Editing Andrew Jackson (section)

==Legacy==
Jackson remains one of the most studied and controversial figures in American history. Historian Charles Grier Sellers says, "Andrew Jackson's masterful personality was enough by itself to make him one of the most controversial figures ever to stride across the American stage." There has never been universal agreement on Jackson's legacy, for "his opponents have ever been his most bitter enemies, and his friends almost his worshippers." He was always a fierce partisan, with many friends and many enemies. He has been lauded as the champion of the common man, while criticized for his treatment of Indians and for other matters.

Jackson was criticized by his contemporary Alexis de Tocqueville in ''Democracy in America'' for flattering the dominant ideas of his time, including the mistrust over the federal power, for sometimes enforcing his view by force and disrespect towards the institutions and the law.

In the 20th century, Jackson was written about by many admirers. Arthur M. Schlesinger Jr.'s ''Age of Jackson'' (1945) depicts Jackson as a man of the people battling inequality and upper-class tyranny. From the 1970s to the 1980s, Robert Remini published a three-volume biography of Jackson followed by an abridged one-volume study. Remini paints a generally favorable portrait of Jackson. He contends that Jacksonian democracy "stretches the concept of democracy about as far as it can go and still remain workable. ... As such it has inspired much of the dynamic and dramatic events of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries in American history—Populism, Progressivism, the New and Fair Deals, and the programs of the New Frontier and Great Society." To Remini, Jackson serves as "the embodiment of the new American ... This new man was no longer British. He no longer wore the queue and silk pants. He wore trousers, and he had stopped speaking with a British accent." 

Other 20th-century writers such as Richard Hofstadter and Bray Hammond depict Jackson as an advocate of the sort of ''laissez-faire'' capitalism that benefits the rich and oppresses the poor.

Jackson's initiatives to deal with the conflicts between Indians and American settlers has been a source of controversy. Starting mainly around 1970, Jackson came under attack from some historians on this issue. Howard Zinn called him "the most aggressive enemy of the Indians in early American history" and "exterminator of Indians." Conversely, in 1969, Francis Paul Prucha argued that Jackson's removal of the "Five Civilized Tribes" from the extremely hostile white environment in the Old South to Oklahoma probably saved their very existence. Similarly, Remini claims that, if not for Jackson's policies, the Southern tribes would have been totally wiped out, just like other tribes-namely, the Yamasee, Mahican, and Narragansett–which did not move.

Jackson has long been honored, along with Thomas Jefferson, in the Jefferson–Jackson Day fundraising dinners held by state Democratic Party organizations to honor the two men whom the party regards as its founders. Because both Jefferson and Jackson were slave owners, as well as because of Jackson's Indian removal policies, many state party organizations have renamed the dinners.

Brands argues that Jackson's reputation suffered since the 1960s as his actions towards Indians and African Americans received new attention. He also claims that the Indian controversy has eclipsed Jackson's other achievements in public memory. Brands notes that he was often hailed during his lifetime as the "second George Washington" because, while Washington had fought for independence, Jackson confirmed it at New Orleans and made the United States a great power. 

Over time, while the Revolution has maintained a strong presence in the public conscience, memory of the War of 1812, including the Battle of New Orleans, has sharply declined. Brands argues that this is because once America had become a military power, "it was easy to think that America had been destined for this role from the beginning." Historian and author of Andrew Jackson, Southerner Mark R. Cheathem has argued similarly that Jackson is a fitting target for protesters—including protesters who know about Jackson's life—he is not seen as a complex figure for them, but rather as primarily a cruel figure who represents America at its worst. 

Still, Jackson's performance in office compared to other presidents has generally been ranked in the top half in public opinion polling. His position in C-SPAN's poll dropped from 13th in 2009 to 18th in 2017.