Jefferson Finis Davis[a] (June 3, 1808 â€" December 6, 1889) was an
American politician who served as the president of the Confederate
States from 1861 to 1865. As a member of the Democratic Party, he
represented Mississippi in the United States Senate and the House of
Representatives before the American Civil War. He previously served as
the United States Secretary of War from 1853 to 1857 under President
Franklin Pierce.Davis was born in Fairview, Kentucky, to a moderately
prosperous farmer, the youngest of ten children. He grew up in
Wilkinson County, Mississippi, and also lived in Louisiana. His eldest
brother Joseph Emory Davis secured the younger Davis's appointment to
the United States Military Academy. After graduating, Jefferson Davis
served six years as a lieutenant in the United States Army. He fought
in the Mexicanâ€"American War (1846â€"1848), as the colonel of a
volunteer regiment. Before the American Civil War, he operated a large
cotton plantation in Mississippi, which his brother Joseph gave him,
and owned as many as 113 slaves. Although Davis argued against
secession in 1858, he believed that states had an unquestionable right
to leave the Union. Jefferson Davis Biography, NetWorth, Height, Age, Weight, Family, Married, Son, Daughter