Read about the many problems encountered by John Quincy Adams during his presidency, most not of his making, but a reflection of the split in the philosophies of the National Republicans and the up-and-coming Jacksonian Democrats.

As with most other debates leading up to the Civil War, the debate about states' rights in reference to nullifying federal laws, ostensibly about tariffs, was really about the future of slavery in the South. Read about the issues of...

John C. Calhoun, a senator from South Carolina who instigated the doctrine of nullification in his state.

A portrait of John C. Calhoun, one of the leading United States Southern politicians and philosopher from South Carolina during the first half of the 19th century. Calhoun was an advocated for states' rihgts, limited government, and...

(1782-1850) Seventh vice-president and first vice-president born as a United States citizen.