Campaigning After The Death of Joseph Smith
At the time of Smith's death, Rigdon, Young, and many other church leaders were out of the state on evangelical missions for the church. Rigdon returned to Nauvoo first (August 3) and the next day announced at a public meeting that he had received a revelation appointing him "Guardian of the Church." President William Marks called for a conference on August 8 to decide the issue. When Brigham Young heard about Smith's death while serving a mission in Boston, his first reaction was to ask himself “whether Joseph had taken the keys of the kingdom with him from the earth,” but he immediately felt assured that the "keys of the kingdom" rested with the church.
On August 6, Brigham Young and the rest of the Twelve returned to Nauvoo; the next day, they met with Sidney Rigdon, who repeated his claim to become the guardian of the Church. Brigham Young responded, "Joseph conferred upon our heads all the keys and powers belonging to the apostleship which he himself held before he was taken away". So while historically the First Presidency has previously led the Church, Young proposed an ad hoc Presidency of the Church in the Quorum of Twelve. Young tried diligently to persuade the people that he alone held the rights to lead the Church. He even went so far as to ride through the streets on Smith's favorite horse named Joe Duncan.
Read more about this topic: Succession Crisis (Latter Day Saints)
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