How John Quincy Adams Became President
John Quincy Adams was the oldest son of John Adams and his wife Abigail Adams. Much of his youth was spent accompanying his father overseas. His father John Adams served as an American envoy to France from 1778 until 1779 and to the Netherlands from 1780 until 1782, and John Quincy accompanied his father on these diplomatic missions. For another three years, beginning at the age of 14, he accompanied Francis Dana as a secretary on a mission to Saint Petersburg, Russia, to obtain recognition of the new United States. He also spent time in Finland, Sweden, and Denmark. During these years overseas, Adams became fluent in French and Dutch and had a fair vocabulary in German and other European languages. Thanks to the influence of his father, he excelled in classical studies and became fluent in Latin and Greek.
Adams attened Harvard College and graduated in 1787 with a Bachelor of Arts degree, Phi Beta Kappa. He later earned an M.A. from Harvard in 1790. He read law with Theophilus Parsons in Newburyport, Massachusetts, from 1787 to 1789 and became a member of Massachusetts state bar in 1791. But like James Monroe before him, he wasn't interested in the law, it was politics and diplomacy where his future would be.
Adams published a series of widely read articles supporting George Washington's decision to keep America out of the conflict between France and Great Britain. Washington appointed the 26 year old Adams as minister (ambassador) to the Netherlands in 1793. On his way to the Netherlands, he was to deliver a set of documents to John Jay, who was negotiating the Jay Treaty.
While in London, Adams met and proposed to his future wife, Louisa Catherine Johnson. Washington appointed him minister to Portugal in 1796, where he was soon promoted to the Berlin Legation. When his father became president, he appointed his son to the post of Minister to Prussia. He served at that post until 1801.
On his return to the United States, Adams was appointed a Commissioner of Monetary Affairs in Boston, but Thomas Jefferson rescinded this appointment. John Quincy Adams was elected a member of the Massachusetts State Senate in April 1802. In November 1802 he ran as a Federalist for the United States House of Representatives and lost.
Adams was elected as a Federalist to the U.S. Senate and he served from March 4, 1803, until 1808, when he broke with the Federalist Party. Adams, as a senator, had supported the Louisiana Purchase and Jefferson's Embargo Act, actions which made him very unpopular with Massachusetts Federalists. The Federalist-controlled Massachusetts Legislature chose a replacement for Adams on June 3, 1808. On June 8, Adams resigned his Senate seat, and became a Republican.
President James Madison appointed Adams as the first ever United States Minister to Russia in 1809. Adams and his wife Louisa left for Russia on Aug. 5, 1809. Because of the many delays, the Adams' did not arrive in St. Petersburg until October 23, 1809. He had a good relationship with Tsar Alexander I. While in Russia in 1811, Adams received was selected to be an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States, but he declined the position and remained in St. Petersburg. The Tsar offered to mediate hostilities between the United States and Great Britain during the War of 1812, but this did not come to fruition.
In 1814, Adams was recalled from Russia to serve as chief negotiator of the U.S. commission for the Treaty of Ghent, which ended the War of 1812 between the United States and United Kingdom. He was then sent to be minister to the Court of St. James's (Britain) from 1815 until 1817, a post that was first held by his father.
In 1817, Adams was named as Secretary of State in the Cabinet of President James Monroe. He held that post throughout the entire Monroe Administration from 1817 until 1825. His views generally accorded with those of Monroe. As Secretary of State, he negotiated the Adams–Onís Treaty (which acquired Florida for the United States), the Treaty of 1818, and he is credited with writing the Monroe Doctrine. Many historians regard him as one of the greatest Secretaries of State in American history.
The Floridas were still a Spanish territory, but there was no Spanish presence to speak of. It became a refuge for runaway slaves and native Americans. Monroe sent in General Andrew Jackson who pushed the Seminole Indians south, executed two British merchants who were supplying weapons, deposed one governor and named another, and left an American garrison in occupation. President Monroe believed Jackson had exceeded his instructions, but Adams disagreed. Adams supported Jackson, taking the position that since Spain was not policing her territories, the United States was obliged to act in self-defense.
With the ongoing Oregon boundary dispute, Adams negotiated the Treaty of 1818 with Britain as well as the Rush–Bagot Treaty of 1817. Under his tenure, relations improved with the British.
