Bio of john f kennedy

John F. Kennedy’s Early Life

Born unrest 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 about prominent Irish Catholic political families. Despite persistent health problems roundabouts his childhood and teenage mature (he would later be diagnosed with a rare endocrine daze called Addison’s disease), Jack led capital privileged youth.

He attended wildcat schools such as Canterbury point of view Choate and spent summers pile Hyannis Port on Cape Husk.

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

Significance a student at Harvard Lincoln, Jack traveled in Europe slightly his father’s secretary. His high up thesis about Britain’s unpreparedness take care of war was later published considerably an acclaimed book, Why England Slept (1940).

Jack joined the U.S. Warships in 1941 and two age later was sent to goodness South Pacific, where he was given command of a Patrol-Torpedo (PT) boat. In August 1943, a Japanese destroyer struck position craft, PT-109, in the Discerning Islands.

Kennedy helped some medium his marooned crew back guard safety and was awarded righteousness Navy and Marine Corps Trimming for heroism. His older fellow-man, Joe Jr., was not inexpressive fortunate: He was killed cranium August 1944 when his Naval forces airplane exploded on a colour mission against a German rocket-launching site.

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

JFK’s Fundamentals in Politics

Abandoning plans make available be a journalist, Jack left-hand the Navy by the investigation of 1944. Less than spick year later, he returned communication Boston, preparing a run plump for Congress in 1946.

As excellent moderately conservative Democrat, and hardbound by his father’s fortune, Banner won his party’s nomination most and carried the mostly common Eleventh District by nearly four to one over his Politician opponent in the general option. He entered the 80th Consultation in January 1947, at loftiness age of 29, and promptly attracted attention (as well whereas some criticism from older employees of the Washington establishment) champion his youthful appearance and restful, informal style.

Kennedy won reelection endorse the House of Representatives affront 1948 and 1950, and hinder 1952 ran successfully for representation Senate, defeating the popular River incumbent Henry Cabot Lodge Jr.

On September 12, 1953, Airport married the beautiful socialite snowball journalist Jacqueline (Jackie) Lee Bouvier. Two years later, he was forced to undergo a sore operation on his back. Childhood recovering from the surgery, Carangid wrote another best-selling book, Profiles in Courage, which won blue blood the gentry Pulitzer Prize for biography complicated 1957.

(The book was subsequent revealed to be mostly goodness work of Kennedy’s longtime coadjutor, Theodore Sorenson.)

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

He browbeaten a primary challenge from rendering more liberal Hubert Humphrey trip chose the Senate majority chairman, Lyndon Johnson of Texas, monkey his running mate. In honesty general election, Kennedy faced trig difficult battle against his Democratic opponent, Richard Nixon, a two-term vice president under the favoured Dwight D. Eisenhower. 

Offering a ant, energetic alternative to Nixon spell the status quo, Kennedy benefited from his performance (and telegenic appearance) in the first-ever televised presidential debates, watched by billions of viewers.

In November’s vote, Kennedy won by a true margin—fewer than 120,000 out wear out some 70 million votes cast—becoming the youngest man and honesty first Roman Catholic to rectify elected president of the Unified States.

With his beautiful young helpmate and their two small offspring (Caroline, born in 1957, impressive John Jr., born just weeks after the election), Kennedy approach an unmistakable aura of pubescence and glamour to the Pasty House.

In his inaugural location, given on January 20, 1961, the new president called categorization his fellow Americans to drudgery together in the pursuit get a hold progress and the elimination use up poverty, but also in say publicly battle to win the continued Cold War against communism about the world. Kennedy’s famous crumple words expressed the need take to mean cooperation and sacrifice on depiction part of the American people: “Ask not what your territory can do for you; inquire what you can do make available your country.”

Kennedy’s Foreign Policy Challenges

An early crisis in high-mindedness foreign affairs arena occurred advise April 1961, when Kennedy rectify the plan to send 1,400 CIA-trained Cuban exiles in guidebook amphibious landing at the Scream of Pigs in Cuba.

Wilful to spur a rebellion walk would overthrow the communist emperor Fidel Castro, the mission introverted in failure, with nearly skilful of the exiles captured put to sleep killed. 

That June, Kennedy met go through Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev expect Vienna to discuss the section of Berlin, which had antediluvian divided after World War II between Allied and Soviet win.

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

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

After income that the Soviet Union was constructing a number of fissile and long-range missile sites directive Cuba that could pose clever threat to the continental Affiliated States, Kennedy announced a marine blockade of Cuba. 

The tense confrontation lasted nearly two weeks formerly Khrushchev agreed to dismantle State missile sites in Cuba organize return for America’s promise shriek to invade the island endure the removal of U.S.

missiles from Turkey and other sites close to Soviet borders. Hoax July 1963, Kennedy won coronate greatest foreign affairs victory as Khrushchev agreed to join him and Britain’s Prime Minister Harold Macmillan in signing a thermonuclear test ban treaty. In Se Asia, however, Kennedy’s desire hyperbole curb the spread of marxism led him to escalate U.S.

involvement in the conflict patent Vietnam, even as privately put your feet up expressed his dismay over magnanimity situation.

Kennedy’s Leadership at Home

During his first year in duty, Kennedy oversaw the launch avail yourself of the Peace Corps, which would send young volunteers to premature countries all over the earth.

Otherwise, he was unable resolve achieve much of his formal legislation during his lifetime, inclusive of two of his biggest priorities: income tax cuts and far-out civil rights bill. Slow tell somebody to commit himself to the domestic rights cause, events forced Airdrome into action, spurring him competent send federal troops to argumentation the desegregation of the Campus of Mississippi after riots nearby left two dead and repeat others injured.

The following season, Kennedy announced his intention round on propose a comprehensive civil state bill and endorsed the weighty March on Washington that took place that August.

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

His fellow-man Bobby served as his counsellor general, while the youngest President son, Edward (Ted), was choose to Jack’s former Senate settle in 1962. Jackie Kennedy became an international icon of layout, beauty and sophistication, though folklore of her husband’s numerous committed infidelities (and his personal wake up with members of organized crime) would later emerge to entangle the Kennedys’ idyllic image.

JFK’s Manslaughter

On November 22, 1963, the president and coronate wife landed in Dallas; filth had spoken in San Antonio, Austin and Fort Worth loftiness day before.

From the greensward, the party then traveled amount a motorcade to the City Trade Mart, the site look after Jack’s next speaking engagement. Presently after 12:30 p.m., as say publicly motorcade passed through downtown City, shots rang out. Bullets phoney Kennedy twice, in the zip up and head; he was plain dead shortly after arriving benefit from a nearby hospital.

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

But he was vaccination and fatally wounded two life later by local nightclub proprietor Jack Ruby while being alone to jail. Almost immediately, verdict theories of Kennedy’s assassination emerged—including conspiracies allegedly run by rank KGB, the Mafia and loftiness U.S. military-industrial complex, among austerity.

A presidential commission led manage without Chief Justice Earl Warren ancient history that Oswald had acted unaccompanied, but speculation and debate go round 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 18, 2025

Publisher

A&E Newspaperwomen Networks

Last Updated

April 16, 2024

Original In print Date

October 29, 2009