Zachary Taylor

Zachary Taylor (November 24, 1784 – July 9, 1850), also known as "Old Rough and Ready," was the twelfth President of the United States, serving from 1849 to 1850. Taylor was noted for his extensive military career, becoming the first president not previously elected to any other public office. He was the second president to die in office.

Biography

Taylor was born in a log cabin to Richard Taylor and Sarah Strother, near Barboursville, Virginia, though his family was aristocratic. As an infant he and his family moved to Kentucky, where Taylor grew up on a plantation and was known as "Little Zack." Taylor and Margaret Mackall Smith met in early 1810 and were married on June 21, 1812. They had one son and five daughters, two of whom died in infancy.

Related Topics:
Log cabin - Virginia - Kentucky - Plantation - 1810 - June 21 - 1812

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In 1808, Taylor joined the U.S. Army and was commissioned as a first lieutenant. Soon afterward he was ordered west into Indiana Territory, taking command of Fort Harrison. In the War of 1812 (1812–1815), he became known as an excellent military commander. Taylor was also noted for standing 5'8" or 5'9" tall and weighing between 170 and 200 pounds, with long arms, short, stubby legs and a thick torso. It is believed that Taylor sometimes needed to be boosted into his saddle.

Related Topics:
1808 - U.S. Army - Commissioned - First lieutenant - Indiana Territory - Fort Harrison - War of 1812 - 1812 - 1815

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Taylor also served in the Black Hawk War (1832) and the Second Seminole War (1835–1842). During the Seminole War he gained the nickname "Old Rough and Ready" after the Battle of Lake Okeechobee.

Related Topics:
Black Hawk War - 1832 - Second Seminole War - 1835 - 1842 - Battle of Lake Okeechobee

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President James K. Polk sent an army under his command to the Rio Grande in 1846. When the Mexicans attacked Taylor's troops, Taylor defeated them despite being outnumbered 4-to-1. Polk later declared war; in the Mexican-American War that followed, Taylor won additional important victories at Monterrey and Buena Vista and became a national hero.

Related Topics:
James K. Polk - Rio Grande - 1846 - Mexicans - Mexican-American War - Monterrey - Buena Vista - National hero

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capture Mexico City. Taylor, incensed, thought that "the battle of Buena Vista opened the road to the city of Mexico and the halls of Montezuma, that others might revel in them."

Related Topics:
Mexico City - Montezuma

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