Customer Reviews

John Tyler (The American Presidents Series: The 10th President, 1841-1845)

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A clear, concise and totally interesting account of the life of John Tyler, one of America's forgotten Presidents. Mr. May presents a balanced portrait of Tyler's term of office, giving his readers a true picture of a President who worked tirelessly to do what he felt was right (not support the National Bank), regardless of party, and wound up losing his party affiliation because of it. The en masse resignations of all but one member of his Cabinet is also chronicled in vivid detail. The key role that Tyler played in the acquisition of Texas has been conveniently forgotten by historians and the author squarely gives Tyler his due. Tyler's flawed strategy of gaining land to "slowly eliminate slavery" is also examined. Tyler's support of states' rights is well-known, but Mr. May does not make it the focus of this volume.

Trivia question: Who was the first Vice President to rise to the Presidency as a result of the death of a sitting President? Answer: John Tyler, who became President after the death of William Henry Harrison very early in his term.

Tyler came from a goof background, owned a plantation and had slaves. He was a part of the so-called Virginia Aristocracy, and saw himself as one more in the line of Virginia presidents--from Jefferson to Monroe. To cement his place in the arena of the well-to-do, he married well (to Letitia).

Public service became a part of his life, as he served in Congress and the Senate and at the state level, too. He was uncomfortable with the Whigs (irony indeed!); he was an unreconstructed states' rights advocate, suspicious of a strong central government. The book describes the series of steps by which he ended up being selected as Vice President to William Henry Harrison (hence, Tippecanoe and Tyler, too). Although Harrison was elected as a Whig, Tyler was not comfortable with the party's positions on many issues (e.g., a national bank, a system of internal improvements, tariffs, and so on). Upon Harrison's shocking death, Tyler rose to the office.

This book well tells his struggles, as he opposes many of those among the Whigs, as he tries to advance his agenda against the opposition of many. He was not one of the more important presidents, but there were accomplishments (whether one agree with them or not), especially in international relations (e.g., United States' relations with Texas).

Some interesting personal aspects to this work. The death of his wide Letitia devastated him, but he soon found a much younger woman with whom he fell in love (scandalizing many).

Although he desired re-election, he had no support. He tried an abortive third party candidacy and gave that up for a purported deal with candidate James Polk.

Tyler remained active in politics, and was even involved in efforts to avert the Civil War.

Not one of the better known (or better accomplished) American Presidents. But this book does provide, in a brief biography, a solid introduction to this "accidental" President.

I found this book very enjoyable and a joy to read. May tells why Tyler does matter in American history. Without him, some other politicians would not have had the guts to annex Texas. He also settled boundaries with Great Britain over Canada. He had the courage to face Clay over his convictions on a Central Bank. On this issue, he lost the backing of the Whig Party and became persona non grata in the political establishment. His further support of the Confederacy alienated him from any Northern support and any legacy with historians.

A nice easy read about our 10th President. This is a nice summary of a complicated man.

John Tyler has long suffered from bad press. Derided as "His Accidency" by contemporaries who considered him unworthy of the office he inherited, he has long been marginalized as one of our less successful presidents. Yet such treatment minimizes his considerable legacy. As the first vice president who succeeded to the presidency because of the death of the incumbent, he established a precedent for legitimacy that has been followed by all seven of his successors who followed his path to the White House. As president, he settled major outstanding differences with Great Britain and championed - and in the waning days of his administration, gained - the annexation of Texas. Such achievements suggest that his contribution to both the presidency and to American history have been seriously under-appreciated.

Gary May's book goes far towards rectifying this. His short biography provides a nice overview of Tyler's life and political career. Born into the Virginia plantation aristocracy, Tyler benefited from the wealth and connections it provided. He followed his father into politics, and served as governor and senator for his state before resigning on a point of principle. Yet May makes clear that his selection as vice president was made more for the lack of better alternatives than for his individual qualifications. With Harrison's abrupt death after only a month in the White House, Tyler spent nearly a full term as president, pursuing his own ambitious agenda despite his political isolation. Abandoned by the Whigs and spurned by the Democrats, Tyler found himself a man without a party, and was forced to abandon his hopes for another term as president.

