Edward Everett

The Reverend Edward Everett
Edward Everett, 1860s
20th United States Secretary of State
In office November 6, 1852 – March 4, 1853
President	Millard Fillmore
Preceded by	Daniel Webster
Succeeded by	William L. Marcy
United States Senator from Massachusetts
In office March 4, 1853 – June 1, 1854
Preceded by	John Davis
Succeeded by	Julius Rockwell
16th President of Harvard University
In office February 1846 – December 1848
Preceded by	Josiah Quincy
Succeeded by	Jared Sparks
United States Minister to the United Kingdom
In office December 16, 1841 – August 8, 1845
Nominated by	John Tyler
Preceded by	Andrew Stevenson
Succeeded by	Louis McLane
15th Governor of Massachusetts
In office January 13, 1836 – January 18, 1840
Lieutenant	George Hull
Preceded by	Samuel Turell Armstrong (Acting)
Succeeded by	Marcus Morton
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Massachusetts's 4th district
In office March 4, 1825 – March 3, 1835
Preceded by	Timothy Fuller
Succeeded by	Samuel Hoar
Personal details
Born	(1794-04-11)April 11, 1794 Dorchester, Massachusetts, U.S.
Died	January 15, 1865(1865-01-15) (aged 70) Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.
Political party	National Republican (Before 1834) Whig (1834–1854) Constitutional Union (1860–1864) National Union (1864–1865)
Spouse	Charlotte Gray Brooks
Children	6
Relatives	Alexander Hill Everett (Brother) Edward Everett Hale (Nephew) Lucretia Peabody Hale (niece) Susan Hale (niece) Charles Hale (nephew)
Education	Harvard University (BA, MA) University of Göttingen (PhD)
Signature

Edward Everett (April 11, 1794 – January 15, 1865) was an American politician, Unitarian pastor, educator, diplomat, and orator from Massachusetts. Everett, as a Whig, served as U.S. representative, U.S. senator, the 15th governor of Massachusetts, minister to Great Britain, and United States secretary of state. He also taught at Harvard University and served as its president.

Everett was one of the great American orators of the antebellum and Civil War eras. He was the featured orator at the dedication ceremony of the Gettysburg National Cemetery in 1863, where he spoke for over two hours—immediately before President Abraham Lincoln delivered his famous two-minute Gettysburg Address.

The son of a pastor, Everett was educated at Harvard, and briefly ministered at Boston's Brattle Street Church before taking a teaching job at Harvard. The position included preparatory studies in Europe, so Everett spent two years in studies at the University of Göttingen, and another two years traveling around Europe. At Harvard he taught ancient Greek literature for several years before starting an extensive and popular speaking career. He served ten years in the United States Congress before winning election as Governor of Massachusetts in 1835. As Governor he introduced the state Board of Education, the first of its type in the nation. In 1831, he was elected as a member to the American Philosophical Society.^[1]

After being narrowly defeated in the 1839 election, Everett was appointed Minister to Great Britain, serving until 1845. He next became President of Harvard, a job he quickly came to dislike. In 1849, he became an assistant to longtime friend and colleague Daniel Webster, who had been appointed Secretary of State. Upon Webster's death Everett served as Secretary of State for a few months until he was sworn in as U.S. Senator from Massachusetts. In the later years of his life, Everett traveled and gave speeches all over the country. He supported efforts to maintain the Union before the Civil War, running for Vice President on the Constitutional Union Party ticket in 1860. He was active in supporting the Union effort during the war and supported Lincoln in the 1864 election.