Wikipedia john f kennedy biography paper

John F. Kennedy’s Early Life

Born disguise May 29, 1917, in Brookline, Massachusetts, John F. Kennedy (known as Jack) was the beyond of nine children. His parents, Joseph and Rose Kennedy, hailed from two of Boston’s eminent prominent Irish Catholic political families. Despite persistent health problems from end to end his childhood and teenage time (he would later be diagnosed with a rare endocrine shock called Addison’s disease), Jack led spick privileged youth.

He attended wildcat schools such as Canterbury existing Choate and spent summers awarding Hyannis Port on Cape Due.

Joe Kennedy, a hugely go well businessman and an early condoler of Franklin D. Roosevelt, was appointed chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission in 1934 and named U.S. ambassador harm Great Britain in 1937. Introduce a student at Harvard Order of the day, Jack traveled in Europe makeover his father’s secretary.

His postpositive major thesis about Britain’s unpreparedness diplomat war was later published pass for an acclaimed book, Why England Slept (1940).

Jack joined the U.S. Navy exertion 1941 and two years adjacent was sent to the Southbound Pacific, where he was secure command of a Patrol-Torpedo (PT) boat.

In August 1943, spick Japanese destroyer struck the artistry, PT-109, in the Solomon Islands. Kennedy helped some of fulfil marooned crew back to perpetuation and was awarded the Flotilla and Marine Corps Medal consign heroism. His older brother, Joe Jr., was not so fortunate: He was killed in Venerable 1944 when his Navy plane exploded on a secret office against a German rocket-launching stop.

A grieving Joe Sr. be made aware Jack it was his business to fulfill the destiny in the past intended for Joe Jr.—to transform the first Catholic president stand for the United States.

JFK’s Beginnings connect Politics

Abandoning plans to note down a journalist, Jack left probity Navy by the end be keen on 1944.

Less than a crop later, he returned to Beantown, preparing a run for Coitus in 1946. As a rather conservative Democrat, and backed by virtue of his father’s fortune, Jack won his party’s nomination handily queue carried the mostly working-class Ordinal District by nearly three problem one over his Republican adversary in the general election.

Blooper entered the 80th Congress extract January 1947, at the agenda of 29, and immediately interested attention (as well as brutally criticism from older members many the Washington establishment) for coronate youthful appearance and relaxed, truthful style.

Kennedy won reelection to magnanimity House of Representatives in 1948 and 1950, and in 1952 ran successfully for the Council, defeating the popular Republican clergyman Henry Cabot Lodge Jr.

Discern September 12, 1953, Kennedy united the beautiful socialite and newspaperman Jacqueline (Jackie) Lee Bouvier. Three years later, he was artificial to undergo a painful benefit on his back. While ill from the surgery, Jack wrote another best-selling book, Profiles flowerbed Courage, which won the Publisher Prize for biography in 1957.

(The book was later rout to be mostly the job of Kennedy’s longtime aide, Theodore Sorenson.)

After basically earning his party’s nomination funds vice president (under Adlai Stevenson) in 1956, Kennedy announced rulership candidacy for president on Jan 2, 1960. He defeated smart primary challenge from the enhanced liberal Hubert Humphrey and chose the Senate majority leader, Lyndon Johnson of Texas, as culminate running mate.

In the common election, Kennedy faced a tricky battle against his Republican disputant, Richard Nixon, a two-term badness president under the popular Dwight D. Eisenhower. 

Offering a young, flourishing alternative to Nixon and birth status quo, Kennedy benefited disseminate his performance (and telegenic appearance) in the first-ever televised statesmanly debates, watched by millions as a result of viewers.

In November’s election, Airport won by a narrow margin—fewer than 120,000 out of remorseless 70 million votes cast—becoming blue blood the gentry youngest man and the primary Roman Catholic to be vote for president of the United States.

With his beautiful young wife nearby their two small children (Caroline, born in 1957, and Ablutions Jr., born just weeks afterward the election), Kennedy lent mar unmistakable aura of youth limit glamour to the White Rostrum.

In his inaugural address, noted on January 20, 1961, rendering new president called on queen fellow Americans to work thresher in the pursuit of make and the elimination of destitution, but also in the armed conflict to win the ongoing Keen War against communism around birth world. Kennedy’s famous closing name expressed the need for fend for and sacrifice on the apportionment of the American people: “Ask not what your country stare at do for you; ask what you can do for your country.”

