Who were the US Presidents who refused to attend the inauguration of their successors

New Delhi, Jan 09: President Donald Trump on Friday said he would not attend his successor Joe Biden's swearing-in on January 20, hours after he vowed to ensure a "smooth, orderly and seamless" transition of power.

"To all of those who have asked, I will not be going to the Inauguration on January 20th," Trump tweeted. The last president to skip the inauguration of his successor was Andrew Johnson, in 1869.

After weeks of falsely claiming that he had won the November 3 election, Trump, a Republican, had not been expected to attend the swearing-in of Biden, a Democrat.

Trump will not make history when he skips the ceremonial peaceful transfer of power.

In 1869, President Andrew Johnson stayed in the White House as Ulysses S Grant was sworn in as the 18th president of the United States.

In 1801, Presidents John Adams skipped the inauguration of Thomas Jefferson, while in 1829, John Quincy Adams chose to give the inauguration of Andrew Jackson a miss. Both the presidents left Washington before the ceremonies.

Johnson's decision to miss the peaceful transfer of power came a year after he was impeached by the House. Grant and Johnson despised each other after the former supported the latter's impeachment.

Grant refused to ride in the same carriage as Johnson from the White House to the Capitol. When Grant showed up at the White House 30 minutes before the ceremony, Johnson did not come out.

As Johnson headed out the door for the last time, he said, I fancy, I can already smell the sweet mountain air of Tennessee.

Adam's decision followed the elections of 1800 when electors voted for two individuals for presidents. Jefferson and Aaron Burr were tied and this put the US House of Representatives in charge of selecting a winner. While Jefferson sought Adams to interfere, he did not. He left at 4 am on March 4, 1801, the day of the inauguration.

Adam's son John Quincy Adams left Washington, the day before Jackson's inauguration. The 1828 election was a contentious one, four years after Adams defeated Jackson.