Franklin D. Roosevelt

Franklin Delano Roosevelt : A Presidency of Hope

Franklin Delano Roosevelt stands tall in an age of greatness . His name will go down in history as among the greatest leaders to have ever lived , not just in his homeland , the United States , but to the rest of the world as well . Franklin D . Roosevelt was the 32nd President of the United States , and is the only president to have been elected to an unprecedented fourth term . If not for his frail health and untimely death , he would probably have served as US President even

longer than the twelve years he held the post

When President Franklin D . Roosevelt ascended the leadership of the United States on March 5 , 1933 , he did so at a time when the country 's economic crisis was at its worst (Heale 1999 , 17 ) He took the reins of the Presidency during the height of the Great Depression . A lesser man would have probably balked , but not FDR , as Franklin D . Roosevelt is fondly called . Instead he rose to the challenge and valiantly steered his country to recovery , and himself to greatness

FDR was born on January 30 , 1882 , in Hyde Park , New York to a life of privilege and boundless opportunities . Hyde Park is situated in the Hudson River Valley , and is famous for housing some of the country 's wealthiest families whose ancestry traces its roots to the landed gentry of the 17th century . Coker describes the birthplace of Franklin D Roosevelt as old-worldish ' and aristocratic (1999 , 1

Both of his parents came from wealthy families , and he was their only child . He grew up attending the best private schools in the country . In his early years , he was educated at home by private tutors , as was the tradition for rich families back . At home , he studied a variety of subjects and languages . When he reached his fourteenth year , Franklin D Roosevelt was sent to Groton School , a private boarding school in Boston , Massachusetts (Roberts 2003 , 18 ) At his young age , FDR was smaller than his peers . His small stature and thin frame put him at a disadvantage in athletics . Nevertheless , FDR 's relation to Theodore Roosevelt , who at that time was already a prominent figure in politics gave him some measure of popularity (Roberts 2003 , 19

FDR 's years at Groton have been influential in shaping the value systems of Franklin D . Roosevelt . The headmaster of Groton School staunchly advocated civic responsibility and imbibed his students with the sense of responsibility of helping out the marginalized in society . Upon graduation , and filled with lofty and noble intentions , FDR entered Harvard . While a college student at Harvard , his fifth cousin , Theodore Roosevelt became president of the United States . Franklin admired his cousin 's leadership style and his desire to enter public service has been largely inspired by his cousin (Burgan 2002 , 11

Theodore Roosevelt 's presidency did not only pave the way for FDR 's own journey to the highest office in the United States...