James Buchanan

James Buchanan
Daguerreotype of James Buchanan
James Buchanan
Born	James Buchanan Jr. 23 4, 1791
Birthplace	Cove Gap, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Died	Template:Death date and age Lancaster, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Nationality	American
Occupation	Template:Flatlist
Known for	15th President of the United States

James Buchanan Jr. (April 23, 1791 – June 1, 1868) was an American lawyer, diplomat, and politician who served as the 15th president of the United States from 1857 to 1861. A native of Pennsylvania who built a long and accomplished career in public service before reaching the presidency, Buchanan held office in both chambers of the U.S. Congress, served as minister to Russia and later to the United Kingdom, and was the 17th United States secretary of state under President James K. Polk. Despite these credentials, his presidency is remembered primarily for his failure to avert the secession crisis that led to the American Civil War. An advocate for states' rights — particularly with respect to slavery — Buchanan minimized the role of the federal government at a moment when the Union itself was fracturing. He remains the only president from Pennsylvania and the only president who never married. Historians and scholars consistently rank him among the worst presidents in American history, with the C-SPAN Presidential Historians Survey placing him near the bottom of its rankings.

Early Life

James Buchanan Jr. was born on April 23, 1791, at a trading post in Cove Gap, near Mercersburg, in Franklin County, Pennsylvania. His father, James Buchanan Sr., was an Irish immigrant from County Donegal who had come to the United States in 1783 and established himself as a merchant. His mother, Elizabeth Speer Buchanan, was also of Irish descent. The elder Buchanan prospered as a storekeeper and eventually became a man of some means in the community.

Young James was the second of eleven children and the eldest son. He grew up in a frontier environment that was rapidly developing, and his father's financial success ensured that he had access to educational opportunities uncommon for the time and place. The family relocated to Mercersburg when James was still a child, and it was there that he received his early schooling.

Buchanan demonstrated intellectual aptitude from a young age and was sent to the Old Stone Academy in Mercersburg to prepare for higher education. His ambition and academic ability set him apart, though he was also known for a sometimes difficult temperament during his youth. The site of his birth in Cove Gap was later preserved as Buchanan's Birthplace State Park by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.

Education

Buchanan enrolled at Dickinson College in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, at the age of sixteen. He proved a capable student, though his time at Dickinson was not without incident; he was reportedly expelled at one point for disorderly conduct before being reinstated through the intercession of a family friend. He graduated with honors in 1809.

Following his graduation from Dickinson College, Buchanan moved to Lancaster, Pennsylvania, to study law. He was admitted to the Pennsylvania bar in 1812 and quickly established a successful legal practice. Lancaster would remain his home base for the rest of his life, and his legal career provided both the financial foundation and the public reputation that enabled his entry into politics.

Career

Early Political Career and State Legislature

Buchanan entered politics as a member of the Federalist Party. He won his first election to the Pennsylvania House of Representatives, where he began to develop the political skills and connections that would sustain a career spanning several decades. The Federalist Party was in decline nationally during this period, and Buchanan's early affiliation reflected the political landscape of Pennsylvania rather than a deep ideological commitment to Federalist principles.

U.S. House of Representatives (1821–1831)

In 1820, Buchanan was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives from Pennsylvania, taking his seat on March 4, 1821. He succeeded Jacob Hibshman in representing his district and served for five consecutive terms, remaining in the House until March 3, 1831. During his decade in the House, the American political landscape shifted considerably. The Federalist Party collapsed, and Buchanan aligned himself with Andrew Jackson's emerging Democratic Party, a transition that reflected his growing sympathy for Jacksonian democracy's emphasis on popular sovereignty and limited federal government.

As a congressman, Buchanan gained a reputation as a diligent and capable legislator, though not one given to bold or transformative gestures. He was attentive to the interests of his Pennsylvania constituents and built relationships across factional lines that would serve him in later decades.

Minister to Russia (1832)

After leaving the House, Buchanan was appointed by President Andrew Jackson to serve as the United States minister to Russia in 1832. The appointment was a mark of Jackson's confidence in Buchanan's diplomatic abilities and his loyalty to the Democratic Party. In St. Petersburg, Buchanan was tasked with negotiating a commercial treaty with the Russian Empire, a mission he completed successfully.

Buchanan's time in Russia also exposed him to the broader questions of European geopolitics, including the situation in Poland, which had recently experienced a failed uprising against Russian rule. The experience shaped his understanding of the limits of American influence abroad and the complexities of international diplomacy during the Jacksonian era.

