Elihu Root (February 15, 1845 – February 7, 1937) was an American lawyer, Republican politician, and Nobel Peace Prize-winning statesman. Born in Clinton, New York, to a professor of mathematics at Hamilton College, he graduated at the top of his class from Hamilton College in 1864 and earned a law degree in 1867, establishing a successful private law practice in New York City. Root served as the 41st U.S. Secretary of War (1899–1904) under Presidents William McKinley and Theodore Roosevelt, overseeing post-Spanish-American War military reorganization and establishing the Army War College. As the 38th U.S. Secretary of State (1905–1909), he was a key architect of U.S. internationalism, negotiating treaties and promoting arbitration in international disputes. He later served as a U.S. Senator from New York (1909–1915) and continued advising presidents on foreign policy. Root received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1912 for his contributions to global peace, helped found the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, and pioneered the American practice of international law, influencing U.S. policy during a transformative era of American expansion.