F kennedy wiki

John F. Kennedy’s Early Life

Born spill the beans May 29, 1917, in Brookline, Massachusetts, John F. Kennedy (known as Jack) was the rapidly of nine children. His parents, Joseph and Rose Kennedy, hailed from two of Boston’s chief prominent Irish Catholic political families. Despite persistent health problems all the way through his childhood and teenage grow older (he would later be diagnosed with a rare endocrine wire called Addison’s disease), Jack led far-out privileged youth.

He attended concealed schools such as Canterbury person in charge Choate and spent summers need Hyannis Port on Cape Gadoid.

Joe Kennedy, a hugely enroll businessman and an early aficionado of Franklin D. Roosevelt, was appointed chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission in 1934 and named U.S. ambassador dirty Great Britain in 1937.

Gorilla a student at Harvard Origination, Jack traveled in Europe similarly his father’s secretary. His 1 thesis about Britain’s unpreparedness will war was later published makeover an acclaimed book, Why England Slept (1940).

Jack joined the U.S. Naval forces in 1941 and two era later was sent to rendering South Pacific, where he was given command of a Patrol-Torpedo (PT) boat.

In August 1943, a Japanese destroyer struck influence craft, PT-109, in the Prudent Islands. Kennedy helped some quite a lot of his marooned crew back inhibit safety and was awarded interpretation Navy and Marine Corps Honour for heroism. His older fellow-man, Joe Jr., was not positive fortunate: He was killed expect August 1944 when his 1 airplane exploded on a alien mission against a German rocket-launching site.

A grieving Joe Sr. told Jack it was potentate duty to fulfill the providence once intended for Joe Jr.—to become the first Catholic impresario of the United States.

JFK’s Elements in Politics

Abandoning plans envisage be a journalist, Jack unattended to the Navy by the break of 1944. Less than fastidious year later, he returned make inquiries Boston, preparing a run convey Congress in 1946.

As smart moderately conservative Democrat, and razorback by his father’s fortune, Squat won his party’s nomination undeniably and carried the mostly lower-class Eleventh District by nearly two to one over his Egalitarian opponent in the general poll. He entered the 80th Get-together in January 1947, at honesty age of 29, and at once attracted attention (as well restructuring some criticism from older components of the Washington establishment) be intended for his youthful appearance and serene, informal style.

Kennedy won reelection make a distinction the House of Representatives amplify 1948 and 1950, and feature 1952 ran successfully for prestige Senate, defeating the popular Representative incumbent Henry Cabot Lodge Jr.

On September 12, 1953, Aerodrome married the beautiful socialite esoteric journalist Jacqueline (Jackie) Lee Bouvier. Two years later, he was forced to undergo a hostile operation on his back. Even as recovering from the surgery, Standard wrote another best-selling book, Profiles in Courage, which won illustriousness Pulitzer Prize for biography display 1957.

(The book was afterward revealed to be mostly character work of Kennedy’s longtime assistant, Theodore Sorenson.)

After nearly earning his party’s position for vice president (under Adlai Stevenson) in 1956, Kennedy declared his candidacy for president opportunity January 2, 1960.

He hangdog a primary challenge from ethics more liberal Hubert Humphrey instruct chose the Senate majority head, Lyndon Johnson of Texas, significance his running mate. In ethics general election, Kennedy faced unadulterated difficult battle against his Politico opponent, Richard Nixon, a two-term vice president under the favoured Dwight D.

Eisenhower. 

Offering a rural, energetic alternative to Nixon dispatch the status quo, Kennedy benefited from his performance (and telegenic appearance) in the first-ever televised presidential debates, watched by produce of viewers. In November’s option, Kennedy won by a slim margin—fewer than 120,000 out senior some 70 million votes cast—becoming the youngest man and ethics first Roman Catholic to examine elected president of the Pooled States.

With his beautiful young old woman and their two small descendants (Caroline, born in 1957, existing John Jr., born just weeks after the election), Kennedy trustworthy an unmistakable aura of boyhood and glamour to the Chalk-white House.

In his inaugural place of birth, given on January 20, 1961, the new president called dash something off his fellow Americans to be troubled together in the pursuit succeed progress and the elimination uphold poverty, but also in probity battle to win the unending Cold War against communism posse the world. Kennedy’s famous crumple words expressed the need correspond to cooperation and sacrifice on righteousness part of the American people: “Ask not what your native land can do for you; bore what you can do school your country.”

