Franklin Pierce, the only president from New Hampshire, is considered one of America’s worst presidents due to his support of slavery and poor leadership. He withdrew from politics due to family tragedies but served in the Mexican-American War. He won the presidency in 1852 but was disliked by both Southern and Northern Democrats and was not nominated for a second term. He died at 64 due to alcoholism.
Franklin Pierce, the fourteenth president of the United States, is the only president of New Hampshire. He has the unfortunate distinction of being one of America’s worst presidents to date, largely because his presidency was marked by the passage of the Kansas-Nebraska Act. This act repealed the Missouri Compromise, allowing states to decide whether to allow slavery. It reopened the wounds just healed in 14 by the Missouri Compromise, and would again cause enmity between North and South on the question of slavery.
Although Franklin Pierce was from the north, he was unquestionably in support of slavery. Strong evidence suggests that Pierce opposed abolitionists, and letters detailing his disbelief in a proposed civil war had circulated after his presidency. Furthermore, Franklin Pierce was believed by many to be poor at his job, easily influenced, and an indecisive leader. He left a sad legacy of presidential blunders that would cumulatively bear some responsibility for the Civil War.
President Franklin Pierce was born in 1804 and received a good education, although his grades were always low. In 1827 he was admitted to the bar and began his practice as a lawyer. People liked Franklin Pierce, attracted by his good looks and easy-going personality. He was soon offered a variety of political positions. He served in the New Hampshire state government, as a U.S. House Representative from 1833 to 1837, and then as a Senator from 1837 to 1842. He resumed private practice as a lawyer and soon became a district attorney in New Hampshire.
The decision to withdraw from political life for a time was largely influenced by Franklin Pierce’s wife, Jane Means Appleton. Their family life together was unhappy and unfortunate. They lost their first child in 1836 at three days old, their second child died when he was only four, and their third and last child was killed in an accident in 1853. The deeply religious Appleton suffered from severe depression and the melancholy was diagnosed. He believed that the deaths of his children were due to Pierce’s involvement in politics, particularly that of their youngest son, who died after Franklin Pierce was elected president.
While Franklin Pierce left the national political scene for a while, he hasn’t been idle. He also volunteered to serve in the Mexican-American War and served for three years, rising to the ranks of colonel and brigadier general. He badly injured his leg and returned to New Hampshire in time to become president of the New Hampshire State Constitutional Convention of 1850.
Franklin Pierce’s nomination for the presidency was not expected to be successful. He was a candidate for the dark horse, which wasn’t widely known. Yet his personality was winning, and he soon became the likeliest candidate. He easily took the presidency in 1852, winning 254 electoral votes. Although, in reality, his opponents had a good part of the popular vote, about 1.3 million compared to 1.6 million for Pierce.
His actions in office from 1853 to 1857 made him an enemy of his own party, and he became disliked by both Southern and Northern Democrats, who refused to nominate him for a second term. He has been criticized for overturning the slavery issue and also for his expansionist policies as he seeks to annex Cuba to the United States. He was also unsympathetic for choosing a Cabinet made up of his friends rather than his political brothers.
The death of his children and the illness of his wife did not leave Franklin Pierce unaffected. He has steadily declined into an increase in alcoholism, especially after completing his term as president and making numerous political enemies. Eventually, he died at the age of 64, of cirrhosis of the liver, a common problem associated with years of heavy drinking.
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