He was the founder of the Whig Party

One of the interesting facts about Henry Clay is that he was the founder of the Whig Party. To support what he considered the "American System," which included the National Bank, encouraging industrialization through tariffs, and backing homegrown improvements like canals and railways, Clay created the Whig Party in 1832.

In the 1840 election, Clay ran for president but was defeated by William Henry Harrison in the Whig National Convention. Clay and Harrison's vice president, John Tyler, had a falling out after Harrison's death in office in 1841 when Clay was still a member of Congress and Tyler became president.

Even though he was a wealthy slave owner, he managed to broker several North-South agreements on slavery, including the Compromise of 1850, the Missouri Compromise of 1820, the "Glory Bargaining Agreement" corruption" of 1825, the Tariff Agreement of 1833, the Slavery Agreement of 1837–39, and the Compromise of the Conquest of Texas of 1844. He also refused to compromise with a plan for a safe banking system in 1841. Abraham Lincoln and other aspirant young men immensely respected him since he was a strong proponent of modernization.