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Several terms redirect here. For other uses, see John Kennedy (disambiguation), Jack Kennedy (disambiguation), JFK (disambiguation), and John F. Kennedy (disambiguation).

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John F. Kennedy
$\"President$ Oval Office portrait, 1963

35th President of the United States
In office January 20, 1961 \u2013 November 22, 1963
Vice President	Lyndon B. Johnson
Preceded by	Dwight D. Eisenhower
Succeeded by	Lyndon B. Johnson
United States Senator from Massachusetts
In office January 3, 1953 \u2013 December 22, 1960
Preceded by	Henry Cabot Lodge Jr.
Succeeded by	Benjamin A. Smith II
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Massachusetts's 11th district
In office January 3, 1947 \u2013 January 3, 1953
Preceded by	James Michael Curley
Succeeded by	Tip O'Neill
\n
Personal details
Born	John Fitzgerald Kennedy (1917-05-29)May 29, 1917 Brookline, Massachusetts, U.S.
Died	November 22, 1963(1963-11-22) (aged 46) Dallas, Texas, U.S.
Manner of death	Assassination
Resting place	Arlington National Cemetery
Political party	Democratic
Spouse	\n Jacqueline Bouvier (m. 1953)
Children	4, including Caroline, John Jr., and Patrick
Parents	\n Joseph P. Kennedy Sr. \n Rose Fitzgerald \n
Relatives	Kennedy family Bouvier family (by marriage)
Education	Harvard University (AB)
Signature	$\"Cursive$
Military service
Allegiance	United States
Branch/service	United States Navy
Years of service	1941\u20131945
Rank	Lieutenant
Unit	\n Motor Torpedo Squadron 2\n Patrol Torpedo Boat 109 \n Patrol Torpedo Boat 59 \n
Battles/wars	\n World War II\n Solomon Islands campaign \n
Awards	\n Navy and Marine Corps Medal \n Purple Heart \n American Defense Service Medal \n American Campaign Medal \n Asiatic\u2013Pacific Campaign Medal (with 3 service stars) \n World War II Victory Medal^[1] \n
\n \n \n John F. Kennedy's voice \n \n Kennedy speaking on the establishment of the Peace Corps Recorded March 1, 1961 \n

John Fitzgerald Kennedy (May 29, 1917 \u2013 November 22, 1963), also known as JFK, was the 35th president of the United States, serving from 1961 until his assassination in 1963. He was the youngest person elected president at 43 years.^[a] Kennedy served at the height of the Cold War, and the majority of his foreign policy concerned relations with the Soviet Union and Cuba. A Democrat, Kennedy represented Massachusetts in both houses of the United States Congress prior to his presidency.\n

Born into the prominent Kennedy family in Brookline, Massachusetts, Kennedy graduated from Harvard University in 1940, joining the U.S. Naval Reserve the following year. During World War II, he commanded PT boats in the Pacific theater. Kennedy's survival following the sinking of PT-109 and his rescue of his fellow sailors made him a war hero and earned the Navy and Marine Corps Medal, but left him with serious injuries. After a brief stint in journalism, Kennedy represented a working-class Boston district in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1947 to 1953. He was subsequently elected to the U.S. Senate, serving as the junior senator for Massachusetts from 1953 to 1960. While in the Senate, Kennedy published his book, Profiles in Courage, which won a Pulitzer Prize. Kennedy ran in the 1960 presidential election. His campaign gained momentum after the first televised presidential debates in American history, and he was elected president, narrowly defeating Republican opponent Richard Nixon, the incumbent vice president.\n

Kennedy's presidency saw high tensions with communist states in the Cold War. He increased the number of American military advisers in South Vietnam, and the Strategic Hamlet Program began during his presidency. In 1961, he authorized attempts to overthrow the Cuban government of Fidel Castro in the failed Bay of Pigs Invasion and Operation Mongoose. In October 1962, U.S. spy planes discovered Soviet missile bases had been deployed in Cuba. The resulting period of tensions, termed the Cuban Missile Crisis, nearly resulted in nuclear war. In August 1961, after East German troops erected the Berlin Wall, Kennedy sent an army convoy to reassure West Berliners of U.S. support, and delivered one of his most famous speeches in West Berlin in June 1963. In 1963, Kennedy signed the first nuclear weapons treaty. He presided over the establishment of the Peace Corps, Alliance for Progress with Latin America, and the continuation of the Apollo program with the goal of landing a man on the Moon before 1970. He supported the civil rights movement but was only somewhat successful in passing his New Frontier domestic policies.\n

On November 22, 1963, Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas. His vice president, Lyndon B. Johnson, assumed the presidency. Lee Harvey Oswald was arrested for the assassination, but he was shot and killed by Jack Ruby two days later. The FBI and the Warren Commission both concluded Oswald had acted alone, but conspiracy theories about the assassination persist. After Kennedy's death, Congress enacted many of his proposals, including the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Revenue Act of 1964. Kennedy ranks highly in polls of U.S. presidents with historians and the general public. His personal life has been the focus of considerable sustained interest following public revelations in the 1970s of his chronic health ailments and extramarital affairs. Kennedy is the most recent U.S. president to have died in office.\n

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Early life and education

U.S. Naval Reserve (1941\u20131945)

Commanding PT-109 and PT-59

Journalism (1945)

U.S. House of Representatives (1947\u20131953)

U.S. Senate (1953\u20131960)

1960 presidential election

Presidency (1961\u20131963)

Foreign policy

Cold War and flexible response

Decolonization and the Congo Crisis

Peace Corps

Vienna Summit and the Berlin Wall

Bay of Pigs Invasion

Operation Mongoose

Cuban Missile Crisis

Latin America and communism

Laos

Vietnam

West Berlin speech

Middle East

Ireland

American University speech

Nuclear Test Ban Treaty

Domestic policy

New Frontier

Taxes

Economy

Civil rights movement

Status of women

Crime

Agriculture

Native American relations

Space policy

Judicial appointments

Assassination

Funeral

Personal life, family, and reputation

Wife and children

Popular image

Health

Affairs and friendships

Sports

Religion

Historical evaluations and legacy

Presidency

Camelot

Memorials and eponyms

Works

Books

Select speeches

See also

Notes

References

Citations

Works cited

Further reading

External links