John Tyler

From Wikipedia, a free encyclopedia written in simple English for easy reading.

John Tyler

10th President of the United States
In office
April 4, 1841 – March 3, 1845
Vice President(s)	none
Came after	William Henry Harrison
Came before	James Knox Polk
Born	March 29, 1790 Charles City County, Virginia
Died	January 18, 1862 Richmond, Virginia
Political party	Whig and none
Married to	Letitia Christian Tyler (1st wife) Julia Gardiner Tyler (2nd wife)

John Tyler was the 10th President of the United States of America, from 1841 to 1845. He was the first vice president to become president after the president before him died. He lived from March 29, 1790 to January 18, 1862.

[edit] Before being president

Tyler grew up in Virginia and became a lawyer. His father was also a lawyer who later became governor of Virginia. Tyler became a state representative in the United States Congress, and then also became governor of Virginia like his father.

Tyler started in government as a member of the Democratic Party, but later he changed to the Whig Party, which was very new. He was chosen to run as vice president next to William Henry Harrison. Whig Party people used to say "Tippecanoe and Tyler Too" to get people to vote for them. (William Henry Harrison was famous for being a general in a battle in a place called Tippecanoe, and that was his nickname.)

Harrison and Tyler won the election, but Harrison died one month later. Tyler then became president.

[edit] Being president

Some people thought that Tyler was not the real president, because he had not been elected. But the United States Constitution says that the vice president takes over if the president dies, and Tyler said that meant he was the new president. At first, the rest of the government agreed and declared him the new president. But the Whig Party didn't want Tyler to be president, and a lot of people called him "the accidental president" or "His Accidency".

While Tyler was president, his wife Letitia died. Two years later he married a new wife, Julia. This made him the first person to get married while being the President. He had 15 children, more than any other president.

Tyler made the Whig Party angry when he picked people from the other party (the Democratic Party) to work in his government. He wanted to bring the two Parties to work together, but instead this made him unpopular. The Whig Party decided not to pick him to run for president in 1844.

Tyler refused to send government soldiers to Rhode Island during the Dorr Rebellion. Instead, he told the Rhode Island government that they should listen to what the people wanted. When Tyler was a boy, he stood up against a very bad teacher, so he believed that people would not fight against their government unless it was for a very good reason. Some people thought that this meant Tyler was not doing his job.

While he was president, Florida became a new state. Texas was its own country, after winning a war against Mexico. Tyler wanted Texas to be a U.S. state and tried to make this happen while president, but it didn't happen until a few months afterwards.

[edit] After being president

The Whig Party didn't want Tyler to be president again, and didn't pick him to run for president in 1844. He had some friends in the Democratic Party who sometimes asked him for ideas, but that Party didn't like him enough to be president, either. Tyler was sometimes called "the President without a party" since both groups didn't want him.

When the Confederate States of America was created, Tyler thought that states should be allowed to make their own laws, even about slavery. He did not want a civil war. Instead, he tried to get the United States to agree to let the southern states keep slavery. But the United States Congress said no, and Tyler decided that Virginia had to join the Confederacy. He later was elected to the Confederate congress, but died before taking the job.

Presidents of the United States of America
Washington | J. Adams | Jefferson | Madison | Monroe | J. Q. Adams | Jackson | Van Buren | W. H. Harrison | Tyler | Polk | Taylor | Fillmore | Pierce | Buchanan | Lincoln | A. Johnson | Grant | Hayes | Garfield | Arthur | Cleveland | B. Harrison | Cleveland | McKinley | T. Roosevelt | Taft | Wilson | Harding | Coolidge | Hoover | F.D. Roosevelt | Truman | Eisenhower | Kennedy | L. B. Johnson | Nixon | Ford | Carter | Reagan | G. H. W. Bush | Clinton | G. W. Bush