“The Grave of the Union”, 1864

Secretary Stanton drives the hearse.
President Lincoln leads a band of undertakers (members of his cabinet) in burying the Constitution.
Abolitionist clergyman Henry Ward Beecher holds an African American child in his arms and prays, “Not thy will oh Lord! But mine be done.”
Massachusetts senator Charles Sumner and journalist Horace Greeley are burying a coffin labeled “Constitution.”

“The Grave of the Union” 1864

President Lincoln’s suspension of the writ of habeas corpus ignited a debate. Some argued that the wartime emergency justified the action. This cartoon represents an opposing viewpoint. It depicts the “burial” of habeas corpus and other rights in coffins.

Courtesy of the Library of Congress