Hull, Cordell

(1871-1955)

   Born near Byrdstown, Tennessee, Cordell Hull attended Cumberland Law School and was admitted to the bar in 1892. He practiced law until 1903 when he became a circuit judge. A Democrat, Hull was elected to the state legislature in 1893. In 1906, he was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives and was a supporter of Woodrow Wilson. Defeated in the elections of 1920, he served as chair of the Democratic National Committee and then returned to Congress in 1922. In 1933, Franklin D. Roosevelt appointed Hull as secretary of state, despite his lack of experience with foreign policy. He attended the abortive London Economic Conference in 1933 but was able to assert his authority over the president’s personal adviser, Raymond Moley, who was forced to resign as assistant secretary of state. Later in 1933 Hull became the first secretary of state to attend an inter-American conference when he went to the meeting of American States in Montevideo, where the United States announced a future policy of nonintervention in Latin America.

   A long-time advocate of tariff reduction, Hull was able to secure the passage of a Reciprocal Trade Agreement Act in 1934, which enabled the president to grant “most favored nation status” to trading partners and agree on tariff reductions without consulting Congress. In 1936, Hull attended a second inter-American meeting at the Buenos Aires Conference.

   Hull contended with continued intervention in foreign policy matters by the White House, particularly by Sumner Welles. Hull considered running for the presidency for some time. However, he continued in his position and urged restraint with regard to the growing conflict between Japan and China, and he held many secret meetings with Japanese envoys but could not prevent the coming of war.

   The conflict between Hull and Welles continued, and eventually Hull successfully demanded the removal of the undersecretary on grounds of his sexual proclivities. Although active in the Dumbarton Oaks Conference in 1944, Hull’s health was deteriorating, and he resigned in November that year. He was too ill to travel to Oslo, Norway, to accept the award of the Nobel Peace Prize in 1945.