Lincoln Memorial

Introduction

The Lincoln Memorial is located in the capital of the United States of American (how could it be anywhere else? ), Washington D. C. , which is the city that all of the American presidents live in during their mandate. The monument itself is quite famous and is one of my personal favourites out of those that I have seen thus far here in the US.

President Lincoln

If you still don't know who President Lincoln is, you only have to look at a one cent coin or a five dollar bill, on the front part of which you will see this president's face, and on the back, the Memorial that I am going to talk to you about in this post.

And, for those of you who are perhaps too young to know, I am going to give you a quick summary of the relevance of this president and the reason behind why this magnificent monument came to be dedicated to him.

Abraham Lincoln was the 16th President of the United States of America, and was the very first president of the Republican Party (in the US, there are two main parties, the Republicans and the Democrats). He was elected president on March 4th, 1961.

It's him who we owe the abolition of slavery to, due to a series of measures that his government introduced, with the 1863 Emancipation Proclamation being the most relevant. The Civil War was another example of the important issues that he had to confront during his presidency, which saw the confrontation and hostility between the northern and southern states. Besides from these, Lincoln is also known for his mastery of rhetoric and for the powerful speeches he gave.

Lincoln was re-elected as the President of the United States of America on March 4th, 1965. However, he was assassinated on April 15th at Ford's Theatre (which I really hope to visit one day to see the exhibition about this very event) whilst he attended a play performed by the very same actor who then shot him in the back of the head, before jumping from the balcony and running away; he was later captured and killed. His death shocked the entire nation, and simply proved that he was one of the most-loved US Presidents of all time.

Monument

The statue of President Lincoln is located within a building that is the shape of a Doric Greek temple and has 36 columns, all of which measure 10 metres tall, that represent the 36 states that existed when President Lincoln passed away. And, below the frieze, you will find written the names of the 48 states that existed in the US at the time of the monument's inauguration (it is only missing Alaska and Hawaii, but there is a further inscription on the terrace that adds these two states to the monument). I personally love the monuments that have the states written on them, as I am trying to learn the names of them all and this helps me to memorise them better.

The 48 states that are inscribed are: Wyoming, Maryland, California, Washington, Delaware, Nevada, Montana, Alabama, Mississippi, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Kansas, Arkansas, Tennessee, Oregon, Idaho, Iowa, Wisconsin, Kentucky, Indiana, Missouri, Georgia, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Vermont, New Hampshire, New York, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New Mexico, Colorado, Arizona, Utah, Michigan, Illinois, North Carolina, South Carolina, Florida, Louisiana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Minnesota, Texas, Ohio, Virginia, West Virginia, Maine, and Massachusetts.

The statue of President Lincoln measures 6 metres tall and another 6 metres wide (it really gives the impression of being a huge square block) and represents Lincoln sat down looking pensive, with one hand closed and the other open, looking at the Reflecting Pool. The statue itself is made from a base of marble blocks. It seems really impressive and magnificent to me, especially given its size and how truly realistic it is.

On the wall behind the statue, you can read the following inscription:

IN THIS TEMPLE

AS IN THE HEARTS OF THE PEOPLE

FOR WHOM HE SAVED THE UNION

THE MEMORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN

IS ENSHRINED FOREVER.

Aside from this inscription, you will also find two extracts from President Abraham Lincoln's most famous speeches. The Gettysburg Address is located on the southern wall, and his second inaugural address, on the northern wall. I won't write them out for you here because they are very long, but you will be able to read them for yourselves either in the following photo or online - they are very interesting.

Museum and souvenir shop

At the Lincoln Memorial, there isn't just this statue of President Lincoln, but it also has a mini-museum, where you can see the evolution of the memorial's construction, as well as videos and photos of events that have taken place here, like Martin Luther King delivering his famous speech entitled "I have a dream... ". It's really worth visiting it, as the visit to the rest of the monument is actually quite short, so, this way, it makes the whole thing more complete. And, for those of you who don't know why Lincoln is important or what the relevance of the monument is, you can become better informed and leave feeling like you have learned something.

Although it doesn't seem like it, given the size of the monument, it also has its own gift shop located inside. It's very small and narrow, but it's worth visiting it all the same to see all of the President Lincoln souvenirs - some of which are just entirely unimaginable.

Reflecting Pool

You also cannot forget to go and see the Reflecting Pool that sits just in front of the monument, which actually separates the Lincoln Memorial from the Washington Monument. It's really famous, and some of the best and most memorable photos of these monuments have been taken from this very spot, as well as others of Washington D. C. as a whole.

Additional information

This monument is quite renowned, as it has been featured in both films (Forrest Gump and Independence Day) and television series (I knew about this monument thanks to having seen it on The Simpsons when Lisa needs help writing her speech about Washington D. C. ), as well as in music videos and video games.

If you want to eat something while you are here, you have two options: the first, you can bring your own food (be that a snack or, even better, a picnic) and eat it on the grass in the National Mall or on the steps of the monument itself; and the second, go to the cafeteria located close to the Memorial and buy yourself a sandwich or chicken wings, for example. However, if you choose the second option, bear in mind that it can be quite expensive, and watch out for the pigeons - they almost ate all of my food!

A huge point in favour of this monument, as well as the majority of the other monuments and museums in Washington D. C., is that it's free to visit, meaning that there is no excuse not to see it, or to even go back more than once. As you will see, it's not only the Lincoln Memorial that is impressive, but the views that you get of the city from there are also spectacular.

Another favourable thing about the Lincoln Memorial is that it is open 24 hours a day, every single day of the year. However, if you require assistance from a staff member, you have to visit between 9:30am and 11:30pm. I wouldn't really recommend visiting the monument during the early hours of the morning, if I am really honest. I think that they close the Memorial on Christmas Day (25th December).

The Lincoln Memorial is administered by the National Park Service, and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

There are lots of people and tourists at this monument, or at least there have been every time that I have visited it (and that's during the winter too! ). During both spring and summer, it's very common to see young people sat on the steps of the moment enjoying the sunshine and the views... however, it does end being rather overwhelming.

How to get there

The best way to get to this monument is to either travel through the National Mall, be that on foot or by bike, or take the metro and alight at the stop, "Foggy Bottom" (served by the blue, silver and orange lines). This metro station, despite being the closest to the monument, is not the only one you can alight at, as there are several others that surround the perimeter of the National Mall.