Andrew Jackson: Loved and Hated

When the topic of Andrew Jackson is discussed, many people think of controversy. People were either for Andrew Jackson or against him. Whether you agree with his beliefs and decisions or not, no one can deny that Andrew Jackson will forever be remembered for having a lasting impact on the United States of America. He did what he thought was the best for this country. In his disputable 78 year life, he was a Senator, President, Lawyer, Representative, and Judge. Because of his lasting impacts and great accomplishments, Jackson will forever be mentioned in the history books (Study).

Andrew Jackson was born on March 15, 1767 in a land that was disputed by North and South Carolina. Because of this, both states claim him to be native to their land. Both his brother and mother died during the Revolution. This had an impact on the rest of his life and started the hatred toward Great Britain. Towards the end of the revolution, he moved to Nashville to become a prosecuting attorney. In Nashville, Jackson's business thrived and he soon started a private practice. Here he became good friends with many landowners. Andrew Jackson lived in the house of Col. John Donelson. Here he met the colonel's daughter who he then married (Study).

In 1796, Jackson was part of a convention that drafted a constitution for the new state of Tennessee. That same year, he went on to become the first man from Tennessee to be elected to the United States House of Representatives. A year later, Jackson declined reelection and returned home, where he was then elected to the United States Senate. In 1798, Jackson was chosen as the head of the state militia (Study).

As the War of 1812 broke out with Great Britain, Andrew Jackson still held the position of head of the state militia. As a general, he led U.S soldiers in a five month campaign against the British allies, Creek Indians. In 1814-1815, Jackson led American forces to two decisive victories. One was at the Battle of Tohopeka in Alabama, and the other was at the Battle of New Orleans. Both these victories made Jackson officially a national hero. After gaining lots of popularity from war, many people urged Jackson to run for president. He was hesitant at first and was not attracted to the idea of running for office. By 1824, he found himself having enough support to get a nomination and get a seat in the Senate (Study).

After running for office, Andrew Jackson now found himself in a five man race for president. Out of the five people running, Jackson won the popular vote, but no one received a majority of electoral votes. This was the first time this had ever occurred in the presidential election. After this problem happened, the House of Representatives were now held responsible for determining who would be the president out of the three candidates of Jackson, Adams, and William H. Crawford. John Adams ended up winning this election, but Jackson would be back four years later (Study).

In 1828, Jackson got his revenge in an election that contained heavy mud slinging. Andrew Jackson and his wife, Rachel Jackson, were accused of having an affair Rachel had not legally divorced from her former husband. Although he won the election, the celebration did not last long. Rachel Jackson died shortly after Andrew Jackson became president. No one knows for sure, but many people including Jackson, believe that the stress of all the mud slinging is what killed Rachel Jackson (Study).

Andrew Jackson's presidency revolutionized American politics. He became the first person from west of the Appalachians to become president. Due to Jackson's strong beliefs and personality, he had many supporters. This meant he also had many opponents. The two groups were rivals and evolved into political parties. The people who supported Jackson were called Democrats. Those who were against Jackson were called the Whig Party. The Whig Party liked to compare Jackson to King Andrew I. They did this drawing negative cartoons of Jackson the King. They did this because they thought of Jackson as a monarch. It was common that Jackson would use his presidential power to veto certain things and would even seem like an absolute ruler at times (Andrew).

Andrew Jackson had many reasons to use his presidential power. He was one of he was one of the first presidents to have a laissez-faire approach. This meant that he wanted the government to have minimal control over economic controls and free market. One of his main goals in office was to have agricultural farmers expand onto new land. This was one of the main reasons that many of Jackson's supporters were common people (Study.com).

Another way that Jackson revolutionized presidency was his way of looking at the presidency. He saw himself more as a general/common man than he did a president. Jackson even admitted to not being fit for the job. He once said, I know what I am fit for. I can command a body of men in a rough way; but I am not fit to be president (Bradley). Even with these doubts about his own ability to lead a country, he is thought of as the creator of contemporary ruling in the United States (Bradley).

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