Presidential Conspiracy Theories: James Buchanan, John Floyd and the Coming of War
James Buchanan's biographer Jean Baker writes that James Buchanan became president with probably more knowledge about the presidency than anyone before him. As a long time Washington insider, he had seen a number of presidents come and go. According to Baker, Buchanan planned on being a strong president, relying mainly on his own counsel. In selecting his cabinet, he chose men whose views matched his own in order to avoid dissent. His cabinet was composed of four southerners and three northerners who, like him, had southern sympathies. (The pejorative term for such persons was "doughface"). Reading about this made me wonder if Abraham Lincoln had selected his cabinet, composed of a "team of rivals", men with diverse viewpoints, intending not to repeat Buchanan's mistake?
One of the southerners Buchanan had selected to his cabinet was John B. Floyd for the important post of Secretary of War. (Coincidentally, the B stands for Buchanan.) After the election of Abraham Lincoln, Floyd took steps to weaken the US Army and to strengthen the position of the southern slave states so as to be ready in the event of war. Buchanan did nothing to prevent this, even after Floyd appeared to be caught in the act stealing from the government. Many believe that Buchanan either knew about what Floyd was doing and did nothing, acting as an enabler, or ever worse, he supported what Floyd was doing because he had strong loyalty for the southern states and the cause of slavery. General Winfield Scott would go so far as to accuse Buchanan of treason, a charge Buchanan feebly tried to refute in a post-war memoir.
In the picture above, John Buchanan Floyd is the man seated to the left of President Buchanan (to Buchanan's right). Floyd was one of the Buchanan's worst appointments to the cabinet and a prime example of misplaced trust. Floyd came from Virginia and had served as Governor of the state from 1849 to 1852. As governor, he asked the legislature to pass a law that placed an import tax on the products of states that refused to surrender fugitive slaves owned by Virginian masters. He was a slaveholder and an ardent supporter of the institution.
In March 1857, Floyd became Secretary of War in Buchanan's cabinet. Jean Baker describes Buchanan's cabinet as one of the most corrupt in history. Certainly Floyd supports this appraisal. As Secretary of War, Floyd demonstrated a severe lack of administrative ability, which soon became apparent even to Buchanan. For example, in 1858, Floyd sold Fort Snelling, an army post in Minnesota, to a consortium of Virginia businessmen who were friends of his. The fort was sold for much less than it was worth.
In December 1860, it was discovered that Floyd had used government funds intended for Indian affairs, to pay private contractors inflated amounts. The contractors used the government bonds to pay their creditors. Even after discovery of Floyd's illegal activity, Buchanan was reluctant to fire Floyd, and was also worried about alienating southerners. The president requested Floyd's resignation instead.
After the election of Abraham Lincoln, Floyd's conduct after the election aroused suspicion. He was accused in the press of having sent large stores of government arms to Federal arsenals in the South in the anticipation of the Civil War. In his memoirs, Ulysses Grant said of Floyd, "Floyd, the Secretary of War, scattered the army so that much of it could be captured when hostilities should commence, and distributed the cannon and small arms from Northern arsenals throughout the South so as to be on hand when treason wanted them."
Floyd did eventually resign his cabinet post on December 29, 1860. After his resignation, a congressional commission investigated Floyd's actions as Secretary of War in late 1861. It was discovered that, in response to John Brown's raid on Harper's Ferry, he bolstered the Federal arsenals in some Southern states by over 115,000 muskets and rifles in late 1859. He also ordered heavy provisions to be shipped to the Federal forts in Galveston Harbor, Texas, and the new fort on Ship Island off the coast of Mississippi. In the last days of his term, he planned to send these heavy guns, but his orders were revoked by the president.
Floyd resigned as secretary of war on December 29, 1860, not because of Buchanan's request, but because Buchanan would not do what Floyd wanted. Floyd had wanted Buchanan to order Major Robert Anderson to abandon Fort Sumter, which Buchanan refused to do. This eventually led to the start of the Civil war.
On January 27, 1861, Floyd was indicted by the District of Columbia grand jury for conspiracy and fraud. Floyd appeared in criminal court in Washington, D.C., on March 7, 1861, to answer the charges against him. According to Harper's Weekly, the indictments were thrown out on technical grounds. There was no proof that he profited personally from these irregular transactions.
After the Civil War began, Floyd served as a Major General in the Confederate Army, serving under Robert E. Lee. He was wounded at the Battle of Carnifex Ferry on September 10, 1861. He was one of the commanders who fled Fort Donelson in 1862 before the fort was surrendered to Ulysses Grant. (The incident led to Grant's nickname of "Unconditional Surrender Grant"). He was relieved of his command and died a year later on August 26, 1863.
