The Great Victory—Its Cost and Its Value

Delivered on the Fourth of July in 1865, this stirring address opens by recalling the ancient Roman rites of thanksgiving that followed triumphs, drawing a vivid parallel to America’s own celebration of hard‑won peace. The speaker paints a picture of a nation finally breathing easy after a conflict of unprecedented scale, inviting listeners to pause in gratitude for the divine hand that secured victory.

From there the oration turns to the staggering sacrifices that made the peace possible—hundreds of thousands of soldiers, massive financial outlays, and countless personal losses. Yet the message is not one of sorrow alone; it is a reaffirmation of the principles that underpinned the struggle: liberty, law, and the enduring promises of the Declaration and Constitution. By framing the end of the war as a true, hard‑won triumph rather than a fleeting compromise, the speech encourages listeners to honor the past while looking forward to a future built on those hard‑earned freedoms.