Franklin Delano Roosevelt: FDR Facts, Biography, Quotes, and Resources

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Brief Biography of Franklin D. Roosevelt

Franklin Delano Roosevelt also known by his initials, FDR was the 32nd President of the United States and a central figure in world events during the mid-20th century, leading the United States during a time of worldwide economic crisis and world war. Through both his father, James Roosevelt, and his mother, Sara Delano Roosevelt, he came of old, wealthy families. After studying at Groton, Harvard, and Columbia Univ. school of law, he began a career as a lawyer. In July, 1932, Roosevelt was chosen by the Democratic party as its presidential candidate to run against the Republican incumbent, Herbert C. Hoover. In November, Roosevelt was overwhelmingly elected President. Fun fact about FDR is that he is the only American president elected to more than two terms. FDR defeated Herbert Hoover in November 1932, at the depths of the Great Depression. Working closely with Winston Churchill and Joseph Stalin in leading the Allies against Germany and Japan in World War II, he died just as victory was in sight.

Fun Facts and Trivia about Franklin D. Roosevelt

When was Franklin D. Roosevelt born: January 30, 1882
Where was Franklin D. Roosevelt born: Hyde Park, NY
Where did Franklin D. Roosevelt go to college: Harvard
What was Franklin D. Roosevelt’s profession: Lawyer
Who was Franklin D. Roosevelt married to: Eleanor Roosevelt
What number president was Franklin D. Roosevelt: 32nd
What political party did Franklin D. Roosevelt belong to: Democrat
Who was Franklin D. Roosevelt’s vice president: John N. Garner – Henry A. Wallace – Harry S. Truman
When was Franklin D. Roosevelt president: 1933-1945
How many terms did Franklin D. Roosevelt serve: 3
When did Franklin D. Roosevelt die: April 12, 1945
Where is Franklin D. Roosevelt buried: Hyde Park, NY

Franklin D. Roosevelt Quotes

• “A conservative is a man with two perfectly good legs who, however, has never learned how to walk forward. “
• “The test of our progress is not whether we add more to the abundance of those who have much; it is whether we provide enough for those who have too little.”
• “I believe that in every country the people themselves are more peaceably and liberally inclined than their governments. “
• “If you treat people right they will treat you right – ninety percent of the time. “
• “Nobody will ever deprive the American people of the right to vote except the American people themselves and the only way they could do this is by not voting. “
• “But while they prate of economic laws, men and women are starving. We must lay hold of the fact that economic laws are not made by nature. They are made by human beings. “

Timeline of Franklin D. Roosevelt Life

1882 Born in Hyde Park, N.Y.
1905 Married Eleanor Roosevelt.
1913 Appointed Assistant Secretary of the Navy.
1920 Lost the election for Vice-President of the United States.
1921 Stricken with Polio.
1928 Elected governor of New York.
1932 Elected President of the United States.
1933 The 21st Amendment started, ending Prohibition.
1933 Roosevelt’s first official act was the “Bank Holiday.”
1933 “Good Neighbor Policy,” proclaimed by Roosevelt.
1936 Re-elected President.
1937 Roosevelt tried to “pack” the Supreme Court with justices of his own choosing, which caused a national controversy.
1939 World War II began with the invasion of Poland.
1940 Re-elected President.
1941 Japan attacked Pearl Harbor seven weeks after Hideki Tojo became premier.
1944 Re-elected President.
1945 Died in Warm Springs, Ga.

FRD’s New Deal

In November, Roosevelt was overwhelmingly elected President beating Republican incumbent, Herbert C. Hoover. He came to the White House at the height of crisis—the economic structure of the country was tottering, and fear and despair hung over the nation. Roosevelt’s inaugural address held words of hope and vigor to reassure the troubled country— “Let me assert my firm belief that the only thing we have to fear is fear itself”.

Finance and banking were regulated by new laws that loosened credit and insured deposits; the United States went off the gold standard; and a series of government agencies were set up to reorganize industry and agriculture under controls and to revive the economy by a vast expenditure of public funds. The Securities and Exchange Commission was set up in 1934 to regulate banks and stock exchanges. The Works Progress Administration was intended to offer immediate work programs for the unemployed, while the legislation for social security was a long-range plan for the future protection of the worker in unemployment, sickness, and old age. The government also took a direct role in developing the natural resources of the country with the establishment of the Tennessee Valley Authority and the Rural Electrification Administration.

