Major-General John Charles Frémont (January 21, 1813 – July 13, 1890) was a United States Army officer, explorer, and politician. He was a United States senator from California and was the first Republican nominee for president of the U.S. in 1856 and founder of the California Republican Party upon being nominated. Frémont lost the election to Democrat James Buchanan.
A native of Georgia, he attended the College of Charleston for two years until he was expelled after irregular attendance. In the 1840s, Frémont led five expeditions into the western states. During this time, he directed several massacres of the indigenous peoples in California as part of the California genocide.