Book Review: John Tyler, the Accidental President by Edward P. Crapol

December 20, 2022

About:

John Tyler, the Accidental President by Edward P. Crapol is a biography of America’s 10th President. Mr. Carpol was a professor in the Department of History at the College of William and Mary.

Book Review: John Tyler, the Accidental President by Edward P. Crapol
My rating for John Tyler, the Accidental President– 4

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Thoughts:

John Tyler became America’s 10th President after President William Henry Harrison died in office after only 31 days. This was a first for the new republic, and Mr. Tyler set many precedents for the country, as well as for his successors.

President Tyler, a Virginian, is remembered as the first VP to become President after the elected official died. He was nicknamed “His Accidency” and worked hard to shape the system, as well as executive power, for future generations.

Like many other powerful people, Mr. Tyler was also full of hypocrisies once getting into a position of power. Once sitting being that big desk, in that round room, within the white mansion, he acted against his own ideology of advocating state’s rights, limited government, and his interpretation of the Constitution.

John Tyler, the Accidental President by Edward P. Crapol also addresses the subject of Tyler’s treason of siding with the Confederacy during the American Civil War. The only President to die while being a citizen of another country that was also at war with the United States.

The author, however, argues that Tyler’s presidency was groundbreaking in many ways. From the Annexation of Texas, to defining the role of a VP taking over the highest office in the land, from negotiating border agreements to policies advancing foreign policy with Asia.

Mr. Carpol is certainly sympathetic to his subject, and his arguments for Tyler’s accomplishments are convincing. However, his sympathy for slavery, and the Confederacy, has tarnished his reputation in American history for the foreseeable future.

Nevertheless, this is a capable, readable, and well-researched biography. I enjoyed reading it and learned a lot about a President whose name most Americans won’t even recognize.

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More Books by Edward P. Crapol*

Zohar — Man of la Book
Dis­claimer: I bought this book
*Ama­zon links point to an affil­i­ate account, the money is usually spent on books

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John Tyler, the Accidental President by Edward P. Crapol
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John Tyler, the Accidental President by Edward P. Crapol

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