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Francis Preston Blair, Jr. (February 19, 1821July 8, 1875) was an American politician and soldier. He represented Missouri in both the House of Representatives and the Senate, and was active in preventing that neutral state from being absorbed into the Confederacy in the Civil War. After recruiting a Unionist home guard, Blair helped the new local military commander Nathaniel Lyon to move weapons from the St. Louis arsenal to safety in Illinois (Camp Jackson Affair), breaking an informal truce with the Confederates. This set the scene for continuing guerrilla activity by outraged pro-slavery elements. In 1862, Blair joined the Missouri volunteers, being promoted major general, commanding a division at Vicksburg, and ending the war as a corps commander under Sherman. In 1868, he was Horatio Seymour’s vice-presidential candidate, but his dramatic speeches about the dangers of black emancipation were believed by some to have cost the Democrats the election. He suffered a paralysing stroke in 1872, but continued to be active in politics till his death. ==Early life and career== Blair was born in Lexington, Kentucky. He was the son of Eliza Violet (Gist) and journalist and politician Francis Preston Blair, and the brother of Montgomery Blair. He was also the cousin of B. Gratz Brown. He attended schools in Washington, D.C., and the University of North Carolina, graduated from Princeton University in 1841, and studied law at Transylvania University. After his admission to the bar in Lexington, he went on to practice in St. Louis in 1842. Blair participated in the Mexican-American War and was appointed attorney general for the New Mexico Territory after it was secured by General Stephen W. Kearny. A personal and political friend of Thomas Hart Benton, he became known for his views opposing slavery. Blair served in the Missouri House of Representatives from 1852 to 1856. He was an outspoken Free-Soiler and was elected as a Republican to the United States House of Representatives in 1856. He was defeated in 1858, but successfully contested the election and was finally seated on June 8, 1860, resigning on June 25, 1860. He was unsuccessful as a candidate in the special election to fill the vacancy caused by his own resignation, but was elected in 1860 to the 37th Congress, serving until his resignation in July 1862 to become a Colonel in the Union Army. He was subsequently elected in 1862 to the 38th Congress, but had to relinquish his seat on June 10, 1864, after Samuel Knox successfully contested his election. In Congress, he served as chairman of the important Military Affairs Committee. In the days following Lincoln's election, when it became evident that several southern states were advocating secession, Blair was among the leaders of a new political movement in Missouri, the Unconditional Union Party, which advocated the use of force, if necessary, to prevent Missouri from following suit. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Francis Preston Blair, Jr.」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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