preview

President Andrew Jackson Essay

Better Essays

President AJ Andrew Jackson was born in 1767, and grew up in the border of North and South Carolina. He attended frontier schools and acquired the reputation of being fiery-tempered and willing to fight all comers. He also learned to read, and he was often called on by the community to read aloud the news from the Philadelphia papers.

In 1775, with the beginning of the American Revolution, Andrew Jackson, then only 13 years old became an orderly and messenger. He took part in the Battle of Hanging Rock against the British and in a few small skirmishes with British sympathizers known as Loyalists or Tories. His brother Hugh was killed, and when the British raided Waxhaw, both he and Robert were captured. Because Jackson refused to …show more content…

After one year in the, Jackson moved to the Senate, the other chamber of the Congress of the United States. He served from September 1797 to April 1798 and then retired to private life.

During the years of 1804 to 1812, Jackson settled, with his wife in his home - retiring indefinately. Although Jackson was active in local politics, he took little interest in national affairs. The one exception was his brief involvement with the so-called Burr conspiracy. Former Vice President Aaron Burr, determined to restore his personal fortunes, convinced Jackson that he had government backing to lead a filibustering expedition into Mexico. Jackson agreed to build him some boats, but when he realized that Burr and his group were acting entirely on their own, he immediately dropped his connection with the scheme. Jackson's hot temper involved him in a number of feuds and duels. Many of them were caused by remarks made about his marriage. The duel with Charles Dickinson in 1806 stands out as an example of Jackson's characteristic refusal even to acknowledge the possibility of defeat. Jackson let his opponent fire first, because Dickinson was a faster and better shot. Allowing himself time to take deliberate aim, Jackson planned to kill his man with a single bullet, even "if he had shot me through the brain." Thus, Jackson took a bullet in the chest and, without flinching, calmly killed his man. Jackson was also

Get Access