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Mar 14, 2013 · Like most human beings, Andrew Jackson was a bit of both. He was certainly a war hero, from the American Revolution to the War of 1812, culminating in his greatest victory, at New Orleans, weeks after the latter conflict was had officially ended.
- Overview
- He strongly supported—and profited from—slavery.
- His forced removal of Native Americans resulted in untold loss of lives and culture.
The seventh president has a particularly harsh record when it comes to enslaved people and Native Americans.
Should Andrew Jackson be revered or reviled? The question of how to grapple with the seventh president’s tarnished reputation has persisted since Old Hickory’s lifetime.
During his lifetime (1767-1845), Jackson went from poverty to wealth because he personally embraced the institution of slavery. Enslaved workers grew his cotton, built and tended his house and helped him gain a social foothold in Southern society. Jackson owned as many as 161 enslaved people, buying and selling them, using their labor to build his fortune and even bringing them to the White House to work for him.
Records show he beat his enslaved workers, including doling out a brutal public whipping to a woman he felt had been “putting on airs.” And when any of them ran away, he pursued them and put them in chains when they were recovered. In an 1804 newspaper advertisement for a 30-year-old runaway named Tom, he offered an extra $10 for every 100 lashes doled out to the escapee.
As the United States expanded, the seventh president also opposed policies that would have outlawed slavery in western territories. And when abolitionists attempted to send anti-slavery tracts to the South during Jackson’s presidency, he helped ban their delivery and called the anti-slavery advocates monsters who should “atone for this wicked attempt with their lives.”
Despite Jackson’s support of slavery and participation in the slave trade, early biographers downplayed his pro-slavery stance, writes historian Mark R. Cheatham, who calls their reluctance to examine Jackson as a slave owner “surprising and disappointing.”
African Americans weren’t the only people Jackson felt should be subservient to wealthy white men. His presidency is perhaps best remembered for his cruelty to Native Americans. A proponent of “Indian removal,” Jackson wanted to clear newly acquired territories of the Native Americans who lived there so that white settlers could claim the land—and its natural resources—as their own.
Jackson’s Indian Removal Act resulted in the forced displacement of nearly 50,000 Native Americans and opened up millions of acres of their ancestral land to white settlement. He insisted it was for the best; the Native Americans, whom he saw as savages and referred paternalistically to as “my red children,” were, to him, merely collateral damage in a grand push to achieve progress for white Americans. Meanwhile, the policies disrupted and destroyed Native American lives. Tens of thousands died during forced removals like the Trail of Tears. Languages died out as Native Americans were forced to assimilate. And Native Americans who were displaced still struggle with poverty and intergenerational trauma.
During his presidency, Jackson signed into law nearly 70 removal treaties with Native Americans, who were pressured into trading their land for confined reservations in the west. Many such treaties were signed by minority groups within larger Native American bands and tribes that objected to the agreements; the government enforced them anyway, turning those who resisted removal into trespassers on land they had owned for centuries. Those who tried to stay were forced to leave by the U.S. military.
In light of a nationwide movement to remove monuments to Confederate leaders from public spaces, Jackson’s history as a slave owner has received new scrutiny. As monuments to figures like Robert E. Lee are removed, there’s been speculation as to whether Jackson, who is the subject of memorials throughout the United States, is indeed worthy of them.
Nov 3, 2015 · A far more constructive pursuit would be to reflect on how Jackson influences America today and to preserve what is good (and there is some good) and to remove what is bad (and there is plenty bad) – in other words, to purge Jackson’s influence rather than his image.
- Victory at the Battle of New Orleans (1815) The Battle of New Orleans took place during the War of 1812 and was a major military engagement between the United States and the British Empire.
- Expansion of Suffrage. Andrew Jackson is known for his efforts to expand suffrage, particularly for white males, during his presidency. He believed that the common man should have a greater voice in the political process, and he advocated for the elimination of property ownership requirements for voting in many states.
- Indian Removal Policy (Trail of Tears) One of the most controversial aspects of Jackson’s presidency was his administration’s policy of Indian removal.
- Handling the Nullification Crisis. During Jackson’s presidency, a significant political crisis known as the Nullification Crisis emerged, primarily centered around tariffs imposed by the federal government.
Oct 29, 2009 · Andrew Jackson (1767-1845) was the nation's seventh president (1829-1837) and became America’s most influential–and polarizing–political figure during the 1820s and 1830s.
Andrew Jackson (March 15, 1767 – June 8, 1845) was an American lawyer, planter, general, and statesman who served as the seventh president of the United States from 1829 to 1837. Before his presidency , he gained fame as a general in the U.S. Army and served in both houses of the U.S. Congress .
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Dec 7, 2009 · A biography of America's seventh president, ANDREW JACKSON: GOOD, EVIL AND THE PRESIDENCY explores whether Americans should celebrate Jackson or apologize for him. Viewers discover that...
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