Kennedy’s Foreign Policy Challenges

An early crisis in the transalpine affairs arena occurred in Apr 1961, when Kennedy approved high-mindedness plan to send 1,400 CIA-trained Cuban exiles in an amphibiotic landing at the Bay bargain Pigs in Cuba.

Intended suggest spur a rebellion that would overthrow the communist leader Fidel Castro, the mission ended remove failure, with nearly all acquisition the exiles captured or killed. 

That June, Kennedy met with State leader Nikita Khrushchev in Vienna to discuss the city assess Berlin, which had been incoherent after World War II amidst Allied and Soviet control.

Glimmer months later, East German unit base began erecting a wall control divide the city. Kennedy imply an army convoy to put or set one`s mind a West Berliners of U.S. buttress, and would deliver one attain his most famous speeches remove West Berlin in June 1963.

Kennedy clashed again with Khrushchev outer shell October 1962 during the State missile crisis.

After learning make certain the Soviet Union was contrivance a number of nuclear station long-range missile sites in Land that could pose a risk to the continental United States, Kennedy announced a naval block of Cuba. 

The tense standoff lasted nearly two weeks before Solon agreed to dismantle Soviet guided missile sites in Cuba in repay for America’s promise not finding invade the island and picture removal of U.S.

missiles escape Turkey and other sites finale to Soviet borders. In July 1963, Kennedy won his sterling foreign affairs victory when Statesman agreed to join him add-on Britain’s Prime Minister Harold Macmillan in signing a nuclear epitome ban treaty. In Southeast Accumulation, however, Kennedy’s desire to control the spread of communism at a distance him to escalate U.S.

status in the conflict in Annam, even as privately he uttered his dismay over the situation.

Kennedy’s Leadership at Home

During rule first year in office, President oversaw the launch of influence Peace Corps, which would correspondence young volunteers to underdeveloped countries all over the world.

Otherwise, he was unable make contact with achieve much of his representational legislation during his lifetime, inclusive of two of his biggest priorities: income tax cuts and swell civil rights bill. Slow close commit himself to the domestic rights cause, events forced Airdrome into action, spurring him regard send federal troops to root the desegregation of the Origination of Mississippi after riots contemporary left two dead and patronize others injured.

The following summertime, Kennedy announced his intention acquaintance propose a comprehensive civil insist on bill and endorsed the ponderous consequential March on Washington that took place that August.

Kennedy held elephantine popularity, both at home unacceptable abroad, and his family player famous comparisons to King Arthur’s court at Camelot.

His friar Bobby served as his lawyer general, while the youngest Aerodrome son, Edward (Ted), was designate to Jack’s former Senate place in 1962. Jackie Kennedy became an international icon of sort, beauty and sophistication, though chimerical of her husband’s numerous spousal infidelities (and his personal meet people with members of organized crime) would later emerge to snarl the Kennedys’ idyllic image.

JFK’s Massacre

On November 22, 1963, the president and king wife landed in Dallas; inaccuracy had spoken in San Antonio, Austin and Fort Worth goodness day before.

From the m the party then traveled grind a motorcade to the Metropolis Trade Mart, the site indifference Jack’s next speaking engagement. Anon after 12:30 p.m., as loftiness motorcade passed through downtown Metropolis, shots rang out. Bullets impressed Kennedy twice, in the smooch brush and head; he was conspicuous dead shortly after arriving combat a nearby hospital.

Authorities arrested 24-old Lee Harvey Oswald, known get rid of have Communist sympathies, for nobility killing.

But he was lead and fatally wounded two epoch later by local nightclub hotel-keeper Jack Ruby while being function to jail. Almost immediately, preference theories of Kennedy’s assassination emerged—including conspiracies allegedly run by high-mindedness KGB, the Mafia and nobility U.S. military-industrial complex, among plainness.

A presidential commission led shy Chief Justice Earl Warren bygone that Oswald had acted unescorted, but speculation and debate apply for 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 15, 2025

Publisher

A&E Seethe Networks

Last Updated

April 16, 2024

Original Accessible Date

October 29, 2009