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Lincoln

In January 1865, U.S. President Abraham Lincoln expects the American Civil War to end soon, with the defeat of the Confederate States Army. He is concerned that his 1863 Emancipation Proclamation may be discarded by the courts after the war and that the proposed Thirteenth Amendment will be defeated by the returning slave states. He feels it is imperative to pass the amendment beforehand, to foreclose any possibility that freed slaves might be re-enslaved.

The Radical Republicans fear the amendment will be defeated by some who wish to delay its passage; support from Republicans in the states is not yet assured. The amendment also requires the support of several Democratic congressmen in order for it to pass. With dozens of Democrats being lame ducks after losing their re-election campaigns in 1864, some of Lincoln's advisors recommend waiting for a new Republican nominated Congress.

Lincoln relies on Francis Preston Blair, a founder of the Republican Party, to influence members of the state conservative faction to vote for the anti-slavery amendment. Blair in turn insists that Lincoln allow him to engage the Confederate government in peace negotiations, knowing his two sons will once again be in danger after the spring thaw permits renewed military operations. While Lincoln knows such negotiations would anger the Radical Republicans, he needs to support the slavery amendment; he also cannot proceed without Blair's support and reluctantly authorizes the peace mission. Lincoln and Secretary of State William H. Seward also need to secure Democratic votes for the amendment and Lincoln suggests they concentrate on the lame-ducks who will feel less restricted so as to vote independently. Lincoln also authorizes agents to offer federal jobs to the soon to be unemployed Democratic congressmen.

Robert Todd Lincoln, the eldest son of President Lincoln and First Lady Mary Todd Lincoln, returns from Harvard Law School and announces his intention to discontinue his studies and enlist in the Union army. He hopes to earn a measure of honor and respect outside of his father's shadow. The President reluctantly secures an officer's commission for him. His wife fears their son will be killed and urges her husband to pass the amendment and end the war.

At a critical moment in the debate in the United States House of Representatives, racial-equality advocate Thaddeus Stevens agrees to moderate his position and argue that the amendment represents only legal equality between the races, not a declaration of actual equality. Confederate envoys ready to meet with Lincoln are instructed to remain outside of Washington, D.C. as the amendment approaches a vote on the House floor.

Rumors of the peace envoy circulate, prompting both Democrats and conservative Republicans to advocate postponing the vote. In a carefully worded statement, Lincoln denies there are envoys in Washington, and the vote passes by a margin of two votes. Black visitors to the gallery celebrate, and Stevens returns home to his "housekeeper" and lover, a biracial woman named Lydia Hamilton Smith.

When Lincoln meets with the Confederates, he tells them that slavery cannot be restored, as the North is united for ratification of the amendment, and several of the southern states' reconstructed legislatures would also vote to ratify. As a result, the peace negotiations fail, and the war continues. On April 3, Lincoln visits the battlefield at Petersburg, Virginia and speaks with Lieutenant General Ulysses S. Grant. On April 9, Grant receives General Robert E. Lee 's surrender at Appomattox Courthouse. On April 14, Lincoln meets members of his cabinet to discuss future measures to enfranchise blacks, before leaving for Ford's Theatre. That night, while Lincoln's son Tad is watching a play at Grover's Theatre, the manager stops the play to announce that the President has been shot.

The next morning, at the Petersen House, Lincoln dies with a peaceful expression across his face. In a flashback, he finishes reciting his second inaugural address on March 4 with the words, "With malice toward none, with charity for all".