Insightful and readable, May's book is one of the more successful entries in "The American Presidents" series. With its focus on their White House tenure, series is not always a good fit with its subjects. Yet with Tyler it is ideal, giving the author the ability to illuminate an often overshadowed presidency. Though the period is outside of May academic specialization, none of this is apparent from his command of both the historical details and the literature on the period. All of this makes May's book a superb starting point for anyone interested in an introduction to the life and career of America's tenth president, one far more worthy of attention than it has traditionally received.

Stuck onto the presidential ticket as an afterthought because he wouldn't offend anyone Tyler becomes the first vice president to succeed after a president dies in office (Harrison after 31 days). At the time no one was sure exactly how the succession worked, whether Tyler was now the the president or a temporary place holder. His cabinet tried to push him around at the very first meeting and to everyone's surprise, Congress and cabinet, Tyler was his own man. In fact he was thrown out of the political party because his views did not coincide with President Harrison's and the party that elected him: Tyler became the Accidental President who had no party affiliation. Part of his legacy is that he annexed Texas when the previous couple of presidents were afraid to touch the issue. After Tyler left the office and the Civil War broke out he joined the South and became a Congressman for the Confederacy, becoming the only president to officially commit treason!

The books in this series are generally well written, as this one is; they condense whichever president's life into about 150 pages; a great introduction and overview and jumping off point if you wish to delve deeper. I started with Washington and have been working my way through the series, the information about Tyler was a surprise.

For the first time in U.S. history, a sitting U.S. President (William Henry Harrison) died in office, thus promoting the vice president (in this case John Tyler) into the "captain's chair". This is the story of that first "accidental" president.

Though the inauguration of Tyler started the presidential trend of moving away from the "Virginia Dynasties", and also moving away from the characters that are household names, author Gary May still manages to make the Tyler presidency both relevant and interesting.

What I really like about this book is its ability to shed light both on Tyler's personal life, as well as the background of his political life and times. Basically, there is nothing here to discourage you from continuing with this series.

The book arrived early and in fine condition. It is a quick, yet thorough, account of one of the lesser known Presidents of the United States. John Tyler was the first VP to ascend to the Presidency upon the death of elected President. He was dubbed the 'Accidental President'. He had his disagreements with a powerful Henry Clay as to who really was going to run the Executive Branch. Finally, in disgrace, he supported the Confederacy in the Civil War. He may be the only President whose death was not acknowledged by the government.

Gary Mary is to be congratulated for providing an excellent overview of the life and presidency of an obscure but important president, the first to succeed as vice president following the death of a president. May is able to show that Tyler was a somewhat effective president in foreign affairs, settling boundary disputes with Britain and obtaining Texas, though his domestic policies and politics were a disaster.

The more I read, the more I wanted more information. This book seems to gloss over Tyler's fight with Clay, the various treaties that he ratified and the annexation of Texas. There was the same amount of information on these events as there was on his infatuation with Julia Gardiner. Throughout the book, the author quotes another historian/biographer of Tyler, mostly to disagree with this point of view or to strengthen one of his own point. As a general overview, the book is not a bad one. For those wanting more about this president, his insights and his accomplishments, look elsewhere.

I have been reading the American President series and have found them to be both interesting and informative thus far. I have to say that I personally enjoy the lesser known presidents better. I found that the biography of John Tyler did what any good biographer would do. They got all the names and dates and associated facts straight. What they failed to do was provide the passion behind these increments of data. Pieces of Tyler's life are thrown around as incidental when they can in fact be quite interesting. However this work never makes that final step to something truly interesting and sadly we are left with a work that could have been much better.