|
John Bell (February 18, 1796September 10, 1869) was an American politician, attorney, and planter. One of Tennessee's most prominent antebellum politicians,〔Jonathan Atkins, "(John Bell )," ''Tennessee Encyclopedia of History and Culture'', 2009. Retrieved: 10 October 2012.〕 he served in the House of Representatives from 1827 to 1841, and in the Senate from 1847 to 1859. He was Speaker of the House for the 23rd Congress (1834–1835), and briefly served as Secretary of War during the administration of William Henry Harrison (1841). In 1860, he ran for president as the candidate for the Constitutional Union Party, a third party which took a neutral stance on the issue of slavery.〔 Initially an ally of Andrew Jackson, Bell turned against Jackson in the mid-1830s and aligned himself with the Whig Party, a shift which earned him the nickname, "The Great Apostate."〔(Correspondence of James K. Polk ), by James Knox Polk, Volume 6 (1842-1843), page 17〕〔(The Political Lincoln: An Encyclopedia ), by Paul Finkelman and Martin J. Hershock, 2008, page 52〕 He consistently battled Jackson's allies, namely James K. Polk, over issues such as the national bank and the election spoils system. Following the death of Hugh Lawson White in 1840, Bell became the acknowledged leader of Tennessee's Whigs.〔 Although a slaveowner, Bell was one of the few southern politicians to oppose the expansion of slavery in the 1850s, and campaigned vigorously against secession in the years leading up to the American Civil War.〔 During his 1860 presidential campaign, he argued that secession was unnecessary since the Constitution protected slavery, an argument which resonated with voters in border states, helping him capture the electoral votes of Tennessee, Kentucky and Virginia. After the Battle of Fort Sumter in April 1861, Bell abandoned the Union cause and supported the Confederacy.〔 ==Early life and career== Bell was born in Mill Creek, a hamlet near Nashville, Tennessee. He was one of nine children of local farmer and blacksmith Samuel Bell and Margaret (Edmiston) Bell. His paternal grandfather, Robert Bell, had served in the American Revolution under Nathanael Greene, and his maternal grandfather, John Edmiston, had fought at Kings Mountain.〔Joseph Parks, ''John Bell of Tennessee'' (Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press, 1950).〕 He graduated from Cumberland College (later renamed the University of Nashville) in 1814 and studied law. He was admitted to the bar in 1816 and established a prosperous practice in Franklin.〔 Entering politics, he successfully ran for the Tennessee Senate in 1817. As a state senator, he supported judicial and state constitutional reform, and voted for moving the state capital to Murfreesboro (his wife, Sally Dickinson, was a granddaughter of the town's namesake, Hardy Murfree).〔 After serving a single term, Bell declined to run for reelection and instead moved to Nashville, where he established a law partnership with Henry Crabb.〔 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「John Bell (Tennessee politician)」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
|