The Civil War Presidents: John Tyler
John Tyler was the 11th President and the first Vice-President to become President upon the death of an incumbent. He became President on April 4, 1841, just a month after the inauguration of President William Henry Harrison. He was required to assert his authority as President after many in his own party, including Henry Clay, took the position that Tyler was not vested with the full authority of the President, but was merely a placeholder. Tyler disagreed, and history ultimately proved him right, even though he lost his support in the process and became a President without a party by the end of his term.
Tyler came from Virginia and was raised on Greenway Plantation, a 1,200-acre estate maintained by the family's forty slaves. Tyler was a slaveholder and upon his father's death, he inherited thirteen of his father's slaves. At one point he owned forty slaves at his plantation called Greenway. He said that he regarded slavery as an evil, but he felt the federal government lacked the authority to abolish it, and he never freed any of his slaves.
In the final days of his Presidency, Tyler negotiated with the Texas government, promising military protection from Mexico in exchange for a commitment to annexation. By the end of his term he was able to bring about the acquisition of Texas, just as his successor James K. Polk was about to be inaugurated. This was seen as a benefit to slaveholders because Texas was within the region in which slaveholding was permitted under the Missouri Compromise of 1820.
Tyler retired to a Virginia plantation, originally named Walnut Grove, located on the James River in Charles City County. He renamed it Sherwood Forest, referencing the legend Robin Hood, to signify that he had been "outlawed" by the Whig Party. Initially, he showed no interest in politics. But on the eve of the Civil War, Tyler re-entered public life. According to Chris DeRose, Tyler "engaged in shuttle diplomacy" between President James Buchanan and southern secessionists. He was a sponsor and chairman of something called the Virginia Peace Convention, held in Washington, D.C. in February of 1861. With the election of Abraham Lincoln and the secession of a number of southern states, this conference was intended as an effort to broker a compromise in order to prevent a war. The convention took place at the same time as the Confederate Constitution was being drawn up at the Montgomery Convention. Tyler's convention's proposals were rejected by Congress. Some skeptics believed that the Virginia Peace Convention was really just a stalling tactic in order for the Confederacy to prepare itself for war.
After the failure of the Virginia Peace Convention, Tyler abandoned hope of compromise and saw secession as inevitable. He incorrectly predicted that secession of the Southern states would not result in war. When the war did break out, Tyler unhesitatingly remained loyal to his home state Virginia, which joined the Confederacy. Even though she was a native New Yorker, Tyler's wife, the former Julia Gardiner, supported her husband's choice and supported the Confederacy. Tyler was selected as a delegate to the Provisional Confederate Congress. He was elected to the House of Representatives of the Confederate Congress and on January 5, 1862, he left his home to travel to Richmond, to serve in the Confederate congress. But he did not live to see the opening sessions.
On January 12, 1862, after complaining of chills and dizziness, he vomited and collapsed. He was treated by a physician, but his health did not improve, and he made plans to return home to Sherwood Forest for the 18th. As he lay in bed the night before, he began having difficulty breathing, and Julia summoned his doctor. Just after midnight, Tyler took a last sip of brandy, and told his doctor, "I am going. Perhaps it is best." These were his last words. It is believed that he had suffered a stroke.
Tyler's death was the only one in presidential history not to be officially recognized in Washington, because of his allegiance to the Confederacy. Tyler had requested a simple burial, but Confederate President Jefferson Davis ordered a grand, politically charged funeral. Davis called Tyler as a hero to the Confederacy. Accordingly, the coffin of the tenth president of the United States was draped at his funeral with a Confederate flag.
Tyler came from Virginia and was raised on Greenway Plantation, a 1,200-acre estate maintained by the family's forty slaves. Tyler was a slaveholder and upon his father's death, he inherited thirteen of his father's slaves. At one point he owned forty slaves at his plantation called Greenway. He said that he regarded slavery as an evil, but he felt the federal government lacked the authority to abolish it, and he never freed any of his slaves.
In the final days of his Presidency, Tyler negotiated with the Texas government, promising military protection from Mexico in exchange for a commitment to annexation. By the end of his term he was able to bring about the acquisition of Texas, just as his successor James K. Polk was about to be inaugurated. This was seen as a benefit to slaveholders because Texas was within the region in which slaveholding was permitted under the Missouri Compromise of 1820.
Tyler retired to a Virginia plantation, originally named Walnut Grove, located on the James River in Charles City County. He renamed it Sherwood Forest, referencing the legend Robin Hood, to signify that he had been "outlawed" by the Whig Party. Initially, he showed no interest in politics. But on the eve of the Civil War, Tyler re-entered public life. According to Chris DeRose, Tyler "engaged in shuttle diplomacy" between President James Buchanan and southern secessionists. He was a sponsor and chairman of something called the Virginia Peace Convention, held in Washington, D.C. in February of 1861. With the election of Abraham Lincoln and the secession of a number of southern states, this conference was intended as an effort to broker a compromise in order to prevent a war. The convention took place at the same time as the Confederate Constitution was being drawn up at the Montgomery Convention. Tyler's convention's proposals were rejected by Congress. Some skeptics believed that the Virginia Peace Convention was really just a stalling tactic in order for the Confederacy to prepare itself for war.
After the failure of the Virginia Peace Convention, Tyler abandoned hope of compromise and saw secession as inevitable. He incorrectly predicted that secession of the Southern states would not result in war. When the war did break out, Tyler unhesitatingly remained loyal to his home state Virginia, which joined the Confederacy. Even though she was a native New Yorker, Tyler's wife, the former Julia Gardiner, supported her husband's choice and supported the Confederacy. Tyler was selected as a delegate to the Provisional Confederate Congress. He was elected to the House of Representatives of the Confederate Congress and on January 5, 1862, he left his home to travel to Richmond, to serve in the Confederate congress. But he did not live to see the opening sessions.
On January 12, 1862, after complaining of chills and dizziness, he vomited and collapsed. He was treated by a physician, but his health did not improve, and he made plans to return home to Sherwood Forest for the 18th. As he lay in bed the night before, he began having difficulty breathing, and Julia summoned his doctor. Just after midnight, Tyler took a last sip of brandy, and told his doctor, "I am going. Perhaps it is best." These were his last words. It is believed that he had suffered a stroke.
Tyler's death was the only one in presidential history not to be officially recognized in Washington, because of his allegiance to the Confederacy. Tyler had requested a simple burial, but Confederate President Jefferson Davis ordered a grand, politically charged funeral. Davis called Tyler as a hero to the Confederacy. Accordingly, the coffin of the tenth president of the United States was draped at his funeral with a Confederate flag.