FREE ESSAY ON FDR: A BIOGRAPHY

FDR: A BIOGRAPHY

Franklin Delano Roosevelt, popularly known as FDR, was born on January 30, 1882 at the
family estate in Hyde Park, New York. His father, James, graduated from Harvard Law
School, married, had a son, and took over his family?s rights in coal and transportation.
Despite the fact that he lost a good deal of money in financial gambles, he remained
wealthy enough to travel by private railroad car, to live comfortably on his Hudson River
estate at Hyde Park, and to travel at length. After his first wife died, James waited
four years to remarry to Sara Delano, a sixth cousin. She was also a member of the Hudson
River aristocracy, and although she was only half of James? 52 years, she settled into
their Hyde Park estate quite comfortably. The marriage worked well until it was broken by
James? death in 1900.
Young Franklin Roosevelt had a secure and pleasant childhood. His half-brother was
already an adult when Franklin was born, and so he had no rival for the attention of his
parents. During the summer months he would travel with his parents to Europe, to the
seaside in New England, or to Campobello Island off the coast of New Brunswick, where he
developed a love for the ocean and sailing. Until the age of 14 FDR received his
education from private tutors. 
FDR?s most lasting educational experience was at Groton School in Massachusetts, which he
attended from 1896 to 1900. Groton?s headmaster, Reverend Endicott Peabody, instilled the
virtue of public service in Franklin, and this would be something that he would carry
with him throughout his life. At Groton FDR was not academically outstanding, nor did he
gain vast popularity,? Franklin struggled to fit in?but he was only a spindly five feet
three inches tall, too slight for football, baseball, or crew, the only sports that
really mattered at Groton. Tennis and golf, at which he excelled, were not considered
important? (Miller 27). However he was liked enough for someone home-schooled his whole
life, and FDR displayed his ability to adapt to situations. In addition, one of the most
important virtues that FDR would ever attain came from his years at Groton: his belief
that the children of the upper class had a duty to give back to the lesser fortunate. 
FDR then went on to Harvard University, from 1900 to 1904, where he performed only
slightly better than he had at Groton. Thanks to his tremendous preparation at Groton,
however, FDR was able to complete his course study for his B.A. in 1903, only three
years. During his fourth year he was editor of the Crimson, the college newspaper, but he
was not admitted to the most prestigious social club. He did not receive much inspiration
in the classroom, and he displayed no excitement about his studies. 
While he was at Harvard FDR fell in love with Anna Eleanor Roosevelt, his fifth cousin
once removed. Eleanor came from a troubled past, but grew up in the same aristocracy that
FDR himself had. On March 17, 1905, the two were married. The marriage worked well
enough, with Eleanor giving birth to five children within the first 11 years of their
marriage. Having both been born into wealth, neither Roosevelt had any problem mixing
with the aristocracy of the New York area. Despite often periods of unhappiness, Eleanor
stayed true to Franklin for the 40 years of their marriage, even when she learned of an
affair he was having during World War I. She proved to be one of his main supporters when
it came to his political career. 
Franklin attended Columbia Law School until spring of 1907, when he dropped out after
passing the New York State Bar Examination. He then took a job with the Wall Street firm
of Carter, Ledyard, and Milburn. Much of the firm?s practice was that of corporate law.
Sick of his job as a law clerk, Franklin couldn?t wait to jump into politics, which he
saw as having a sense of purpose. In 1910 Democratic part leaders sought him out as
candidate for New York State Senate, as he had many assets, mainly cash. He agreed to
run, and worked to campaign, as he had never done anything before. Acquiring a beat up
old car he canvassed the district looking for votes, ?The car had no top and no
windshield, and they wore raincoats when it rained and dusters on dirt roads. They spoke
in milk stations, grange halls, in village streets, they rang doorbells and shook hands??
(Morgan 115). FDR quickly made a name for himself when he opposed the corrupt Tammany
Hall, the political machine that ran New York at the time. With his reputation as a
charismatic hard worker, FDR earned key positions in Woodrow Wilson?s administration.
Appointed Wilson?s Assistant Secretary of the Navy by Josephus Daniels, then Secretary of
the Navy, Roosevelt did an excellent job of gaining congressional support for the navy in
World War I. In 1920 FDR was nominated as the vice presidential candidate on the
Democratic ticket, running with James Cox, but they lost decisively to Warren G. Harding
and Calvin Coolidge. 
The next year tragedy struck as Roosevelt contracted poliomyelitis, otherwise known as
polio, which attacked his central nervous system and left him paralyzed in his legs.
Although devastated physically by the disease, FDR became a mentally and emotionally
stronger person because of the disease. 
