James Monroe: The Last Founding Father President
Alright, history buffs, let’s talk about James Monroe. He’s the fifth president of the United States, serving from 1817 to 1825, and a pretty interesting dude. What makes him special? Well, he was the last of the Founding Fathers to actually become president. Talk about a direct connection to the birth of the nation! And like a lot of the early presidents, he hailed from the great state of Virginia.
Humble Beginnings
James Monroe wasn’t born into a life of luxury. He came from a rural part of Virginia, Westmoreland County, to be exact. Born on April 28, 1758, he was one of five kids born to Spence and Elizabeth Jones Monroe. His dad was a moderately successful planter and also dabbled in carpentry. It was a simple, self-sufficient kind of life.
Young James got his early education from his mom and later attended the Campbell Town Academy. But school wasn’t his only gig. He had to help out on the family farm, so he only went to school for about 11 weeks a year. During this time, Monroe struck up a friendship with an older classmate, John Marshall, who would also become a major figure in American history.
Orphaned and Thrust into Responsibility
Life took a tough turn for Monroe when his mother passed away in 1772, followed by his father two years later. At just 16, he inherited the family property, including slaves, and had to drop out of school to support his younger brothers. Thankfully, his uncle, Judge Joseph Jones, stepped in as a surrogate father. Jones was a member of the Virginia House of Burgesses and introduced Monroe to some big names like Thomas Jefferson, Patrick Henry, and George Washington. Not a bad start, right?
A Patriot’s Call to Arms
In 1774, things were heating up between the Thirteen Colonies and the British government. Monroe, like many others, was fired up about the "Intolerable Acts." He even got involved in a bit of rebellious activity, storming the Governor’s Palace.
When the Revolutionary War broke out, Monroe didn’t hesitate. In early 1776, he left college to join the 3rd Virginia Regiment under General George Washington. At just under 19, he was a lieutenant and showed some serious courage at the Battle of Trenton. He led a squad that captured a Hessian battery, and although he was wounded in the process (as was Washington), it was a major win.
After recovering, Monroe joined the Virginia Militia and was eventually appointed lieutenant colonel. He proved his bravery and skill in battles like Brandywine, Germantown, and Monmouth. Eventually, he decided to leave the army to study law under the guidance of Thomas Jefferson. Pretty impressive for a young guy!
From Soldier to Statesman
Monroe’s career took off from there. In 1780, when the British invaded Richmond, Jefferson, then the Governor, commissioned Monroe as a colonel to command the militia and act as a liaison to the Continental Army in North Carolina. After that, Monroe went back to studying law under Jefferson.
In 1782, he was elected to the Virginia House of Burgesses. The following year, at the ripe old age of 25, he was a delegate to the Continental Congress. He was even there when George Washington resigned from his military commission. Talk about being in the room where it happened!
He was one of the first to push for a constitutional convention, which eventually happened in 1787.
Family Life
On February 16, 1786, Monroe married Elizabeth Kortright, the daughter of a wealthy trader with a past as a British officer. They met while Monroe was serving in the Continental Congress. After a brief honeymoon, they settled in New York City. They eventually had three children.
Navigating the Political Landscape
Monroe was a member of the Virginia legislature in 1787, and the following year, he was a delegate in the State convention to consider the Federal Constitution. Although he initially opposed its ratification, he was later elected as one of the first United States Senators from Virginia in 1789. He then moved his family to Charlottesville, Virginia.
He was elected a senator on November 9, 1790, and became a Democratic-Republican Party leader. He left the Senate in May 1794 to serve as President George Washington’s ambassador to France. However, Washington recalled him in 1796.
Monroe won the election as Governor of Virginia in 1799 and strongly supported Thomas Jefferson’s candidacy in the 1800 presidential election. He served as governor for three years when President Thomas Jefferson appointed him as an extraordinary envoy to act with Mr. Livingston at the court of Napoleon. As President Jefferson’s special envoy, Monroe helped negotiate the Louisiana Purchase, through which the United States nearly doubled in size. Talk about a good deal!
In 1799, he bought an estate in Charlottesville, Virginia, known as Ash Lawn-Highland.
In 1808, he unsuccessfully challenged James Madison for the Democratic-Republican presidential nomination. However, in 1811, he joined Madison’s administration as Secretary of State. During the later stages of the War of 1812, Monroe simultaneously served as Madison’s Secretary of State and Secretary of War. His wartime leadership, ambition, and energy, together with the backing of President Madison, made him the Republican choice for the Presidency in 1816. He was re-elected in 1820.
The Monroe Doctrine and a Legacy of Peace
As president, James Monroe signed the Missouri Compromise, which admitted Missouri as a slave state and banned slavery north and west of Missouri permanently. Regarding foreign affairs, Monroe and Secretary of State John Quincy Adams supported a conciliatory policy towards Britain while advocating for expansion against the Spanish Empire. In the 1819 Adams-Onís Treaty with Spain, the United States secured Florida and established its western border with New Spain. In 1823, Monroe announced the United States’ opposition to European colonialism in the Americas, effectively asserting U.S. leadership and dominance in the hemisphere. This declaration became a landmark moment in American foreign policy.
One of Monroe’s biggest accomplishments was the Monroe Doctrine. Basically, it told European powers to stay out of the Americas. No new colonies, no meddling in our affairs. It was a bold statement that established the U.S. as a major player on the world stage.
The Final Chapter
At the end of his second term, in 1825, Monroe retired from office and made his residence in Loudon County, Virginia. Financial difficulties soon plagued him. His wife Elizabeth died in 1830, and James moved to New York City in early 1831, where he lived with his daughter Maria Hester Monroe Gouverneur, who had married Samuel L. Gouverneur. Monroe’s health began to fail by the end of the 1820s.
He died on July 4, 1831, at age 73, from heart failure and tuberculosis. He shared his death date with Presidents John Adams and Thomas Jefferson, who also died on the anniversary of U.S. independence. Talk about a historical coincidence!
Monroe was initially buried in New York at the Gouverneur family’s vault in New York City’s Marble Cemetery. However, 27 years later, in 1858, his body was re-interred at the President’s Circle in Hollywood Cemetery in Richmond, Virginia. The James Monroe Tomb is a U.S. National Historic Landmark.
Historians have generally ranked James Monroe as an above-average president.
So, there you have it: James Monroe, the last of the Founding Father presidents. A soldier, a statesman, and a key figure in shaping the United States into the nation it is today. Not bad for a farm boy from Virginia!