What was the New Deal?

The vast, many-faceted program of the New Deal was fashioned with the help of many advisers. Some of the Brain Trust had accompanied Roosevelt to Washington, and counselors, such as Raymond Moley , Rexford Guy Tugwell , and Adolf A. Berle , Jr., were important advisers in the early years, as were some members of the cabinet, including Henry A. Wallace , Harold L. Ickes , Frances Perkins , Cordell Hull , and James A. Farley . Among his other counselors was Harry L. Hopkins . There was sometimes dissension within the ranks of these advisers; a counselor breaking from the group and denouncing the policies of the administration—and sometimes the President himself—became a familiar occurrence. The steady and rapid buildup of the program and the forceful personality of Roosevelt offset early opposition. His reassuring “fireside chats,” broadcast to the nation over the radio, helped to explain issues and policies to the people and to hold for him the mandate of the nation.

How was the Roosevelt Corollary Ended?

In order to understand how the Roosevelt Corollary ended, it is important to understand what the corollary was. The Roosevelt corollary was an extension to the Monroe Doctrine, issued by the fifth president of the United States, Jame Monroe, on Dec. 2, 1823, in his seventh State of the Union address before the American Congress.

The Monroe Doctrine was a basic statement of United States foreign policy and the relationship between the United States, other nations, uncolonized areas of both North and South America and European nations. In essence, the Monroe Doctrine stated that any future attempts by European nations to colonize land or interfere in any way with states in the Americas would be viewed by the United States as an act of aggression. The Monroe Doctrine did not apply to existing European colonies in the Americas and also stated that the United States would not interfere in the internal affairs of European nations.

The Monroe Doctrine was issued during a period when many of Spain’s colonies in South America were on the verge of gaining independence, and the United States was concerned about the possibility of a power struggle that could adversely affect the area and U.S. interests.

At the time, the Doctrine was ignored by most nations as the United States lacked the means to enforce it without a strong army or navy. However, the government of the United Kingdom viewed the Doctrine with favor as it saw the commercial potential of the United States and emerging South American states for the UK’s thriving industry.

His statement became one of the United States’ central foreign policy tenets and was supported by successive U.S. presidents including the late John F. Kennedy, who invoked it when the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics attempted to provide nuclear missiles to the Communist regime in Cuba. Kennedy saw the Soviet act as an attempt to interfere with U.S. hegemony in the region and, in line with the Monroe Doctrine, implemented a blockage against Cuba that brought the world to the brink of a nuclear war. Eventually, the Soviet Union backed down, and the crisis was averted.

Additional applications of the Doctrine led to the annexation of Hawaii and Puerto Rico by the United States and the occupation of Cuba until 1902.

The Roosevelt corollary of 1904 extended the scope of the Monroe Doctrine by declaring that while European nations had no right to intervene in matters concerning North, Central and South America, the United States did, under certain circumstances, have the right to intervene in the internal affairs of countries on the American continent.

The basic tenet of the corollary, as stated by Roosevelt before Congress in 1904, was: “All that this country desires is to see the neighboring countries stable, orderly, and prosperous. Any country whose people conduct themselves well can count upon our hearty friendship. If a nation shows that it knows how to act with reasonable efficiency and decency in social and political matters, if it keeps order and pays its obligations, it need fear no interference from the United States. Chronic wrongdoing, or an impotence which results in a general loosening of the ties of civilized society, may in America, as elsewhere, ultimately require intervention by some civilized nation, and in the Western Hemisphere the adherence of the United States to the Monroe Doctrine may force the United States, however reluctantly, in flagrant cases of such wrongdoing or impotence, to the exercise of an international police power. The corollary was used to justify U.S. intervention in Cuba, Haiti and the Dominican Republic.

The Roosevelt corollary was revoked by President Calvin Coolidge in 1928 when he issued the Clarke Memorandum that stated that the only justification for U.S. intervention in the Americas was threats posed by European nations. Franklin Roosevelt further diminished the strength of the corollary when he began his “Good Neighbor” policy in 1934 that led to the establishment of dictatorships in a number of South and Central American countries.

Resource by T.Price

I am a mom of 2 boys who loves to spend time with them doing fun things outdoors. In my spare time I have my own things I enjoy doing such as gardening, reading old books, and being a closet history buff.

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