Andrew Johnson's drunken vice-presidential inaugural address

Common card · No. 385823

Andrew Johnson was drunk when he made his inaugural address as vice president of the United States on March 4, 1865. Multiple sources suggest Johnson had been under the influence for at least a week prior to the inauguration, that he drank heavily the night before the inauguration, and that he consumed either three glasses of whiskey or a glass of French brandy the morning of the ceremony. Correspondents for the Times of London, Washington Star, New York Herald, New-York Tribune, and the Cincinnati Enquirer variously described Johnson's speech as hostile, inane, incoherent, repetitive, self-aggrandizing, and sloppy. He kissed the Bible when he took the oath of office and in his drunken state was unable to administer the oath of office to incoming United States Senators. The incident was partially covered up, and newspapers selectively glossed over the speech or claimed it could not be clearly heard. There are no substantive claims in either primary or secondary sources that Johnson was...

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