Presidents in Retirement: James Buchanan
James Buchanan attended Abraham Lincoln's inauguration, and he left his successor a mess. As Buchanan rode in a carriage with Abraham Lincoln to Lincoln's inauguration, Buchanan is said to have remarked, “My dear sir, if you are as happy in entering the White House as I shall feel on returning to Wheatland, you are a happy man indeed.”
Wheatland was the name of Buchanan's home on the outskirts of Lancaster, Pennsylvania. Buchanan had never married, and after leaving office, Buchanan retired to private life at Wheatland, where he spent most of his time in his study. The Civil War began within two months of Buchanan's retirement with the firing on Fort Sumter. Although he had done nothing to prevent secession, Buchanan supported the Union and the war effort. He wrote in correspondence: "The assault upon Sumter was the commencement of war by the Confederate states, and no alternative was left but to prosecute it with vigor on our part."
Although the two were from different parties and held differing views on most issues, Buchanan supported Lincoln's introduction of universal conscription in the northern states. But he opposed the Emancipation Proclamation. He also acknowledged that some of Lincoln's wartime measures and executive orders likely violated the constitution, Buchanan never criticized them publicly. He wrote a letter to his fellow Pennsylvania Democrats in Harrisburg, urging them to enlist in the Union army, telling them that they should "join the many thousands of brave & patriotic volunteers who are already in the field."
Buchanan was unpopular for his inaction prior to the war. He was sensitive to this criticism and was determined to defend the steps he took and didn't take prior to the Civil War. Many of his critics referred to the war as "Buchanan's War". Buchanan regularly received hate mail and threatening letters almost on a daily basis. Even in his hometown of Lancaster, storefront windows displayed Buchanan's likeness with the eyes inked red, a noose drawn around his neck and the word "TRAITOR" written across his forehead. In Washington, the Senate proposed a resolution of condemnation against the former President, but it ultimately failed. Newspapers accused Buchanan of colluding with the Confederacy. His former cabinet members, five of whom had been given jobs in the Lincoln administration, refused to defend Buchanan publicly.
The vitriol directed against Buchanan took its toll on him physically and he became sick and depressed. In October 1862, he tried to defend himself in an exchange of letters with General Winfield Scott, one of Buchanan's biggest critics. These were published in the National Intelligencer newspaper. Buchanan wrote a book in which he laid out the case for his defense, in the form of a memoir entitled Mr. Buchanan's Administration on the Eve of Rebellion. The book was published in 1866. It is rambling and difficult to understand at times. In the book Buchanan attributed secession to the "malign influence" of Republicans and to abolitionists. He also discussed his foreign policy successes and expressed satisfaction with his decisions, even during the secession crisis. He blamed Robert Anderson (the commander at Fort Sumter), Winfield Scott, and Congress for the problems that followed.
Soon after the publication of the memoir, Buchanan caught a severe cold in May 1868. It quickly worsened due to his advanced age and attacked his lungs and made breathing difficult for him. He died on June 1, 1868, of respiratory failure. He was 77 years old. He died at his home, Wheatland. Buchanan was interred in Woodward Hill Cemetery in Lancaster.