Buchanan, James 1791-1868
15th President of the USA

Born in Stony Batter, near Mercersburg, Pennsylvania, the son of an immigrant Irish farmer, in 1812 he was admitted to the Bar, where he established a large practice. Initially a Federalist and later a conservative Democrat, he served in the US House of Representatives (1821-31) and was minister to Russia for two years before returning to the Senate (1834-45). As Secretary of State (1845-49) under President James K Polk, he dealt with the annexation of Texas and the Mexican War as well as the Oregon boundary negotiations. He helped draft the Ostend Manifesto while minister to Great Britain (1853-56), and on his return to the USA in 1856 gained the Democratic nomination and was elected President. His administration was plagued by rising sectional tensions, which his stand on slavery - he believed it wrong in principle but valid under the Constitution - did nothing to defuse. After his retirement in 1861, he took no part in public affairs, but in 1866 he published a defence of his administration.

Bibliography: Philip S Klein, President James Buchanan: a Biography (1962)