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{{Infobox US president
| name = Martin Van Buren
| image = Martin Van Buren Presidential Portrait.jpg
| order = 8th
| office = President of the United States
| vicepresident = [[Richard Mentor Johnson]]
| term_start = March 4, 1837
| term_end = March 4, 1841
| predecessor = [[Andrew Jackson]]
| successor = [[William Henry Harrison]]
| birth_date = {{Birth date|1782|12|5}}
| birth_place = [[Kinderhook, New York]], United States
| death_date = {{Death date and age|1862|7|24|1782|12|5}}
| death_place = [[Kinderhook, New York]], United States
| political_party = [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic]]
| spouse = [[Hannah Van Buren]] (m. 1807–1819)
| children = 4 (including John Van Buren)
| profession = Lawyer, politician
| alma_mater = Read law (no formal college)
| signature = Martin Van Buren Signature.svg
}}

'''Martin Van Buren''' (December 5, 1782 – July 24, 1862) was the **8th president of the United States** (1837–1841). A skilled organizer and protégé of [[Andrew Jackson]], he helped build the modern Democratic Party and later ran as the **Free Soil** candidate in 1848 opposing the spread of slavery.

== Early Life and Career ==
Born in **Kinderhook, New York**, to a Dutch-speaking family, Van Buren read law and rose quickly in New York politics as a savvy party strategist. He served in the **New York State Senate**, as **state attorney general**, and in the **U.S. Senate** (1821–1828). As New York governor (briefly, 1829) and then **Secretary of State** under Jackson, he became a central architect of Jacksonian politics. He served as **vice president** (1833–1837) during Jackson’s second term.

== Presidency (1837–1841) ==
Van Buren took office just as the **Panic of 1837** struck, triggering a deep depression marked by bank failures and unemployment. He backed the creation of an **Independent Treasury** (enacted 1840) to keep federal funds separate from private banks, a cornerstone of Jacksonian finance.

Other notable issues:
* **Indian Removal:** Removals initiated under Jackson continued during Van Buren’s term, including the tragic **Trail of Tears** for the Cherokee.  
* **Foreign affairs:** Managed tensions with Britain during the **Aroostook “War”** (Maine–New Brunswick boundary dispute), which ended without large-scale fighting.  
* **Domestic politics:** Faced opposition from emerging Whigs and intra-party dissent as hard times persisted.

Defeated by **William Henry Harrison** in 1840, Van Buren’s single term was defined by economic crisis and his adherence to limited-government principles.

== Later Life ==
In '''1848''', Van Buren led the anti-slavery '''Free Soil Party''' for president, opposing the expansion of slavery into western territories; he won no states but drew significant votes. He spent his final years at his Kinderhook estate, '''Lindenwald''', writing and advising.

== Legacy ==
Renowned as a master politician—the “'''Little Magician'''”—Van Buren helped shape America’s two-party system and disciplined national party organization. His presidency suffered from the Panic of 1837, but his Independent Treasury idea influenced U.S. finance for decades. His late-life Free Soil stance foreshadowed the antislavery coalition that would form the Republican Party.

== See also ==
* [[Panic of 1837]]
* [[Independent Treasury]]
* [[Trail of Tears]]
* [[Aroostook War]]
* [[Free Soil Party]]
* [[Presidency of Martin Van Buren]]

[[Category:Presidents of the United States]]
[[Category:Democratic Party presidents of the United States]]
[[Category:People from New York (state)]]
[[Category:Vice presidents of the United States]]
[[Category:1782 births]]
[[Category:1862 deaths]]