After unsuccessfully attempting to send reinforcements to Fort Sumpter in December of 1860, Buchanan made no further moves either to prepare for war or to avert it. On Buchanan's final day as president, March 4, 1861, he said to the incoming President Lincoln, "If you are as happy in entering the White House as I shall feel on returning to Wheatland, you are a happy man." Buchanan spent most of his remaining years defending himself from public blame for the Civil War. His former cabinet members refused to defend Buchanan publicly. He attempted to justify his actions in his memoir entitled Mr. Buchanan's Administration on the Eve of Rebellion (reviewed here), which was published in 1866. Buchanan died on June 1, 1868, from respiratory failure at the age of 77 at his home at Wheatland.
One of the southerners Buchanan had selected to his cabinet was John B. Floyd for the important post of Secretary of War. (Coincidentally, the B stands for Buchanan.) After the election of Abraham Lincoln, Floyd took steps to weaken the US Army and to strengthen the position of the southern slave states so as to be ready in the event of war. Buchanan did nothing to prevent this, even after Floyd appeared to be caught in the act stealing from the government. Many believe that Buchanan either knew about what Floyd was doing and did nothing, acting as an enabler, or ever worse, he supported what Floyd was doing because he had strong loyalty for the southern states and the cause of slavery. General Winfield Scott would go so far as to accuse Buchanan of treason, a charge Buchanan feebly tried to refute in a post-war memoir.
In the picture above, John Buchanan Floyd is the man seated to the left of President Buchanan (to Buchanan's right). Floyd was one of the Buchanan's worst appointments to the cabinet and a prime example of misplaced trust. Floyd came from Virginia and had served as Governor of the state from 1849 to 1852. As governor, he asked the legislature to pass a law that placed an import tax on the products of states that refused to surrender fugitive slaves owned by Virginian masters. He was a slaveholder and an ardent supporter of the institution.
In March 1857, Floyd became Secretary of War in Buchanan's cabinet. Jean Baker describes Buchanan's cabinet as one of the most corrupt in history. Certainly Floyd supports this appraisal. As Secretary of War, Floyd demonstrated a severe lack of administrative ability, which soon became apparent even to Buchanan. For example, in 1858, Floyd sold Fort Snelling, an army post in Minnesota, to a consortium of Virginia businessmen who were friends of his. The fort was sold for much less than it was worth.
In December 1860, it was discovered that Floyd had used government funds intended for Indian affairs, to pay private contractors inflated amounts. The contractors used the government bonds to pay their creditors. Even after discovery of Floyd's illegal activity, Buchanan was reluctant to fire Floyd, and was also worried about alienating southerners. The president requested Floyd's resignation instead.
After the election of Abraham Lincoln, Floyd's conduct after the election aroused suspicion. He was accused in the press of having sent large stores of government arms to Federal arsenals in the South in the anticipation of the Civil War. In his memoirs, Ulysses Grant said of Floyd, "Floyd, the Secretary of War, scattered the army so that much of it could be captured when hostilities should commence, and distributed the cannon and small arms from Northern arsenals throughout the South so as to be on hand when treason wanted them."
Floyd did eventually resign his cabinet post on December 29, 1860. After his resignation, a congressional commission investigated Floyd's actions as Secretary of War in late 1861. It was discovered that, in response to John Brown's raid on Harper's Ferry, he bolstered the Federal arsenals in some Southern states by over 115,000 muskets and rifles in late 1859. He also ordered heavy provisions to be shipped to the Federal forts in Galveston Harbor, Texas, and the new fort on Ship Island off the coast of Mississippi. In the last days of his term, he planned to send these heavy guns, but his orders were revoked by the president.
Floyd resigned as secretary of war on December 29, 1860, not because of Buchanan's request, but because Buchanan would not do what Floyd wanted. Floyd had wanted Buchanan to order Major Robert Anderson to abandon Fort Sumter, which Buchanan refused to do. This eventually led to the start of the Civil war.
On January 27, 1861, Floyd was indicted by the District of Columbia grand jury for conspiracy and fraud. Floyd appeared in criminal court in Washington, D.C., on March 7, 1861, to answer the charges against him. According to Harper's Weekly, the indictments were thrown out on technical grounds. There was no proof that he profited personally from these irregular transactions.
After the Civil War began, Floyd served as a Major General in the Confederate Army, serving under Robert E. Lee. He was wounded at the Battle of Carnifex Ferry on September 10, 1861. He was one of the commanders who fled Fort Donelson in 1862 before the fort was surrendered to Ulysses Grant. (The incident led to Grant's nickname of "Unconditional Surrender Grant"). He was relieved of his command and died a year later on August 26, 1863.
After unsuccessfully attempting to send reinforcements to Fort Sumpter in December of 1860, Buchanan made no further moves either to prepare for war or to avert it. On Buchanan's final day as president, March 4, 1861, he said to the incoming President Lincoln, "If you are as happy in entering the White House as I shall feel on returning to Wheatland, you are a happy man." Buchanan spent most of his remaining years defending himself from public blame for the Civil War. His former cabinet members refused to defend Buchanan publicly. He attempted to justify his actions in his memoir entitled Mr. Buchanan's Administration on the Eve of Rebellion (reviewed here), which was published in 1866. Buchanan died on June 1, 1868, from respiratory failure at the age of 77 at his home at Wheatland.