"He Died in Harness"

Voters did not know the seriousness of Franklin Roosevelt's heart disease when they elected him to a fourth presidential term. With victory in sight, FDR made a final trip to Eastern Europe and the Middle East. At Yalta, he negotiated post-war agreements with the Soviet Union and Great Britain. On his return, Roosevelt addressed Congress seated, saying, "it makes it a lot easier for me not to have to carry about ten pounds of steel around on the bottom of my legs." He died months before the end of World War II. Roosevelt died on April 12, 1945. New President Harry Truman told reporters he felt as though "the moon, the stars, and all the planets had fallen on me." A horse-drawn caisson transported Roosevelt's body through Washington, D.C., from Union Station to the White House.

Arlington, Virginia · United States