Millard Fillmore (January 7, 1800 – March 8, 1874) was the 13th president of the United States (1850–1853), the last to be a member of the Whig Party while in the White House. A former U.S. representative from New York, Fillmore was elected the nation's 12th vice president in 1848, and succeeded to the presidency in July 1850 upon the death of President Zachary Taylor. He was instrumental in the passing of the Compromise of 1850, a bargain that led to a brief truce in the battle over slavery. Queen Victoria is said to have pronounced the ex-president the handsomest man she had ever seen, and his coincidental appearance with Van Buren in the gallery of the House of Commons triggered a comment from MP John Bright. Fillmore was offered an honorary Doctor of Civil Law (D.C.L.) They would have two children, Millard Powers Fillmore (1828–1889) and Mary Abigail Fillmore (1832–1854). Fillmore was the first president to return to private life without independent wealth or possession of a landed estate.