Video Lecture: Richard Cawardine on Lincoln

What is it about Abraham Lincoln that makes him as fascinating a figure today as he was in his lifetime? It is an interesting question to contemplate at a time when our nation is at war and our country deeply divided. What does it take to lead in such circumstances? How does a president respond to public opinion when individual opinions are so bitterly at odds? How does a leader successfully combine political skill and moral purpose?
As a defender of national unity, a leader in war, and the emancipator of slaves, Abraham Lincoln lays ample claim to being the greatest of our presidents. But the story of his rise to greatness is as complex as it is compelling. Oxford University historian Richard Carwardine examines Lincoln both in his dramatic political journey and in his nation-shaping White House years.