U.S. Senate (1834–1845)

Buchanan was elected to the United States Senate from Pennsylvania in 1834, succeeding William Wilkins. He served in the Senate for eleven years, from December 6, 1834, to March 5, 1845. During this period, the issues of slavery, territorial expansion, and the balance of power between North and South increasingly dominated national politics.

In the Senate, Buchanan established himself as a reliable Democratic voice and a defender of states' rights. He supported the Southern position on many issues related to slavery, not because he was personally an advocate of the institution, but because he believed that the Constitution protected the rights of slaveholding states and that the federal government had no authority to interfere with slavery where it existed. This stance made him acceptable to Southern Democrats while maintaining his standing among Northern party members — a balancing act that would define his political career.

Buchanan became a serious contender for the Democratic presidential nomination beginning in 1844, a pursuit that would occupy him through multiple election cycles. He was passed over in 1844 in favor of James K. Polk, but his prominence within the party was such that Polk appointed him to a senior cabinet position.

Secretary of State (1845–1849)

On March 10, 1845, Buchanan assumed the office of United States secretary of state under President James K. Polk, succeeding John C. Calhoun. He served in this capacity until March 7, 1849, a period that coincided with some of the most consequential events in American foreign policy of the nineteenth century, including the annexation of Texas, the settlement of the Oregon boundary dispute with Great Britain, and the Mexican–American War.

As secretary of state, Buchanan played a central role in the diplomatic maneuvering that accompanied American territorial expansion. He managed the negotiations with Great Britain over the Oregon Territory, which resulted in the Oregon Treaty of 1846 establishing the 49th parallel as the boundary. He also oversaw the diplomatic dimensions of the Mexican–American War and the subsequent Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, which ceded vast territories in the Southwest to the United States.

Buchanan's tenure as secretary of state enhanced his reputation as a seasoned diplomat and statesman, but it did not resolve the fundamental tensions within the Democratic Party over slavery and expansion that would ultimately prove his undoing.

Minister to the United Kingdom (1853–1856)

After failing again to secure the Democratic presidential nomination in 1848 and 1852, Buchanan was appointed by President Franklin Pierce as the United States minister to the United Kingdom in 1853. This posting kept him abroad during a period of intense domestic controversy over slavery, particularly the debate over the Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854. His absence from the United States during these tumultuous years proved politically advantageous, as he was not directly associated with any of the unpopular positions that damaged other potential candidates.

While serving in London, Buchanan was involved in drafting the Ostend Manifesto in 1854, a controversial document that advocated the acquisition of Cuba from Spain, by force if necessary. The manifesto was widely criticized in the North as a pro-slavery scheme, but it enhanced Buchanan's standing among Southern Democrats.

Presidency (1857–1861)

Election of 1856

Buchanan secured the Democratic presidential nomination in 1856, benefiting from his long absence from domestic politics and his acceptability to both Northern and Southern wings of the party. He ran against Republican John C. Frémont and Know-Nothing candidate Millard Fillmore. Buchanan won the general election, carrying most of the Southern states and enough Northern states — including his home state of Pennsylvania — to secure a majority in the Electoral College.

Dred Scott and the Slavery Question

One of the defining events of Buchanan's presidency occurred just two days after his inauguration. On March 6, 1857, the Supreme Court issued its decision in Dred Scott v. Sandford, ruling that African Americans were not citizens and that Congress had no authority to prohibit slavery in the territories. Buchanan had intervened prior to the decision, communicating with members of the Court to encourage a broad ruling that he hoped would settle the slavery question once and for all. His behind-the-scenes efforts to influence the outcome of the case have been widely criticized by historians as an improper breach of the separation of powers.

Rather than settling the slavery issue, the Dred Scott decision inflamed sectional tensions. Abolitionists and Republicans denounced the ruling, while pro-slavery advocates celebrated it. Buchanan's association with the decision damaged his credibility in the North and deepened the divide within the Democratic Party.

The Lecompton Constitution and Kansas

The crisis in Kansas Territory provided another severe test of Buchanan's presidency. Pro-slavery settlers in Kansas had drafted the Lecompton Constitution, which would have admitted Kansas to the Union as a slave state. The document was widely regarded as fraudulent, having been produced by an unrepresentative convention and rejected by a majority of Kansas settlers in a subsequent referendum.

Buchanan nevertheless supported the Lecompton Constitution and urged Congress to admit Kansas under its terms. This decision alienated not only Republicans but also a significant faction of Northern Democrats led by Senator Stephen A. Douglas of Illinois, who regarded the Lecompton Constitution as a violation of the principle of popular sovereignty. The resulting split within the Democratic Party proved irreparable and had profound consequences for the 1860 presidential election.

