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Wayne MacVeagh | |
|---|---|
 MacVeagh,c. 1865–1880 | |
| United States Ambassador to Italy | |
| In office March 11, 1894 – March 4, 1897 | |
| President | Grover Cleveland |
| Preceded by | William Potter |
| Succeeded by | William Draper |
| 36thUnited States Attorney General | |
| In office March 5, 1881 – December 15, 1881 | |
| President | James A. Garfield Chester A. Arthur |
| Preceded by | Charles Devens |
| Succeeded by | Benjamin H. Brewster |
| United States Ambassador to the Ottoman Empire | |
| In office October 25, 1870 – June 10, 1871 | |
| President | Ulysses S. Grant |
| Preceded by | Edward Morris |
| Succeeded by | George Boker |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Isaac Wayne MacVeagh (1833-04-19)April 19, 1833 |
| Died | January 11, 1917(1917-01-11) (aged 83) Washington, D.C., U.S. |
| Political party | Republican (before 1892, 1896–1917) Democratic (1892–1896) |
| Spouse(s) | |
| Relations | Franklin MacVeagh (brother) |
| Children | Charles |
| Education | Yale University (BA) |
| Signature | .png) |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance |  United States |
| Branch/service | Militia Union Army |
| Years of service | 1862–1863 |
| Rank | Major |
| Battles/wars | American Civil War |
Isaac Wayne MacVeagh (April 19, 1833 – January 11, 1917) was an American lawyer,politician anddiplomat. He served as the 36thAttorney General of the United States under the administrations of PresidentsJames A. Garfield andChester A. Arthur.[1]
MacVeagh was born inPhoenixville, Pennsylvania, on April 19, 1833, the son of Major MacVeagh and Margaret (née Lincoln) McVeagh.[2] His brother,Franklin MacVeagh, was a Chicago wholesale grocer,banker andU.S. Secretary of the Treasury under PresidentWilliam Howard Taft.
He attendedYale University, where he was a brother of theDelta Kappa Epsilon fraternity (Phi chapter), and graduated tenth in his class in 1853. He was admitted to the bar in 1856, and was theDistrict Attorney ofChester County, Pennsylvania, from 1859 through 1864.[1][3] During theAmerican Civil War he joined the emergency militia of Pennsylvania that was organized against the threat ofConfederate invasion in 1862 and 1863. He raised an independent cavalry company and later served in the 29th Emergency Militia Regiment, reaching the rank of major.[1]
MacVeagh became a leader in theRepublican Party, and was a prominent opponent of his father-in-law,Simon Cameron, in the fight within the party in 1871.[1] He was theAmbassador to the Ottoman Empire in 1870 through 1871, and was a member of the stateconstitutional convention of 1872 and 1873.[3]
In 1875, MacVeagh co-founded thePhiladelphia-basedlaw firm known today asDechert LLP.[4] He also served as Chairman of theMacVeagh Commission, sent in 1877 byPresidentRutherford B. Hayes toLouisiana, which secured the settlement of the contest between two existingstate governments and thus made possible the withdrawal of U.S. troops from the state.[3]
MacVeagh served as the 36thAttorney General in 1881 under PresidentJames A. Garfield. He resigned afterPresident Garfield's assassination.[3] Chester Arthur was to be 21stPresident and MacVeagh served as acabinet member.[citation needed]
In 1892, he supportedGrover Cleveland, theDemocratic nominee for the presidency, and from 1893 to 1897 he served asAmbassador to Italy. He returned to theRepublican Party in 1896. In 1897, he was elected to theAmerican Philosophical Society.[5] In 1903, he was a chief counsel of the United States beforethe Hague tribunal in the case regarding the claims ofGermany,Britain andItaly against the republic ofVenezuela.[3]
After the outbreak ofWorld War I MacVeagh championed the cause of theAllies in an article "The Impossible Chasm", contributed to theNorth American Review in July 1915. In his last article "Lusitania Day: May 7 1916", for the same magazine, he assailed the slowness of the American government in asserting its rights againstGermany.[6]
MacVeagh married Letitia Miner Lewis, in 1856. They had one son,Charles MacVeagh (June 6, 1860 – December 4, 1931), who became theAmbassador to Japan.
In 1866, after his first wife's death, he married Virginia Rolette Cameron,[citation needed] a daughter ofU.S. Secretary of WarSimon Cameron.[7]
MacVeagh died inWashington, D.C., on January 11, 1917.[8] He was buried at the Church of the Redeemer Cemetery inBryn Mawr, Pennsylvania.
One or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "MacVeagh, Wayne".Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 17 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 269.
One or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1922)."MacVeagh, Wayne".Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 31 (12th ed.). London & New York: The Encyclopædia Britannica Company. p. 829.
| Diplomatic posts | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | United States Ambassador to the Ottoman Empire October 25, 1870 – June 10, 1871 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | United States Ambassador to Italy March 11, 1894 – March 4, 1897 | Succeeded by |
| Legal offices | ||
| Preceded by | U.S. Attorney General Served under:James A. Garfield,Chester A. Arthur March 5, 1881 – December 15, 1881 | Succeeded by |
| Secretary of State |
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| Secretary of the Treasury |
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| Secretary of War |
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| Attorney General |
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| Postmaster General |
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| Secretary of the Navy |
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| Secretary of the Interior |
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| Chargé d'Affaires | |
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| Minister Resident | |
| Chargé d'Affaires | |
| Minister Resident | |
| Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary | |
| Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary | |
| Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary | |
| Chargé d'Affaires | |
|---|---|
| Minister Resident | |
| Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary | |
| Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary | |
| Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary | |
