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(1793-1863), enlisted in the U.S. army in 1813, and was promoted lieutenant for bravery in the Creek War, 1813-1814. He represented Tennessee in the U.S. Congress as a Democrat from 1823 to 1827, and was Governor of Tennessee from 1827 to 1829. He was a member of the Texas Constitutional Convention in 1833. As commander-in-chief of the Texan army he secured the independence of Texas. He was president of Texas from 1836 to 1838 and from 1841 to 1844, secured the annexation of Texas to the United States and represented it in Congress from 1845 to 1859. He was again chosen Governor of Texas in 1859 and served until he refused to espouse the Confederate cause in 1861.