John Tyler--A President of Many Firsts is a concise, lively, illustrated biography of the tenth President of the United States. Tyler was the first American president to have been born after the American Revolution, and his development took place in the national and political context of a young country seeking to define itself. States' sovereignty, the national bank, western expansion, slavery, and foreign relations were important issues of the times. Tyler, a man of principle, placed the interests of the nation before those of his own political party at a time when national growth and maturation were playing out. The first trade agreement between the United States and China and a treaty for the annexation of Texas were among Tyler's bold and important accomplishments. This book reviews many of the "firsts" associated with the life and presidency of John Tyler, and describes how the issues and conflicts of his presidency affected the man and helped to shape the identity of the young American nation.