James Buchanan
(March 4, 1857 to March 3, 1861)

Born: April 23, 1791
Died: June 1, 1868

Political Party: Democrat
Previous Occupation: Lawyer

Elected From: Pennsylvania
Vice President: John C. Breckinridge (1857-61)
Cabinet Members: view list

Other Government Positions:
· Member of Pennsylvania House of Representatives, 1815-16
· Member of U.S. House of Representatives, 1821-31
· Minister to Russia, 1832-34
· United States Senator, 1834-45
· Secretary of State, 1845-49 (under Polk)
· Minister to England, 1853-56

Inaugural Address: 1857
Biography: view

Presidential Highlights:
· Approved new trade treaties with China and Japan, granting the United States greater access to commerce in Asia.

· Made a speech arguing that succession was unconstitutional, but sympathizing with proslavery southerners. Angry northerners and pro-Union southerners believed that his words would incite the South to armed revolution. Within days, South Carolina succeeded. By late winter, Mississippi, Florida, Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, and Texas also left the Union to form the Confederate States of America.

Presidential Election:
1856
James Buchanan174
John C. Fremont114
Millard Fillmore8

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