James Buchanan, the 15th U.S. president (1857–1861), mostly tried to hold the Union together by compromising over slavery, but his actions and inaction are widely seen as helping push the country toward the Civil War.

What Did James Buchanan Do as President? (Quick Scoop)

1. Big Picture of His Presidency

  • Served one term from 1857 to 1861, right before the American Civil War.
  • Focused on keeping the Union together by accommodating Southern slaveholding interests rather than confronting them.
  • Today he is often ranked among the least effective U.S. presidents because he failed to manage the growing sectional crisis.

Many historians argue that Buchanan’s presidency is a textbook example of how not to handle an escalating national conflict.

2. How He Handled Slavery and Sectional Tension

Tried to quiet anti‑slavery activism

  • Tried to stop Northern antislavery agitation and strictly enforce the Fugitive Slave Act, hoping this would calm the South.
  • Publicly framed slavery as something for each state or territory to decide, not something the federal government should interfere with.

Backed the Dred Scott decision

  • Coordinated politically with Supreme Court justices and then embraced the Dred Scott ruling, which said Congress could not ban slavery in the territories.
  • Called the territorial slavery issue “of but little practical importance” because he believed the Court would “settle it speedily and finally,” badly misreading public outrage in the North.

Supported pro‑slavery forces in Kansas

  • Pushed to admit Kansas as a slave state under the pro‑slavery Lecompton Constitution, despite clear evidence that many settlers opposed it.
  • This move split his own Democratic Party, strengthened the new Republican Party, and left Kansas still a territory rather than settling the conflict.

3. Economic and Domestic Actions

Response to the Panic of 1857

  • Faced a serious financial crisis, the Panic of 1857, early in his term.
  • Urged states to limit bank credit (for example, pushing for a credit ratio of about 3 to 1 in relation to specie) and discouraged using government bonds as backing for banknotes to fight inflation and instability.
  • The economy eventually recovered, but many people suffered, and federal spending actually grew by the time he left office.

General domestic stance

  • Favored limited federal intervention and strict constitutionalism, which, in practice, meant avoiding bold federal action on slavery or the economy.
  • Spoke often about the duty of government to protect the right of citizens to vote freely, but in Kansas he aligned with a minority pro‑slavery faction, undercutting that rhetoric.

4. Foreign Policy Moves

Even though he’s mostly remembered for the coming of the Civil War, he had notable foreign policy aims.

  • Sought to expand U.S. influence in Latin America and the Caribbean, including a long‑standing goal of acquiring Cuba, which he had also championed before his presidency.
  • Tried to renegotiate the Clayton–Bulwer Treaty to give the U.S. more freedom to build or control a Central American canal and to curb European influence in the region.
  • Pursued U.S. protectorates over parts of northern Mexico (Chihuahua and Sonora) for security and commercial reasons, but Congress blocked most of these expansionist plans.
  • Successfully negotiated British recognition of Central American sovereignty by arranging the cession of the Bay Islands to Honduras and the Mosquito Coast to Nicaragua, modestly boosting U.S. diplomatic standing in the region.

5. What He Did As States Began to Secede

After Lincoln’s election in 1860

  • When Abraham Lincoln won the 1860 election, several Southern states began seceding while Buchanan was still in office.
  • He denied that states had a legal right to secede but also argued that the federal government had no constitutional power to stop them, effectively doing very little to halt the breakup of the Union.

Late, limited attempts at firmness

  • Hoped that compromise in Congress would calm the crisis, but secessionist leaders no longer wanted compromise.
  • As several Southern-leaning Cabinet members resigned, he replaced them with Northerners, a small shift toward a firmer Unionist stance.
  • Authorized the unarmed ship Star of the West to carry reinforcements to Fort Sumter in South Carolina, but local forces fired on the vessel and turned it back in January 1861, underscoring how weak federal authority had become under his watch.

By the time Buchanan left office in March 1861, seven Southern states had seceded and formed the Confederacy, leaving Lincoln to face open rebellion.

6. How People Judge Him Today

  • Modern surveys of historians and political scientists frequently rank Buchanan near the very bottom of all U.S. presidents.
  • His failure to use the presidency to prevent or soften the slide into the Civil War is often cited as one of the greatest mistakes in presidential history.
  • Critics argue that his rigid legalism, sympathy for Southern interests, and passivity at a moment of crisis outweighed his diplomatic experience and knowledge of government.

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  • Other useful phrases: “James Buchanan presidency,” “sectional crisis,” “Dred Scott decision,” “Kansas crisis,” “Panic of 1857.”
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TL;DR:
Buchanan enforced pro‑Southern policies, backed the Dred Scott decision, mishandled the Kansas and secession crises, did little in the Panic of 1857 beyond limited banking measures, and left office with the Union already breaking apart.

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