Franklin D. Roosevelt
Overview
Franklin Delano Roosevelt (icon or icon ; January 30, 1882 – April 12, 1945), also known by his initials, FDR, was the 32nd President of the United States
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....

 (1933–1945) and a central figure in world events during the mid-20th century, leading the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 during a time of worldwide economic crisis
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...

 and world war
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

. The only American president elected to more than two terms, he facilitated a durable coalition that realigned American politics for decades.
Timeline

1933    In Miami, Florida, Giuseppe Zangara attempts to assassinate President-elect Franklin D. Roosevelt, but instead shoots Chicago, Illinois Mayor Anton J. Cermak, who dies of his wounds on March 6, 1933.

1933    Great Depression: President Franklin D. Roosevelt declares a "bank holiday", closing all U.S. banks and freezing all financial transactions.

1933    Great Depression: President Franklin D. Roosevelt submits the Emergency Banking Act to Congress, the first of his New Deal policies.

1933    Great Depression: Franklin D. Roosevelt addresses the nation for the first time as President of the United States. This was also the first of his "fireside chats".

1933    Great Depression: Banks in the U.S. begin to re-open after President Franklin D. Roosevelt mandates a "bank holiday".

1933    Giuseppe Zangara is executed in Florida's electric chair for fatally shooting Anton Cermak in an assassination attempt against President Franklin D. Roosevelt.

1933    New Deal: President Franklin D. Roosevelt signs an act creating the Tennessee Valley Authority.

1934    New Deal: U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt signs the Securities Act of 1933 into law, establishing the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

1934    President Franklin D. Roosevelt signs the Federal Credit Union Act, which establishes credit unions.

1935    The National Labor Relations Act, which governs labor relations in the United States, is signed into law by President Franklin D. Roosevelt.

Quotations

I pledge you, I pledge myself, to a New Deal|new deal for the American people.

Speech accepting the Democratic Party nomination in Chicago, Illinois (2 July 1932)

Confidence... thrives on honesty, on honor, on the sacredness of obligations, on faithful protection and on unselfish performance. Without them it cannot live.

Wikisource:Franklin_Roosevelt%27s_first_inaugural_address|First Inaugural Address (4 March 1933)

Happiness lies not in the mere possession of money; it lies in the joy of achievement, in the thrill of creative effort.

First Inaugural Address (4 March 1933)

There seems to be no question that [Mussolini] is really interested in what we are doing and I am much interested and deeply impressed by what he has accomplished and by his evidenced honest purpose of restoring Italy.

Comment in early 1933 about Benito Mussolini to US Ambassador to Italy Breckinridge Long|Breckinridge Long, as quoted in Three New Deals : Reflections on Roosevelt's America, Mussolini's Italy, and Hitler's Germany, 1933-1939 (2006) by Wolfgang Schivelbusch, p. 31

I don't mind telling you in confidence that I am keeping in fairly close touch with that admirable Italian gentleman.

Comment on Benito Mussolini in 1933, as quoted in Three New Deals : Reflections on Roosevelt's America, Mussolini's Italy, and Hitler's Germany, 1933-1939 (2006) by Wolfgang Schivelbusch, p. 31

 
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