Ronald C. White, Jr.

About Lincoln's Greatest Speech

After four years of unspeakable horror and sacrifice on both sides, the Civil War was about to end. On March 4th, 1865, at his second inauguration, President Lincoln did not offer the North the victory speech it yearned for, nor did he blame the South solely for the sin of slavery. Calling the whole nation to account, Lincoln offered a moral framework for peace and reconciliation. The speech was greeted with indifference, misunderstanding, and hostility by many in the Union. But it was a great work, the victorious culmination of Lincoln's own lifelong struggle with the issue of slavery, and he well understood it to be his most profound speech. Eventually this "with malice toward none" address would be accepted and revered as one of the greatest in the nation's history. Ronald C. White's compelling description of Lincoln's articulation of our nation's struggle and the suffering of all — North, South, soldier, slave — offers new insight into Lincoln's own hard-won victory over doubt and his promise of authority and passion. These words, delivered only weeks before his assassination, were the culmination of Lincoln's moral and rhetorical genius.

Available in paperback, hardcover, large print hardcover, audio CD, and audio cassette.

Endorsements for Lincoln's Greatest Speech

"Ronald C. White's elegantly written study of Lincoln's Second Inaugural Address offers a close examination of both the form and the substance of Lincoln's address. In tracing the development of Lincoln's literary artistry, White shows how deeply his ideas were rooted in his profound religious beliefs.  A book both learned and accessible, Lincoln's Greatest Speech is going to have a wide impact on Lincoln scholarship."
―David Herbert Donald, author of Lincoln

"Professor White's book on the preparation, delivery, and influences of Lincoln's Second Inaugural Address is a significant addition to Civil War literature.  I find it hard to say which is more commendable, the research or the explication; both are admirable, and we are all greatly benefited by the result."
―Shelby Foote, author of The Civil War

"Those who think it is not possible to say anything fresh about the life and convictions of Abraham Lincoln will be surprised by this book.  Careful attention to the complex layers of Lincoln's own actions and beliefs leaves Ronald White with a rich harvest of political, religious, and social insight concerning what truly was Lincoln's Greatest Speech."
―Mark A. Noll, author of America's God: From Jonathan Edwards to Abraham Lincoln

"White is very good on Lincoln's rhetorical techniques. . .  He shows us how such rhetorical devices reveal character and create meaning. . . He also has a good eye for vivid quotations."
―Max Byrd, The New York Times Book Review

"This is the very best book on the most famous of all inaugural addresses."
―Frank J. Williams, chairman of The Lincoln Forum

"A masterful mix of history, biography, and rhetoric . . . wise yet humble in its judgments."
―David Reinhard, The Oregonian

Reviews of Lincoln's Greatest Speech

Reviews are in for "Lincoln's Greatest Speech", including this one from Max Byrd of The New York Times:

…in his exhaustive new study, ''Lincoln's Greatest Speech,'' Ronald C. White Jr., dean and professor of American religious history at San Francisco Theological Seminary, begins by trying to bring it to life. He describes in journalistic detail the inauguration itself on March 4, 1865, presenting the dramatis personae, the look of the new iron dome on the Capitol, even the weather -- rainy in the morning, with the sun breaking through the clouds just as Lincoln rose to speak. Then, paragraph by paragraph, sometimes word by word, for the rest of the book White proceeds to explain the meaning of the president's speech.

Gilbert Taylor of Booklist also gave this review:

Historian White has here turned in an acute analysis of the speech’s meanings in spite of the fact that the oration has no surrounding documentation about its composition. White breaks down the speech phrase by phrase, then integrates it according to its rhetorical framework of past, present, and future. He seeks sources for the speech’s ideas in Lincoln’s ambiguous stance toward organized religion, in the sermons of preachers he listened to, and in his Bible-reading habit.

Interviews and Speeches for "Lincoln's Greatest Speech"

The links below include audio and video recordings of addresses I gave in connection with my book, Lincoln's Greatest Speech: The Second Inaugural. 

"Abraham Lincoln's Sermon on the Mount"
Delivered Sunday, July 2, 2006
The National Presbyterian Church

The Fetzer Institute
"Lincoln Leadership Series: Wisdom For Our Times"
keynote address (mp3 audio)

NewsHour with Jim Lehrer
April 22, 2002
(includes video)