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James Monroe Born: April 28, 1758 in Westmoreland County, Virginia Died: July 4, 1831 in New York City, New York Political Party: Democratic-Republican Term: March 4, 1817-March 3, 1825 Vice President: Daniel D. Tompkins (1817-1825)

Overall, James Monroe and his administration deserve a grade of a B, based on his accomplishments, failures, and actions during his presidency. Monroe became the fifth president of the United States, succeeding James Madison. He entered his presidency at the start of the “Era of Good Feelings” after an easy election as a result of his ambition and support of President Madison. Among the significant decisions and effects of Monroe and his administration dwells the Missouri Compromise of 1820, internal improvements, the Monroe Doctrine, the admittance of five new states to the union, and the Panic of 1819.

Monroe’s long service at home and abroad made him particularly popular around the country. Before taking office as president, Monroe served as a member of the Virginia Assembly from 1782-1783, was elected to three successive one-year terms as a Member of Continental Congress from 1783-1786, U.S. Senator from 1790-1794, Minister to France from 1794-1796, Governor of Virginia from 1799-1802, Minister to Great Britain from 1803-1807, Governor of Virginia from January-March 1811, Secretary of State from 1811-1817, and Secretary of War from 1814-1815. As Minister to France, he sympathized with the French cause; Monroe aided Robert R. Livingston in the negotiation of the Louisiana Purchase.

During his term of office, Monroe along with his administration, sought to emphasize internal improvements, sustain the independent economy, and maintain security. At the beginning of his administration, Monroe embarked on a goodwill tour of New England, producing an “era of good feelings.” This national unity made Monroe considerably popular. However, as Monroe followed nationalist policies, underlying sectional issues appeared. As a result of over-speculation of western land along with the reaffirmation of competition of European imports fused together, the United States was driven into the Panic of 1819. However, Monroe and his administration presented partial relief in easing mortgage terms on land purchased owned by the government. The depression continued until 1821, an event proving to be the exact opposite of one of Monroe’s initial goals: to sustain the economy.

The relationship of Monroe with Congress was indifferent. It was occasionally good, occasionally bad depending upon the issue at hand. There were often disagreements and shared leadership. However, during both terms, Monroe did enjoy the majority party in both houses of congress, Democratic-Republican. Having a majority party in congress with Democratic-Republican views, the stance identical to himself, Monroe held their support for the passing of legislature such as the Missouri Compromise in 1820, although support was divided among Congress. The law maintained balance between the number of slave states and free states by acknowledging Missouri as a part of the Union as a slave state and Maine as a free state. It also laid out that within the remaining territory acquired through the Louisiana Purchase, the land north of latitude 36-30’ was admitted free, and land south of line admitted slave. However, this law simply put off the issue of slavery rather than confronting it head on. Monroe considered vetoing the law on the basis of Congress lacking constitutional authority to ban slavery in the territories. In contrast, he signed the bill among fears that a veto of the bill would possibly spark civil war.

During Monroe’s administration, the action that had the most positive outcome was undoubtedly the Monroe Doctrine in 1823. In response to foreign affairs, President Monroe conveyed a message to Congress, which warned the European powers against intervention in the western hemisphere after threats that several mostly conservative governments in Europe may aid Spain in recapturing its former colonies in Latin America and Russia increasing its assertions in Alaska to encompass the Oregon territory. By doing so, Monroe set in place what would become the backbone of American foreign policy for the remainder of the nineteenth century.

In contrast, during Monroe’s administration, the action that had the most negative outcome was the careless banking practices coinciding with intense over-land speculation of the west, leading to the Panic of 1819. It was the first national panic since the days of Washington’s presidency. The economic depression brought deflation, depression, bankruptcies, and unemployment, lasting several years. Importantly, Monroe did not wisely act on the issue and his attempts to fix it were virtually ineffective.

Perhaps the Monroe Doctrine proposed in 1823, influenced future presidential administrations as it laid down the United States policy toward the Western Hemisphere. Nearly 40 years later, President Theodore Roosevelt referenced the Monroe Doctrine when European creditors of several Latin American countries warned of armed interference in order to collect debts. The Monroe Doctrine became the symbol of America regarding foreign affairs.

At the conclusion of Monroe’s presidency, the country was better off than it was at the beginning, overall. Although Monroe and his administration carried out negative actions such as the decisions leading up to the Panic of 1819, he was willing to compromise for the greater good of the country as demonstrated in the Missouri Compromise. Additionally, he ultimately provided the basis of American policy on foreign affairs with the proposal of the Monroe Doctrine, which affected future president’s administrations in addition to his own.

Bibliography:

DeGregorio, William A., and Sandra Lee. Stuart. //The Complete Book of U.S. Presidents//. Fort Lee, NJ: Barricade, 2009. Print.

"James Monroe." //The White House//. Web. 24 Feb. 2011. .

Kennedy, David M., Lizabeth Cohen, and Thomas Andrew Bailey. // The American pageant: a history of the Republic //. 12th ed. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 2002. Print.

"Our Documents - Monroe Doctrine (1823)." //Welcome to OurDocuments.gov//. Web. 24 Feb. 2011. .