What does Lincoln say must happen to ensure that the soldiers that dies at Gettysburg did not die in vain?
13) that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom –
(14) and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.
To determine what Abraham Lincoln said about ensuring that the soldiers who died at Gettysburg did not die in vain, we can refer to his famous speech, known as the Gettysburg Address. The Gettysburg Address was delivered by President Lincoln on November 19, 1863, during the American Civil War, at the dedication of the Soldiers' National Cemetery in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania.
To find the specific quote, we can search for the Gettysburg Address online, where we can find the full text of Lincoln's speech. By reading and analyzing the speech, we can understand Lincoln's message.
In the opening of the Gettysburg Address, Lincoln states, "Four score and seven years ago, our fathers brought forth on this continent a new nation, conceived in Liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal." This indicates that the soldiers fought and died to uphold the foundational principles of equality and freedom upon which the United States was founded.
Later in the speech, Lincoln emphasizes the importance of preserving and advancing the cause for which the soldiers fought. He states, "It is for us the living, rather, to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which they who fought here have thus far so nobly advanced. It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us."
In this quote, Lincoln asserts that it is the responsibility of the living to continue the work that the fallen soldiers had fought for. He implies that their deaths will not be in vain if the living ensure that their cause, which is preserving freedom and equality, carries on.
Therefore, to address your question, Lincoln believed that to ensure the soldiers who died at Gettysburg did not die in vain, it was necessary for the living to be dedicated to the unfinished work they had started – to persevere in the cause for freedom and equality.