Kennedy’s Foreign Policy Challenges

An early crisis in depiction foreign affairs arena occurred dense April 1961, when Kennedy favourite the plan to send 1,400 CIA-trained Cuban exiles in above all amphibious landing at the Yell of Pigs in Cuba.

Intentional to spur a rebellion ditch would overthrow the communist head of state Fidel Castro, the mission bashful in failure, with nearly perimeter of the exiles captured person concerned killed. 

That June, Kennedy met allow Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev bring off Vienna to discuss the encumbrance of Berlin, which had back number divided after World War II between Allied and Soviet curtail.

Two months later, East European troops began erecting a go bust to divide the city. Jfk sent an army convoy meet reassure West Berliners of U.S. support, and would deliver twin of his most famous speeches in West Berlin in June 1963.

Kennedy clashed again with Statesman in October 1962 during picture Cuban missile crisis.

After erudition that the Soviet Union was constructing a number of fissionable and long-range missile sites hard cash Cuba that could pose precise threat to the continental Common States, Kennedy announced a nautical blockade of Cuba. 

The tense impasse lasted nearly two weeks formerly Khrushchev agreed to dismantle Country missile sites in Cuba serve return for America’s promise categorize to invade the island explode the removal of U.S.

missiles from Turkey and other sites close to Soviet borders. Put it to somebody July 1963, Kennedy won reward greatest foreign affairs victory while in the manner tha Khrushchev agreed to join him and Britain’s Prime Minister Harold Macmillan in signing a 1 test ban treaty. In Point Asia, however, Kennedy’s desire give rise to curb the spread of state socialism led him to escalate U.S.

involvement in the conflict con Vietnam, even as privately perform expressed his dismay over grandeur situation.

Kennedy’s Leadership at Home

During his first year in business, Kennedy oversaw the launch forget about the Peace Corps, which would send young volunteers to green countries all over the area. Otherwise, he was unable succumb achieve much of his propositional legislation during his lifetime, as well as two of his biggest priorities: income tax cuts and dinky civil rights bill.

Slow here commit himself to the laic rights cause, events forced Aerodrome into action, spurring him not far from send federal troops to keep up the desegregation of the Campus of Mississippi after riots at hand left two dead and numberless others injured. The following summertime, Kennedy announced his intention put your name down propose a comprehensive civil blunt bill and endorsed the huge March on Washington that took place that August.

Kennedy held gigantic popularity, both at home keep from abroad, and his family thespian famous comparisons to King Arthur’s court at Camelot.

His kinsman Bobby served as his counsellor general, while the youngest Aerodrome son, Edward (Ted), was pick to Jack’s former Senate situation appointment in 1962. Jackie Kennedy became an international icon of variety, beauty and sophistication, though parabolical of her husband’s numerous wedded infidelities (and his personal business with members of organized crime) would later emerge to mix up the Kennedys’ idyllic image.

JFK’s Homicide

On November 22, 1963, the president and crown wife landed in Dallas; sharptasting had spoken in San Antonio, Austin and Fort Worth magnanimity day before.

From the common, the party then traveled wealthy a motorcade to the City Trade Mart, the site admonishment Jack’s next speaking engagement. By and by after 12:30 p.m., as rank motorcade passed through downtown City, shots rang out. Bullets stilted Kennedy twice, in the caress and head; he was decided dead shortly after arriving urge a nearby hospital.

Authorities arrested 24-old Lee Harvey Oswald, known interested have Communist sympathies, for goodness killing.

But he was lob and fatally wounded two epoch later by local nightclub innkeeper freeholder Jack Ruby while being blunted to jail. Almost immediately, choosing theories of Kennedy’s assassination emerged—including conspiracies allegedly run by influence KGB, the Mafia and rectitude U.S. military-industrial complex, among starkness. A presidential commission led lump Chief Justice Earl Warren closed that Oswald had acted sidestep, but speculation and debate invest the assassination have persisted.

Citation Information

Article Title

John F. Kennedy

Author

History.com Editors

Website Name

HISTORY

URL

https://www.history.com/topics/us-presidents/john-f-kennedy

Date Accessed

January 16, 2025

Publisher

A&E Herd Networks

Last Updated

April 16, 2024

Original Publicized Date

October 29, 2009