In 1924, FDR helped then governor of New York Alfred Smith gain the Democratic
Presidential nominee. Smith then asked FDR in 1928 to run for his ticket on the governor
ballot in New York, and Roosevelt agreed. FDR won the election for governor in an
otherwise Republican year. At the time of this election, the US economy was largely
unsteady, and Governor Roosevelt felt that a crash would come soon. In 1931, when the
Depression was serious, Roosevelt became the first governor to set up an effective state
relief administration. A very effective leader in New York, Roosevelt played the role of
governor naturally, ?Roosevelt had a talent for governing. Whatever the office, he filled
it with natural ease. By training and instinct, he knew how to handle the controls. He
had the right mix of leadership and responsiveness? (Morgan 314). He also became a very
persuasive speaker on the new instrument of radio, and he was reelected in 1930 by the
largest margin in state history. 
By the presidential election season in 1932, America?s heartache was worse than ever, and
it showed no sign of lessening. FDR stood out as the most dynamic candidate for the
Democratic presidential ticket, and he ran on the nomination against House Speaker John
Nance Garner of Texas and former Secretary of War Newton D. Baker of Ohio. FDR did not
win the ballot easily, and in fact Garner had to be promised a spot as the vice
presidential candidate in order for Roosevelt to carry the nomination on the fourth
ballot. Promising aggressive government intervention toward the Depression and a ?New
Deal? for the American people, Roosevelt and Garner won the election in a landslide
electoral vote of 472 to 59. In his first inaugural address, Roosevelt gave hope to the
dispirited Americans, assuring them that, ?We have nothing to fear but fear itself.? 
In the ?First Hundred Days? of his presidency, FDR passed through a vast amount of
legislation topped by a reformed banking program. He adopted a newly organized Federal
Emergency Relief Administration, and through the Civil Works Administration (CWA) of
1933-34 gave work relief to many. Also in 1933 Congress approved funding for the Civilian
Conservation Corps (CCC), the Home Owners Loan Corporation (HOLC), and the Public Works
Administration (PWA), all of which were drawn up by Roosevelt and his staff. His early
New Deal also established the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), which
guaranteed the bank savings of American families, and the Tennessee Valley Authority
(TVA), which was created to further resource development and push away from private
utilities. The two programs that FDR relied on in his first 100 days were the National
Recovery Act (NRA) and the Agricultural Adjustment Administration (AAA). The American
people began to find strength in FDR, and support grew as 1933 came to a close, ?On the
whole, despite the setbacks, uncertainties, and utter confusion of the summer and autumn
months, the year 1933 witnessed a restoration of confidence in the future of the United
States? (Robinson 117).
At the end of his first term in 1935, FDR pushed for reform in the areas that he had
established when he first began his campaign for election in 1932: unemployment
insurance, pensions for the elderly, limits on work hours, and massive public projects.
These accomplishments led to his reelection to the presidency in 1936, again by a
landslide margin of 523 to 8. This just went to show how popular the American people had
made him, and how much support they gave him. 
By the end of his second term Roosevelt had institutionalized the role of the federal
government as the economic stimulator of the American financial system. However the
programs and reforms that FDR brought to Washington did not help the country to fully
recover from the depression. Instead it took World War II and its emergence into the
situation, as Americans began a wartime effort to make supplies, that the US raised up
out of the depression. 
During World War II, FDR was able to use his ?lend-lease? policy to get around previous
commitments of neutrality by the US and help to arm Britain and the Soviet Union as the
Germans attacked. Responding to Japanese atrocities in Manchuria, FDR enforced an embargo
on American oil and steel on Japan. As the Japanese government underwent a transition and
a militant leadership took place, the controversy over Japanese intrusion in China and
the US embargo resulted in extreme tensions. These restrictions meant that Japan did not
have enough resources to fight the war, and the militant government speculated that an
attack was the only alternative. Some historians believe that had Roosevelt not applied
the embargo that Pearl Harbor may not have taken place, ?No amount of Rooseveltian charm
and manipulative skill could change Japan?s realization of its actual situation, which,
thanks to the trade embargo, was indeed dire? (Davis 313). 
After his health began to fail those around FDR felt that maybe his political days were
over, however the Commander In Chief ran again in 1944. Again an overwhelming majority
elected him, but he died one year later in 1945, at the age of 63. Harry S. Truman, his
vice president, took office, as FDR was laid to rest three days after his death at Hyde
Park. 
The two presidents of our past widely considered the greatest, Lincoln and FDR,
instituted ?constitutional dictatorships? in wartime. Both used their constitutional
sanctions, even when it meant going around Congress, to get things done in a time of
peril. But both did so while at the same time holding free elections in which their
opponents might have won the office. Through vast national support, Roosevelt was able to
rekindle America?s spirit in itself, ?A man who could not walk became president of a
country that had lost hope. With a simple set of beliefs- a belief that things could be
improved, a belief in the Democratic process- he transmitted his own confidence to the
nation? (Morgan 772). And the nation followed his lead.
Bibliography
Davis, Kenneth S. FDR: The War President 1940-1943. New York: Random House, 2000.
Miller, Nathan. FDR: An Intimate History. New York: Doubleday & Company, Inc., 1983.
Morgan, Ted. FDR: A Biography. New York: Simon and Schuster, 1985.
Robinson, Edgar Eugene. The Roosevelt Leadership 1933-1945. New York: J.B. Lippincott
Company, 1955.