. Speed was from a wealthy, slave-owning Kentucky family; Lincoln believed slavery was wrong. You are mistaken about this, Lincoln wrote to Speed. But, differ we must." One way for Lincoln to have dealt with ... Show More
49m 16s
Nov 2022
November 18th: Lincoln Travels To Gettysburg
On November 18, 1863, Abraham Lincoln travels to Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, to dedicate a national cemetery. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.c ... Show More
7m 8s
Mar 2022
MYSTICAL: Lincoln’s Ghost
Throughout his presidency, Abraham Lincoln was reportedly plagued by strange premonitions and recurring nightmares. Some say they were omens of his assassination. And in the aftermath of his death, Lincoln has been seen haunting the White House and elsewhere.   
34m 3s
Mar 2021
Abraham Lincoln: The Greatest President and Sufferer of Melancholy
Abraham Lincoln contemplated suicide more than once in his life, he knew suffering and yet he is perhaps histories' greatest leader through a period of time where the nation also wept, the American Civil War.  Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.c ... Show More
51m 36s
Aug 2022
August 17th: Lincoln Defends the Declaration of Independence
On August 17, 1858, Abraham Lincoln defends the Declaration of Independence. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices 
7m 6s