历届美国总统简介：米勒德·菲尔莫尔（在线收听）

米勒德·菲尔莫尔（Millard Fillmore，1800年1月7日(庚申年)－1874年（甲戌年）3月8日），美国第十三任总统。任内最著名的事迹是派遣美国东印度舰队前往日本，并由舰队司令马修·培理向幕府送出其亲笔国书，促成日本之开国。他对奴隶制一直采取妥协态度，但也为美国在国际上的地位发挥过重要作用，促进了美国经济的发展。他卸任之后，曾再度竞选美国总统，但不幸落败。他是美国历史上最具争议的总统之一，对他的评价也曾两级化。

Millard Fillmore was born in the Finger Lakes country of New York in 1800. He was the 13th President of the United States, serving from 1850-1853. As a youth, he endured the hardships of frontier life and lived in a log cabin. His rise to wealth and the White House demonstrated that through hard work and some ability, “an uninspiring man could make the American dream come true”.

In 1823 he was admitted to the bar; seven years later he moved his law practice to Buffalo, in New York state. He held state office and for eight years was a member of the House of Representatives. In 1848, he was elected Vice President. He presided over the Senate during the months of nerve-wracking debates over the Compromise of 1850 when the south wanted to leave the Union.

The sudden death of President Zachary Taylor in July 1850 elevated Fillmore to President. One of his first bills was the Fugitive Slave Act, in which runaway slaves had to be returned to their owners. Opponents nicknamed it the ‘Bloodhound Law’ after the dogs used to hunt escaped slaves. He also saw California become the 31st state and abolished the slave trade (but not slavery) in the District of Columbia.

He was quite active with his foreign policy. He championed the rising trade with Japan and sent Commodore Matthew C. Perry to establish relations with the Japanese. He quashed Napoleon III's attempt to annex Hawaii by threatening military action, and did likewise with the British over their efforts to invade Cuba. Out of office, he opposed President Lincoln throughout the Civil War. He died on March 8, 1874.