Jefferson Davis was an American politician and soldier best known for serving as the President of the Confederate States of America during the American Civil War (1861–1865). He was born on June 3, 1808, in Christian County, Kentucky, and grew up in Mississippi. Davis graduated from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point and served in the U.S. Army before entering politics.

He was a U.S. Congressman and later a Senator from Mississippi, and he also served as U.S. Secretary of War under President Franklin Pierce. A strong supporter of states' rights and slavery, Davis was chosen to lead the Confederacy when Southern states seceded from the Union. As Confederate president, he faced major challenges, including limited resources, internal political conflicts, and the superior industrial power of the North.

After the Confederacy's defeat in 1865, Davis was captured by Union forces and imprisoned for two years, though he was never tried for treason. He spent his later years writing and defending the Southern cause. Jefferson Davis died on December 6, 1889, in New Orleans, Louisiana.