Lincoln Administrations - Lincoln's Advisers

Lincoln's Advisers

As president Lincoln actively sought advice from a large number of people, both civilian and military. For the most part, he relied upon his cabinet officers to run their departments. However, Lincoln maintained overall control, and when he felt major decisions or changes were necessary, he acted. In an effort to strengthen and unify the Republican Party, Lincoln appointed many of his most powerful opponents within the party to his cabinet. While several of these men proved very capable, they were also ambitious and hoped to use their positions to enhance their power.

Lincoln's relationship with his secretary of state is an example. William H. Seward ran against Lincoln for the Republican presidential nomination in 1860 and was still bothered by his defeat. Seward accepted Lincoln's offer to become secretary of state thinking that he would play the role of an older, wiser, "premier" to Lincoln, who had...

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