515 pp. All edges gilt. Henry Clay, byname The Great Pacificator or The Great Compromiser, (born April 12, 1777, Hanover county, Virginia, U.S.—died June 29, 1852, Washington, D.C.), American statesman, U.S. congressman (1811–14, 1815–21, 1823–25), and U.S. senator (1806–07, 1810–11, 1831–42, 1849–52) who was noted for his American System (which integrated a national bank, the tariff, and internal improvements to promote economic stability and prosperity) and was a major promoter of the Missouri Compromise (1820) and the Compromise of 1850, both efforts to shield the American union from sectional discord over slavery. Clay was an unsuccessful candidate for president in three general elections, running first in 1824, then as a National Republican (1832), and finally as a Whig (1844).
