Henry Clay: The Essential American [Deckle Edge] [Hardcover]

David S. Heidler (Author), Jeanne T. Heidler (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 4, 2010

The epic life and times of one of the most important political figures in our history.
 
He was the Great Compromiser, a canny and colorful legislator and leader whose life mirrors the story of America from its founding until the eve of the Civil War. Speaker of the House, senator, secretary of state, five-time presidential candidate, and idol to the young Abraham Lincoln, Henry Clay is captured in full at last in this rich and sweeping biography that vividly portrays all the drama of his times.

David S. Heidler and Jeanne T. Heidler present Clay in his early years as a precocious, witty, and optimistic Virginia boy, raised on a farm, who at the age of twenty transformed himself from bumpkin to attorney—a shrewd and sincere defender of the ordinary man who would be his eventual political base. The authors reveal Clay’s tumultuous career in Washington, one that transformed the capital and the country. Nicknamed “the Western Star,” Clay became the youngest Speaker of the House shortly before the War of 1812 and transformed that position into one of unprecedented power. Then, as a senator, he joined and sometimes fought John Calhoun and Daniel Webster to push through crucial legislation affecting everything from slavery to banking. Commonly regarded as the greatest U.S. senator in history, Clay served under ten presidents and overshadowed most of them, with the notable exception of his archrival Andrew Jackson. Clay ran unsuccessfully for president five times, and his participation in the deadlocked election of 1824 brought about the “Corrupt Bargain” with John Quincy Adams that made Clay secretary of state—and haunted him for the rest of his career. As no other book, Henry Clay humanizes Clay’s marriage to plain, wealthy Lucretia Hart, a union rumored to be mercenary on his part but that lasted fifty-three years and produced eleven children.

Featuring an inimitable supporting cast including Aaron Burr, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, James Monroe, James Polk, and Abraham Lincoln, Henry Clay is beautifully written and replete with fresh anecdotes and insights. But it is Henry Clay who often rises above them all. Horse trader and risk taker, arm twister and joke teller, Clay was the consummate politician who gave ground, made deals, and changed the lives of millions. His life is an astounding tale—and here superbly told.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Why Henry Clay? An Essay by David S. Heidler and Jeanne T. Heidler

Many Americans do not know this extraordinary person, which is a pity. Many years ago, a conference gave us the opportunity to visit his grave and his home. A friend accompanied us to the cemetery where we stood before the large vault with its imposing column topped by a statue of Clay, his right arm partially extended, entreating during one of his famous orations. The day was raw, and a dirty cotton sky sent down a misty drizzle that glossed the marble with a wet patina. In the back portion of the vault, a marble slab held one of Clay’s most famous quotes: “I had rather be right than be President.” Our friend, who inclines to the acerbic, muttered, “Nothing about a corrupt bargain?” We laughed.

Yet later as we walked through the house named Ashland, we paused over the twin legacies of Clay’s fateful decision in 1825 and of his unstinting labor to improve and sustain his country. His behavior in 1825 fastened upon him--presumably forever, if our companion’s remark was any evidence--the infamy of the “Corrupt Bargain.” His work for the country revealed the great poignancy of his generation, the futility of practical politics clashing with grave moral imperatives. He sought the presidency and was labeled a schemer; he compromised for the Union and was lauded as a statesman. Which one was the real Henry Clay? In this book we try to answer that question.

His personal life, for instance, presents intriguing clues. Clay married what many described as an ugly girl, possibly only for the status and influence her family imparted, but there is no evidence that he ever strayed from her bed and considerable proof (they had eleven children) that he found it congenial. He early found slavery morally troubling and ultimately regarded it as incompatible with American ideals of liberty. But he died owning slaves. He gained fame as the master of political compromise, which by definition is the bending of principles to achieve functional agreements. But in 1825, he was reviled as crooked, even though he did not violate a single personal scruple or run counter to his own conscience.

All lives are marked by such inconsistencies. We strive to reveal Clay to a new generation of readers by showing how he was both exemplary and unique, how he was both mired in the customs of his time and a prophet for ideas that would not gain acceptance until our own. He believed in ideas with passion, but he leavened everything with humor, a novelty among public figures of his time and obviously one of the facets that Abraham Lincoln found appealing enough to imitate. Most of all, we found that there has never been anyone like Clay in American political history. He transformed the post of Speaker of the House into its modern role, he proposed and doggedly advocated a plan to expand American prosperity, and he was a crucial leader in every matter great and small bearing upon American politics for almost fifty years.

