- Born
- Died
- Nickname
- Old Rough and Ready
- Height5′ 8″ (1.73 m)
- Zachary Taylor was an American military leader who served as the 12th president of the United States from 1849 until his death in 1850. Taylor previously was a career officer in the United States Army, rising to the rank of major general and becoming a national hero as a result of his victories in the Mexican-American War. As a result, he won election to the White House despite his vague political beliefs. His top priority as president was preserving the Union. He died sixteen months into his term, having made no progress on the most divisive issue in Congress, slavery.- IMDb Mini Biography By: Bonitao
- His father took part in the American Revolutionary Wars, which led to the independence of the USA. After a poor school education, after which Taylor was supposed to work on his parents' farm, he joined the army in 1806. Two years later he was promoted to lieutenant and in 1810 to captain. Also in 1810 he married Margaret M. Smith. In 1812, Taylor commanded American troops in the war against Great Britain. He was also involved in suppressing an Indian uprising under Tecumseh. In 1816, Taylor was promoted to major and sent to Wisconsin as an infantry commander. He spent the next 15 years serving in the garrison of Louisiana and Minnesota.
In 1832 Taylor was promoted to colonel. As such, he won a victory against their leader Black Hawk in the war against the Indians that same year. In 1841, Taylor bought a plantation in Missouri and became a slave owner. From 1835 to 1842 he served as a commander in the Second Seminole War in Florida. For the victory achieved, Taylor was promoted to brigadier general. In the war with Mexico, which broke out in 1846 due to border disputes over Texas, Taylor was able to take the north of the neighboring state through several victorious battles. This earned him great popularity and promotion to major with the rank of general. As a Whig candidate, Taylor won the presidential election of 1848.
He had the sympathy of the North because he was celebrated there as a soldier hero. He was elected in the South because he was recognized as a slave owner. During his short time in office, Taylor came into conflict with the crumbling Whig party. Although he owned and employed slaves himself, he supported calls for slavery to be banned in the newly annexed southern states. In the conflict between Texas and New Mexico, he supported the latter against Texas territorial claims. He responded to threats of secession with extreme severity and determination, which is why Taylor's policies can certainly be said to have had a delaying effect on the outbreak of the Civil War.
Zachary Taylor died of cholera in Washington on July 9, 1850.- IMDb Mini Biography By: Christian_Wolfgang_Barth
- SpouseMargaret Mackell Smith(June 21, 1810 - July 9, 1850) (his death, 6 children)
- Wore a military uniform in portraits (unusual for a U.S. President)
- He was the 12th President of the United States of America.
- Father of Ann Mackall Taylor (1811-1875), Sarah Knox "Knoxie" Taylor (1814-1835), Octavia Pannell Taylor (1816-1820), Margaret Smith Taylor (1819-1820), Mary Elizabeth "Betty" Taylor (1824-1909), & Richard Scott "Dick" Taylor (1826-1879).
- His daughter Sarah was the first wife of Jefferson Davis, the only President of the abolished Confederate States of America. Davis served as a lieutenant in the Wisconsin Territory and afterward in the Black Hawk War under the command of Zachary Taylor.
- At sixteen months, he is currently the third shortest-served U.S. President, ahead of William Henry Harrison and James Garfield.
- Of the eight Presidents who died in office, Taylor is the only one who didn't get elected in a year ending in zero. In fact, he is the only one who got elected in a year ending with eight.
- It would be judicious to act with magnanimity towards a prostrate foe.
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