Zachary Taylor: A Hero of War, A Surprising President

Zachary Taylor, born on November 24, 1784 in Barboursville, Virginia, was the twelfth president of the United States of America. Before Taylor's presidency, he was seen to be a true war leader and hero. This would be due to his immense amount of successes in multiple battles spanning over the course of 40 years, many of which have been discussed in class over the past couple of weeks. Taylor commanded troops in historically important wars such as the War of 1812, the Black Hawk War of 1832, and a portion of the Seminole Wars between 1835 and 1842. However, Taylor's tremendous feat was his work during the Mexican War. Zachary Taylor defeated several Mexican troops including those commanded by General Mariano Arista and Pedro de Ampudia, both accomplished generals of Mexico. The result was a winning of over half a million square miles for America. Such war efforts of Zachary Taylor's were positively viewed by many of the American public, and he even earned the nickname of "Old Rough and Ready." Eventually, the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo made the Mexican War come to close and a search for a presidential candidate was beginning.

Zachary Taylor had never registered to vote previously and his political views were very unclear or not known at all. He was seen as a definite war hero, which appealed to many in the North. Southerners liked Taylor due to him being a Louisiana landowner and slaveholder. Specifically, many of the Whig Party appreciated Zachary Taylor and his accomplishments even though Taylor's true political views were never really discussed in full. The Whig Party, in addition, had some contradicting views against Taylor's views on the Mexican War. Regardless, the support for Zachary Taylor, both in the North and in the South, was enough for him to secure the position of the twelfth president of the United States of America. 

When in the office, Zachary Taylor was immediately faced with issues regarding the nation's expansion and the slavery laws for possible new states. Through Taylor's actions in response to such issues, the nation began to understand Taylor's views more clearly. Taylor, even though a slave owner, opposed the creation of new slave states. He encouraged the territories of New Mexico and California to apply for statehood. This served as a base for Henry Clay's Compromise of 1850. During this year, certain leaders in the South created sparks of thought for secession. President Taylor, who valued the Union, discussed how if such a movement were to occur, he would lead an army to put a stop to it. President Taylor did not satisfy the South further by not supporting the Compromise of 1850, which would give certain benefits to southern ways of thought. 

During the same year of 1850, on the 4th of July to be exact, President Taylor saw the creation of a partially done Washington Monument. Zachary Taylor reportedly escaped the tremendous heat of the day by having a bowl of cherries and milk. Within only a couple of hours, he complained of a stomach ache. After five days of initially falling ill, Zachary Taylor died on July 9, 1850. 

With the slavery and expansion issues still present, Vice President Millard Fillmore then took office with a more moderate approach.

Sources:

http://www.history.com/topics/us-presidents/zachary-taylor