James Buchanan

James Buchanan combined careers in law, diplomacy, and Congress before becoming the fifteenth president of the United States. Great Speech of the Honourable James Buchanan records an address delivered at a Democratic mass meeting in Philadelphia in 1856, during the presidential campaign that brought him to office the following year. Before the presidency, Buchanan represented Pennsylvania in both houses of Congress and served as secretary of state, minister to Russia, and minister to Britain. That long diplomatic and legislative career made public argument a central part of his political identity. His administration, from 1857 to 1861, was dominated by the deepening sectional crisis over slavery and secession, and historians have judged his response severely. This address therefore belongs to the partisan public record preceding a consequential and disputed presidency. Buchanan later defended his conduct in Mr. Buchanan's Administration on the Eve of the Rebellion, extending the debate over his decisions beyond his term in office.