by John F. Kennedy

0n the sunny, snow-covered afternoon of January 20, 1961, forty-three-year-old John F. Kennedy assumed the office of the President of the United States. While twenty thousand shivering guests crowded onto the Capitol Plaza in below-freezing temperature, the inaugural team assembled on the dais. The poet Robert Frost recited a piece from memory, since the glare of the sun prevented him from reading the verse he had composed for the occasion. Following the reading, Chief Justice Earl Warren swore in the new president. Kennedy then stepped up to the microphone to deliver a memorable address, which focused on international issues. Keeping the speech short, as was his wont, he had made last-minute changes up until that morning. His text was a collaborative work, composed with Ted Sorensen, his main speech writer since 1954.

Events in History at the Time of the Speech

The road to the...