Gettysburg National Cemetery in the context of "United States National Cemetery System"

The Gettysburg Address is a speech delivered by Abraham Lincoln, the 16th U.S. president, following the Battle of Gettysburg during the American Civil War. The speech has come to be viewed as one of the most famous, enduring, and historically significant speeches in American history.

Lincoln delivered the speech on the afternoon of November 19, 1863, during a formal dedication of Soldiers' National Cemetery, now known as Gettysburg National Cemetery, on the grounds where the Battle of Gettysburg was fought four and a half months earlier, between July 1 and July 3, 1863, in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. In the battle, Union army soldiers successfully repelled and defeated Confederate forces in what proved to be the Civil War's deadliest and most decisive battle, resulting in more than 50,000 Confederate and Union army casualties in a Union victory that altered the war's course in the Union's favor.

Edward Everett (April 11, 1794 – January 15, 1865) was an American politician, Unitarian pastor, educator, diplomat, and orator from Massachusetts. Everett, as a Whig, served as U.S. representative, U.S. senator, the 15th governor of Massachusetts, minister to Great Britain, and United States secretary of state. He also taught at Harvard University and served as its president.

Everett was one of the great American orators of the antebellum and Civil War eras. He was the featured orator at the dedication ceremony of the Gettysburg National Cemetery in 1863, where he spoke for over two hours—immediately before President Abraham Lincoln delivered his famous two-minute Gettysburg Address.

Gettysburg (/ˈɡɛtizbɜːrɡ/; locally /ˈɡɛtɪsbɜːrɡ/ ) is a borough in Adams County, Pennsylvania, United States, and its county seat. As of the 2020 census, the borough had a population of 7,106 people.

Gettysburg was the site of the Battle of Gettysburg, which was fought in Gettysburg over three days from July 1 to 3, 1863, during the American Civil War. With over 50,000 combined casualties, the Battle of Gettysburg is both the deadliest battle of the Civil War and in all of American history. The battle, which was won by the Union army, also proved the turning point of the war, leading to the Union's victory two years later and the nation's preservation. Later that year, on November 19, President Abraham Lincoln traveled to present-day Gettysburg National Cemetery, where he participated in a ceremonial consecration of the cemetery and delivered the Gettysburg Address, a carefully crafted 271-word address, which is considered one of the most famous speeches in history.