Before his death on April 15, 1865, Abraham Lincoln gave his final formal speech, a five-minute address in which he reminded his audience that slavery had been the central cause of the Civil War, made Biblical references to divine retribution, and concluded by urging the nation to finish its work, bind up its wounds, care for those who had borne the battle and for their widows and orphans, and achieve and cherish a just and lasting peace among themselves and with all nations.