When our friend made that crack about the “Corrupt Bargain,” we all laughed, but we shouldn’t have. In a way, this book is our penance for having done so, because Henry Clay was a patriot, a statesman, and a gentleman. Not without flaws, he was nevertheless about as good as it gets in public life, and we hope that readers will find him as fascinating as we have.

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From Publishers Weekly

Yet another hulking biography of an early American political giant, this one, unnecessarily clogged with detail, is still a fitting, up-to-date, and highly readable account of Henry Clay's life (1777–1852) and achievements. In vigorous prose, the Heidlers (coauthors, The War of 1812), experienced scholars of pre–Civil War America, relate the emergence of the Kentuckian who served in the House (as Speaker) and Senate, as secretary of state, and as repeatedly failed presidential candidate. A man of enormous gifts—the beloved mirror of his country and its aspirations—Clay bestrode Washington and the Senate as member of the Great Triumvirate with John C. Calhoun and Daniel Webster and did his best as the Great Compromiser to hold the nation together as it splintered over slavery. That he failed, as the authors show, was not his fault: even great congressional leadership couldn't save the Union. The authors bring verve and clarity to Clay's struggles, even if they add little to what's known. They also make one yearn for more statesmen and stateswomen, who, like Clay, could say, I had rather be right than be president. 32 pages of b&w photos. (May)
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Product Details

• Hardcover: 624 pages
• Publisher: Random House; 1 edition (May 4, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 140006726X
• ISBN-13: 978-1400067268
• Product Dimensions: 6.5 x 1.6 x 9.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (57 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #295,778 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

76 of 77 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Extraordinary man, extraordinary book!, March 30, 2010

By 

Cynthia K. Robertson (beverly, new jersey USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Henry Clay: The Essential American (Hardcover)

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About once a year, my husband and I visit friends near Lexington, Kentucky, and we always see the signs for Henry Clay's plantation home, Ashland. Not knowing that much about Henry Clay, but having read many other books that make reference to The Great Compromiser, I decided to read Henry Clay: The Essential American by David S. Heidler and Jeanne T. Heidler. I discovered not just an extraordinary book, but also an extraordinary man! Unfortunately, many of his accomplishments have been dimmed by history. But Clay, known as the Western Star and Prince Hal, was one of the most influential men of the first half of the 19th Century.

Clay was born in 1777, and he and our young republic grew up together. As a teenager, he clerked for the Virginia Court of Chancery. Because of his good penmanship, he was selected to assist George Wythe, the brilliant legal mind who was a Virginia chancellor and first law professor in the nation. After studying law and passing the bar, Clay followed his mother and step-father to Kentucky. He used his legal success to launch a career in public service. Over the course of his long life, he served in the Kentucky House of Representatives, the U.S. Senate, the House of Representatives (selected as Speaker 6 times), as well as Secretary of State under John Quincy Adams. He helped negotiate the Treaty of Ghent (ending the War of 1812), and had a hand in many congressional compromises including the Missouri Compromise and the Compromise of 1850. He ran for president 5 times and argued many cases before the U.S. Supreme Court. But what really set Henry Clay apart from his contemporaries was that he was a brilliant orator. When word got out that Henry Clay was about to speak, the Capitol would fill to capacity with spectators hanging on his every word. Sometimes he would speak for days. Only John C. Calhoun and Daniel Webster came close to Clay, and together they would be called The Great Triumvirate.

Henry Clay: The Essential American is a book that is sure to become a classic. I would rank it as one of the top ten biographies that I have ever read. I liked this book for so many reasons! I enjoyed Henry Clay because it scoped out the life and importance of this pivotal American through extensive research and thoughtful analysis. At the time, Clay was the closest thing Americans had to a rock star. I liked this book because it covers a period in American History that I consider to be a black hole--that period of time between the American Revolution and the Civil War. These years are often overlooked in the study of history. I liked Henry Clay because I could see so many parallels between congress during Clay's years and our congress today. Conditions were just about as acrimonious as they are at present. Virginia Senator John Randolph said of the 11th Congress "that `a more despicable set was never gathered together.'" At least there aren't duels, pistols and floggings in congress today. But the reason I truly loved Henry Clay is that it is written so beautifully and so engagingly by the authors. "He was a titanic symbol of Union to the very end, promoting compromise to prevent his country's demise and the slaughter he was certain would follow. He saved his country until its muscles and sinews could weather a terrible civil war..."

