Ronald Wilson Reagan (1911–2004) was the 40th President of the United States, serving from 1981 to 1989, and Governor of California from 1967 to 1975. A Republican, he became a central figure in modern American conservatism and in the diplomacy of the late Cold War. This is an independently maintained historical reference page.
Life and early career. Reagan was born in Tampico, Illinois, on 6 February 1911 and grew up in Dixon. After graduating from Eureka College in 1932, he worked in radio and later became a film and television actor. He served as president of the Screen Actors Guild. Originally a Democrat, he formally joined the Republican Party in 1962. His televised address supporting Barry Goldwater in 1964 helped establish his national political profile. Source: Reagan Presidential Library chronology. He died on 5 June 2004. Biographical facts.
Presidency and domestic policy. Reagan won the presidential elections of 1980 and 1984. His administration promoted tax reductions, deregulation, private enterprise and a smaller federal role in many areas of domestic policy, while expanding defence spending. His economic programme became known as Reaganomics. The Iran-Contra affair was a major scandal involving arms transactions with Iran and support for the Nicaraguan Contras, raising questions about executive accountability and congressional oversight. Source: Reagan Presidential Library, The Reagan Presidency.
Foreign policy and the Cold War. Reagan's administration combined opposition to Soviet communism with negotiations during Mikhail Gorbachev's leadership. Summit diplomacy helped reduce tensions and produced the 1987 Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty. His foreign policy also promoted representative government and market economics as broadly applicable principles. Its ambitions and consequences should be assessed in their historical context. Source: US Department of State, Office of the Historian.
Political ideas. Reagan's public arguments repeatedly connected individual freedom, enterprise, national confidence and historical memory. His speeches are useful sources for examining how political values are translated into institutions, security strategies and public diplomacy. They express an American political perspective and should not be treated as neutral accounts of every international dispute.
Key speeches and documents.
Moscow State University, 31 May 1988: creative freedom, human potential and cultural roots.
Farewell Address, 11 January 1989: historical memory and informed patriotism.
Westminster, 8 June 1982: democratic institutions and international order.
US-Soviet Relations, 16 January 1984: realism, strength and dialogue.
Geneva Joint Statement, 21 November 1985: a joint Reagan-Gorbachev document on security and cooperation.
UN General Assembly, 21 September 1987: international rivalry and shared human concerns.
Books and writings. An American Life (1990) is his autobiography. Reagan, In His Own Hand (2001) collects handwritten writings, edited by Kiron K. Skinner, Annelise Anderson and Martin Anderson. The Reagan Diaries (2007), edited by Douglas Brinkley, provides a record of his presidential years. These different genres should be read alongside archival evidence and independent historical research.
Research resources. Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Foreign Relations of the United States: Reagan Administration. The accompanying blog offers editorial overviews of the six primary sources listed above.
