Andrew Jackson (1767–1845) was the seventh President of the United States (1829–1837). He was the first governor of the Florida Territory, the hero of the Battle of New Orleans, and one of the founders of the Democratic Party. “Jacksonian Democracy” is named after him. He is widely regarded as one of the ten most outstanding U.S. presidents.

Andrew Jackson was the first U.S. president to come from a truly common background. His father died before he was born. At the age of thirteen, he served as a courier in the military. At seventeen, he began studying law and later worked as a frontier lawyer. In 1795, at age twenty-eight, he became embroiled in a bitter dispute with an opposing attorney and, in a fit of anger, fought a duel.

Jackson served as a member of the House of Representatives, a U.S. senator, a justice of a state supreme court, and a major general of the state militia. During the War of 1812, he showed extraordinary toughness and earned the nickname “Old Hickory.” In January 1815, at the Battle of New Orleans, he decisively defeated the British and became a national hero. Leading about 6,000 militia, he repelled an invading British force of 12,000. British casualties reached about 2,000, while Jackson’s forces suffered only 13 killed and 58 wounded or missing.

During his presidency, Jackson strengthened presidential authority and upheld the unity of the Union. His era is often described as one of “democratic politics,” comparable in significance to that of the third president, Thomas Jefferson.

The Donkey and “OK”

In the 1828 election, Jackson’s opponents mocked him as a “jackass.” Jackson embraced the nickname and adopted the donkey as his symbol. The Democratic Party later adopted the donkey as its enduring emblem.

Jackson is also often credited with popularizing the term “OK.” It is believed to be his abbreviation of “Oll Korrect,” a humorous misspelling of “all correct.”

In the 1828 election, Jackson became the seventh president of the United States. He revoked the federal charter of the Second Bank of the United States, forcing it to operate only as a state bank. He believed that national financial power had become overly concentrated in federal institutions and excessively monitored by Congress, to the detriment of the Southern and Midwestern states. Following Jefferson’s ideal of an agrarian republic, Jackson believed that a central bank would sacrifice the interests of farmers and laborers while enriching commercial and industrial elites. This decision slowed the nation’s march toward industrial and commercial development.

During Jackson’s presidency, more than 45,000 Native Americans were forcibly relocated westward, at a cost of $68 million and 32 million acres of western land. The policy was widely supported by white Americans but deeply resented by Native Americans, and it remains one of the most controversial aspects of Jackson’s legacy.

Assassination Attempt

On January 30, 1835, an assassination attempt against President Jackson occurred at the U.S. Capitol. As Jackson was leaving a funeral, a man fired a pistol at him, but the weapon misfired. The assailant drew a second pistol, which also failed. Jackson then attacked the would-be assassin with his cane and subdued him. The attacker was later diagnosed as mentally ill and committed to an asylum.

One of the final major actions of Jackson’s presidency was approving Texas’s entry into the American sphere. Because Texas permitted slavery, Northern states strongly opposed its admission. Jackson devised a compromise: Congress recognized Texas as an independent republic. Nine years later, Texas formally became a U.S. state.

Wounded in a Duel

Jackson’s wife, Rachel Jackson, died of a heart attack two months after his election as president. About 10,000 people attended her funeral. Although she and her first husband had separated, their divorce contained legal irregularities. When her virtue was questioned publicly, Jackson was deeply enraged. On March 30, 1806, Charles Dickinson insulted Mrs. Jackson and became embroiled in a financial dispute with Jackson. The conflict culminated in a duel, in which Jackson killed Dickinson. Jackson himself was wounded; a bullet lodged near his heart could not be removed and caused him chronic chest pain and bouts of coughing blood for the rest of his life.

Beloved by the People

On March 4, 1837, under clear skies, thousands of citizens witnessed the presidential transition. Jackson left the White House with President-elect Martin Van Buren in a carriage bound for the Capitol. Along the route, crowds removed their hats in respect. After Van Buren delivered his inaugural address, Jackson slowly descended the steps, and the crowd erupted in cheers.

Senator Thomas Hart Benton remarked, “Such cheers cannot be forced. They are expressions of love, gratitude, and admiration. General Jackson is honest and upright. He is the friend of the people.”

On March 6, Jackson departed Washington by train. Thousands gathered at the station for a final glimpse. Jackson bowed deeply, and the crowd fell silent as the train slowly departed, like a star fading from the sky. Jackson returned to his home in Nashville, Tennessee.

Retirement and Death

Jackson enjoyed eight years of retirement at home. On June 8, 1845, he died at the age of 78 from chronic tuberculosis, pulmonary edema, and heart failure. His last words were: “Oh, do not cry. Be good children, and we shall all meet in heaven.”

A few hours after Jackson’s death, his close friend Sam Houston, president of the Republic of Texas, rode on horseback from distant Texas to see him one last time, but arrived too late. Standing beside Jackson’s body, Houston knelt in tears, burying his face against the chest of his mentor and friend. He pulled a young boy closer and said, “Son, remember this—you have seen Andrew Jackson.”

Jackson was tall and gaunt, about 185 centimeters in height, with deep blue eyes and a piercing gaze. He was one of the sickliest presidents in U.S. history, plagued by chronic headaches, abdominal pain, frequent coughing, and episodes of coughing up blood, sometimes to the point of violent convulsions.

Presidents Who Fought Duels

Since the founding of the United States, two figures at the presidential level participated in duels. One was Vice President Aaron Burr, who in 1804 killed the sitting Secretary of the Treasury, Alexander Hamilton, in a duel. Hamilton was not merely a cabinet member but a leading political figure and party leader. At only 47, his death deprived the nation of a man widely seen as a future presidential contender.

The other was President Andrew Jackson. Jackson’s duel occurred in 1806, before he became president, so it was not technically a president dueling while in office. The duel arose from insults to his wife’s honor combined with a financial dispute. Jackson killed his opponent and was himself wounded, with the bullet remaining in his body and tormenting him even during his presidency.

A president is elected by the entire nation, and elections entail significant social costs. If a president were killed in a duel, the loss would not be merely personal but national. It is striking that when Vice President Burr dueled Secretary Hamilton, Congress made no effort to intervene—something unimaginable in a modern democracy. This highlights how, despite having a constitution, American democratic practices were still immature at the time. Democracy, as history shows, requires time to develop.

When Thomas Jefferson retired in 1824, he commented on Jackson:
“I feel alarm at the prospect of seeing General Jackson president. From what I know of him, he is one of the least fit men I know for such a place. He has little respect for laws or constitutions, and is a military chieftain by habit. His passions are terrible. When I was Speaker of the Senate, he was a senator, and could never speak on account of the rashness of his feelings. I have seen him attempt to speak, and choke with rage.”

Yet Jackson was elected, demonstrating that he enjoyed the support of the majority of voters and that his temperament suited the electorate of his time.

Similarly, Vice President Aaron Burr, given his fondness for dueling, would likely be rejected by modern voters. Yet in the election of 1800, he received the same number of electoral votes as Thomas Jefferson. Only after more than thirty rounds of voting in the House of Representatives was Jefferson chosen as president, with Burr becoming vice president. This shows that Burr’s popularity and public support at the time were on par with Jefferson’s—further evidence that political standards and democratic expectations evolve over time.