Although Henry Clay: The Essential American weighs in at over 500 pages and it took me several weeks to read, I didn't want to see it end. After reading this book, I will never look at American History in quite the same way.

38 of 40 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Book -- Valuable Scholarly Treatise, March 4, 2010

By 

David M. Dougherty (Arkansas) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Henry Clay: The Essential American (Hardcover)

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This work presents Henry Clay in a fashion that almost allows the reader to feel the presence of "The Great Compromiser." It is a study of both the man and his works, flawed, brave, sometimes wrong, somethimes right, but always interesting. Clay was a great and influential figure in American history, and it would not be too much to say that Clay delayed the Civil War by twenty years through his presence. OK, maybe that's a little much, but nonetheless it was his continuing work to keep the union together and attempt to find a way to work out the sectional problems.

In Clay's times, the sectional problems were almost unbridgable, and significantly more difficult than the issues confronting our current politicians. Yet, we hear no voice like Clay's -- rather we have ideologes brooking no compromise as if it were treason. Clay always moved the nation forward to realize its growth potential, whereas today our heady days of growth are behind us and we are in a time of shrinking resources. A pity -- I found myself wondering how Clay would approach the problems of today.

That was the strength of this work -- Clay was so thoroughly presented, I found myself becoming involved almost as one of his partisans. Clay's machinations in getting John Quincy Adams elected make for fascinating reading even today, and Jackson dubbed him the "Judas of the West." In fact, Clay's life would make great theater with the duels and political survival putting Clinton's "comeback kid" to shame. It's too bad that someone doesn't take this book and turn it into a movie -- or at least a mini-series.

The writing is crisp and usually, but not always, sympathetic to Clay. The authors are not shy in presenting Clay with warts when they are deserved.

All in all, this is a very fine scholarly work, and I highly recommend it to all.

26 of 26 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Insightful and Surprisingly Eloquent Study of One of America's Greatest Statesmen., April 4, 2010

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mirasreviews (McLean, VA USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Henry Clay: The Essential American (Hardcover)

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David and Jeanne Heidler's sweeping biography of Henry Clay captures the energy and convictions of the indefatigable senator and the many crises of a young nation over the course of his nearly 50 years in American politics. Clay served about 14 years each in the House of Representatives and Senate, and he was Secretary of State for 4 years under President John Quincy Adams. Often called the Great Compromiser, the authors agree with Daniel Walker Howe's characterization of Clay as "an ideologue of the Center", who would rather not compromise. Even so, he would do anything to save the union and stave off civil war, and the Heidlers explain his role in the Missouri Compromise, the Compromise of 1833, and the Compromise of 1850.

Clay's 5 failed attempts to become President are addressed in painful detail -painful because he came so close, and the prize always went to a lesser man. The US had a string of bad presidents when it could have had Henry Clay. One of them was Clay's bitter enemy Andrew Jackson. Beyond Clay's constant struggle to find a middle ground between North and South, the Heidlers discuss the other major political issues of his career: the War of 1812 and Treaty of Ghent, Clay's "American System" of infrastructure creation and currency stability, the battles over the second Bank of the United States, his lifelong support for gradual emancipation of slaves while being a slaveholder himself, the split of the Republican party, and the annexation of Texas.

There is a great deal of insight into congressional and election politics in the United States during the first half of the 19th century, which are strikingly similar to today and, for better or worse, guided major policies: wars with Britain and Mexico, westward expansion, the balance of slave and free states, the preservation of the union and of the Constitution. But there is no less about Clay's character, his family life, his personal and professional frustrations. Clay couldn't stand to be away from Washington for long, so it is perhaps in his orations on the Senate floor that we see him best. The authors obviously admire Henry Clay but are not uncritical of him. "Henry Clay" is packed with information about the man, his life, and his times, but I was most impressed by the eloquence and sensitivity with which Clay and his contemporaries are portrayed. It makes this long book a compelling read.