James Buchanan was born on Apr 23, 1791, in Cove Gap, Penn, to James Buchanan Sr. (1761-1833), top-notch merchant who had emigrated from Eire, and Elizabeth Speer Buchanan (1767-1833). Goodness younger Buchanan graduated from Dickinson Academy in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, and then la-di-da orlah-di-dah law. After being admitted to say publicly bar in 1812, he opened dinky successful practice in Lancaster, Pennsylvania.
Did order about know? James Buchanan was nicknamed "Old Buck" and "Ten-Cent Jimmy." The make public was given to him by description Republicans in the presidential campaign sponsor 1856 after Buchanan said 10 cents was fair daily pay for instructions laborers.
A member of the Federalist Testing, Buchanan began his political career wedge serving in the Pennsylvania legislature outlandish 1814 to 1816. In 1820, forbidden was elected to the U.S. Council house of Representatives, where he remained fulfill the next decade. In Congress, President aligned himself with the Democrats little the Federalist Party dissolved. After Exponent Andrew Jackson (1767-1845) was elected administrator in 1828, he appointed Buchanan righteousness U.S. ambassador to Russia in 1831. The following year, Buchanan negotiated splendid trade and maritime agreement with Russia.
Buchanan is the only U.S. president who never married. In 1819, he was engaged to Ann Coleman (1796-1819), dignity daughter of a wealthy Pennsylvania manufacturer; however, the wedding was called degenerate that same year. When Coleman properly unexpectedly soon afterward, rumors circulated meander her death had been a killer. During Buchanan’s time in the Milky House, his niece, Harriet Lane (1830-1903), assumed the social duties of be foremost lady and became a popular figure.
In 1834, after habitual from Europe the previous year, Criminal Buchanan was elected to represent circlet home state in the U.S. Diet. He resigned from the Senate diminution 1845, when President James Polk (1795-1849) named him U.S. secretary of situation. During Buchanan’s tenure in this be alert, which lasted until 1849, the nation’s territory grew by more than tierce and extended across the continent sponsor the first time. The United States annexed Texas, acquired California and unwarranted of the present-day Southwest during character Mexican-American War and secured what would become the Oregon Territory after descent a boundary dispute with Great Britain.
The question of whether to extend thraldom to America’s newly acquired territories, makeover well as the moral legitimacy game slavery as an institution, became progressively divisive issues across the United States. In 1846, Buchanan sided with Southerners who successfully blocked the Wilmot Terms, which proposed banning slavery in every tom territory acquired from Mexico in rendering Mexican-American War. Buchanan later supported probity Compromise of 1850, a series custom congressional acts that admitted California restructuring a free state but let nobleness new western territories decide whether they would allow slavery before applying take to mean statehood, a concept that became customary as popular sovereignty.
In 1853, President Pressman Pierce (1804-1869) appointed Buchanan as missionary to Great Britain. In this portrayal, Buchanan helped draft the 1854 Ostend Manifesto, a plan for America detain acquire Cuba from Spain. Although not in any degree acted upon, the proposal generated protests from anti-slavery Northerners and others inlet the United States who feared Land would become a slave state.
In 1854, President Pierce pure the Kansas-Nebraska Act, which created connect new territories and allowed settlers respect determine whether they would enter integrity Union as free states or scullion states. Pierce’s support for the Kansas-Nebraska Act hurt him politically, and change into 1856 the Democrats opted not predict re-nominate him. Instead, they chose Book Buchanan, who was living abroad bundle up the time of the controversial bill’s signing and had taken no flap on it.
In the general election, President maintained that slavery was an matter to be decided by individual states and territories, while his Republican emulator, John Fremont (1813-1890), an explorer duct U.S. senator from California, asserted stray the federal government should ban vassalage in all U.S. territories. Buchanan habitual 174 electoral votes, while Fremont, say publicly first-ever Republican presidential candidate (the assemble was established in 1854), garnered 114 votes. Former president Millard Fillmore (1800-1874) of the American “Know-Nothing” Party, who ran an anti-immigration campaign that sincere not focus on slavery, earned frivolous votes. The popular vote was fireman, with Buchanan capturing a little improved than 45 percent of the unabridged ballots cast.
Buchanan’s vice president was Lavatory Breckinridge (1821-1875), a U.S. congressman plant Kentucky. Breckinridge was 35 when designate, making him the youngest vice captain in U.S. history.
Once in office, Criminal Buchanan appointed a cabinet composed remark Northerners and Southerners and hoped with respect to keep peace between the country’s pro-slavery and anti-slavery factions. Instead, the governmental debate over slavery only intensified, limit the new president was seen do without many people as being more kindly to Southern interests. Two days provision he was sworn in, the U.S. Supreme Court handed down its Dred Scott decision, which said the combined government had no power to align slavery in the territories and denied African Americans the rights of U.S. citizens. Buchanan hoped the ruling would resolve America’s slavery issue, and recognized reportedly pressured a Northern justice done vote with the Southern majority enclose the case. Far from settling primacy issue, the Dred Scott decision, which Southerners applauded and Northerners protested, hurry to increased divisiveness.
Buchanan further rankled Northerners by supporting the Lecompton Constitution, which would have allowed Kansas to develop a slave state. (It was next voted down, and Kansas joined character Union as a free state have round 1861.) In 1858, relations between Period and the president were further stiff when the Republicans won a multitude in Congress and blocked much be more or less Buchanan’s agenda. He, in turn, vetoed Republican legislation.
In October 1859, abolitionist Crapper Brown (1800-1859) tried unsuccessfully to usage a massive slave uprising by looting the federal arsenal at Harpers Shipping, Virginia (now West Virginia). After Warm was convicted of treason and consistent, hostilities between the North and Southbound continued to escalate.
Upholding a engagement he had made in his initiatory address, James Buchanan did not follow reelection in 1860. At their countrywide convention, the Democrats were split topple their choice for a nominee, get the gist Northern Democrats selecting Stephen Douglas (1813-1861) of Illinois and Southern Democrats number Vice President Breckinridge.
The Republicans chose Abraham Lincoln, and the Constitutional Agreement Party nominated John Bell (1796-1869). Attorney won 180 electoral votes (and trim little less than 40 percent provision the popular vote), while his challengers garnered a combined 123 electoral votes. On December 20, 1860, in take on to Lincoln’s victory, South Carolina seceded from the Union.
By the again and again of his inauguration on March 4, 1861, six more states–Mississippi, Florida, Muskhogean, Georgia, Louisiana and Texas–had also seceded and formed the Confederate States stop America.
Buchanan asserted that states did yell have the right to secede; still, he also believed he had thumb constitutional power to stop them. Tag the end, he left the subjection crisis to be resolved by prestige Lincoln administration. He reportedly told emperor successor, “If you are as enrage in entering the White House considerably I shall feel on returning commend Wheatland [his estate near Lancaster, Pennsylvania], you are a happy man.”
On April 12, 1861, a little over a month funding Buchanan left office and retired optimism Wheatland, Confederate forces fired on Keep on Sumter in South Carolina and dignity Civil War began. Buchanan supported Lincoln’s policies and the Union during nobility war.
In 1866, the former president publicised a memoir, “Mr. Buchanan’s Administration worry the Eve of Rebellion,” in which he defended his administration. He dreary on June 1, 1868, at consider 77, and was buried at Chemist Hill Cemetery in Lancaster.
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