The Secession Crisis

Buchanan honored his pledge to serve only one term and did not seek re-nomination in 1860. He supported his vice president, John C. Breckinridge, as the candidate of the Southern Democrats in the fractured 1860 election. The split between Breckinridge and Douglas, the candidate of the Northern Democrats, facilitated the election of Republican Abraham Lincoln.

Following Lincoln's election in November 1860, Southern states began to secede from the Union, beginning with South Carolina in December. Buchanan's response to the secession crisis during his remaining months in office has been the subject of enduring criticism. He argued that secession was illegal but simultaneously maintained that the federal government had no constitutional authority to prevent it by force — a position that satisfied neither North nor South.

Buchanan supported the Corwin Amendment, a proposed constitutional amendment that would have permanently protected slavery in states where it already existed, as a last-ditch effort at reconciliation. He also made an unsuccessful attempt to reinforce Fort Sumter in Charleston Harbor, sending the merchant vessel Star of the West with supplies and troops in January 1861. The ship was fired upon by South Carolina batteries and turned back. Beyond this effort, Buchanan largely refrained from military preparations, leaving the crisis to his successor.

Personal Life

James Buchanan never married, making him the only bachelor president in American history. In his younger years, he was engaged to Anne Caroline Coleman, the daughter of a wealthy Pennsylvania iron manufacturer. The engagement was broken off in 1819, and Coleman died shortly afterward, reportedly of an overdose of laudanum. Buchanan was devastated by her death, and the circumstances surrounding the broken engagement and her passing remained a source of private grief throughout his life.

During his presidency, the role of First Lady was filled by his niece, Harriet Lane, who served as White House hostess. Lane was a popular figure in Washington society and managed the social duties of the executive mansion with considerable skill.

Buchanan maintained a close friendship with William Rufus King, a senator from Alabama who later served briefly as vice president under Franklin Pierce. The two men shared lodgings in Washington for many years, and the nature of their relationship has been the subject of historical speculation and scholarly debate.

After leaving the presidency in March 1861, Buchanan retired to his estate, Wheatland, near Lancaster, Pennsylvania. He spent his remaining years defending his record as president and his handling of the secession crisis. He died on June 1, 1868, at the age of 77.

Recognition

Buchanan's historical reputation has been consistently negative. In surveys of historians and presidential scholars, he is routinely ranked among the least effective presidents in American history. The C-SPAN Presidential Historians Survey, which has been conducted multiple times, has placed Buchanan at or near the bottom of its overall rankings. He has received particularly low marks in the category of moral authority and crisis leadership.

Despite his low standing among presidents, Buchanan's life and career have been the subject of continued scholarly attention. His birthplace in Cove Gap is preserved as Buchanan's Birthplace State Park, and Wheatland, his Lancaster estate, is a National Historic Landmark open to the public. Several schools in Pennsylvania bear his name, including James Buchanan High School in the Tuscarora School District, which serves communities near his birthplace.

Buchanan's appointment of Nathan Clifford to the United States Supreme Court in 1858 was one of his notable exercises of presidential authority; Clifford served on the Court until 1881.

Legacy

The legacy of James Buchanan is defined above all by the question of whether the Civil War could have been averted or its consequences mitigated by more decisive presidential leadership in the years immediately preceding the conflict. Buchanan's defenders, both in his own time and subsequently, have argued that he was constrained by constitutional limitations on presidential power and that the forces driving secession were too powerful for any single officeholder to have reversed. Buchanan himself devoted considerable effort in his retirement to making this case, publishing a memoir titled Mr. Buchanan's Administration on the Eve of the Rebellion in 1866.

His critics, who constitute the majority of historians who have studied his presidency, contend that his rigid adherence to a narrow interpretation of federal authority, combined with his consistent deference to Southern interests, exacerbated the crisis rather than ameliorating it. His intervention in the Dred Scott case, his support for the Lecompton Constitution, and his passivity during the secession winter are cited as evidence of a president who was temperamentally and intellectually unsuited to the demands of the moment.

The scholarly assessment of Buchanan's presidency has remained remarkably stable over time. While other presidents have experienced significant rehabilitations in historical reputation, Buchanan has not. The consensus view, reflected in the C-SPAN surveys and numerous academic studies, is that his presidency represents a failure of leadership at a critical juncture in American history.

Buchanan's long career in public service before the presidency — spanning the House of Representatives, the Senate, two diplomatic postings, and the cabinet — demonstrated genuine ability and experience. That this career culminated in what is almost universally regarded as a failed presidency underscores the extent to which the sectional crisis of the 1850s overwhelmed the political skills and assumptions of an earlier era. Buchanan was, in many respects, a man of the Jacksonian period attempting to govern in circumstances that demanded a fundamentally different kind of leadership.