In formulating the Monroe Doctrine, Adams stated that America "goes not abroad in search of monsters to destroy" lest she "involve herself beyond power of extrication, in all wars of interest and intrigue, of individual avarice, envy, and ambition, which assume the colors and usurp the standard of freedom. The fundamental maxims of her policy would insensibly change from liberty to force." The Monroe Doctrine, which was introduced on December 2, 1823. It stated that further efforts by European countries to colonize land or interfere with states in the Americas would be viewed as acts of aggression requiring U.S. intervention. It was a defining moment in the foreign policy of the United States.
As the 1824 election approached, Adams was viewed by many, especially in New England, as fitting successor for Monroe. The old caucus system of the Democratic-Republican Party had collapsed and the election was a fight based on regional support. Adams had a strong base in New England. His opponents included John C. Calhoun, William H. Crawford, Henry Clay, and Andrew Jackson, who gained notoriety for his victory over the British in the Battle of New Orleans. During the campaign Calhoun dropped out, and Crawford fell ill giving further support to the other candidates. When Election Day arrived, Andrew Jackson won pluralities of the popular and electoral votes, but not a majority of electoral votes. Adams finished second, receiving less than one-third of the popular vote.
Under the terms of the Twelfth Amendment, the presidential election fell to the House of Representatives, which was to choose from the top three candidates: Jackson, Adams, and Crawford. Henry Clay had finished in fourth place and was not on the ballot, but he retained considerable power and influence as Speaker of the House.
Clay's personal dislike for Jackson and the similarity of his position on tariffs and internal improvements to that of Adams caused him to throw his support to Adams. John Quincy Adams was elected by the House on February 9, 1825, on the first ballot. Adams' victory offended Jackson, who had won the most electoral and popular votes and fully expected to be elected president. When Adams appointed Clay as Secretary of State, the position that Adams and his three predecessors had held before becoming president, Jackson was outraged, and claimed that Adams and Clay had struck a "corrupt bargain". This greatly contributed to Adams' loss to Jackson four years later, in the 1828 election.
As president, Adams accomplished only a part of his agenda. During his administration, much of the national debt was paid off. Bud Adams was stymied by a Congress controlled by his enemies, and his lack of patronage networks helped politicians eager to undercut him. He lost his 1828 bid for re-election to Andrew Jackson.
Adams attened Harvard College and graduated in 1787 with a Bachelor of Arts degree, Phi Beta Kappa. He later earned an M.A. from Harvard in 1790. He read law with Theophilus Parsons in Newburyport, Massachusetts, from 1787 to 1789 and became a member of Massachusetts state bar in 1791. But like James Monroe before him, he wasn't interested in the law, it was politics and diplomacy where his future would be.
Adams published a series of widely read articles supporting George Washington's decision to keep America out of the conflict between France and Great Britain. Washington appointed the 26 year old Adams as minister (ambassador) to the Netherlands in 1793. On his way to the Netherlands, he was to deliver a set of documents to John Jay, who was negotiating the Jay Treaty.
While in London, Adams met and proposed to his future wife, Louisa Catherine Johnson. Washington appointed him minister to Portugal in 1796, where he was soon promoted to the Berlin Legation. When his father became president, he appointed his son to the post of Minister to Prussia. He served at that post until 1801.
On his return to the United States, Adams was appointed a Commissioner of Monetary Affairs in Boston, but Thomas Jefferson rescinded this appointment. John Quincy Adams was elected a member of the Massachusetts State Senate in April 1802. In November 1802 he ran as a Federalist for the United States House of Representatives and lost.
Adams was elected as a Federalist to the U.S. Senate and he served from March 4, 1803, until 1808, when he broke with the Federalist Party. Adams, as a senator, had supported the Louisiana Purchase and Jefferson's Embargo Act, actions which made him very unpopular with Massachusetts Federalists. The Federalist-controlled Massachusetts Legislature chose a replacement for Adams on June 3, 1808. On June 8, Adams resigned his Senate seat, and became a Republican.
President James Madison appointed Adams as the first ever United States Minister to Russia in 1809. Adams and his wife Louisa left for Russia on Aug. 5, 1809. Because of the many delays, the Adams' did not arrive in St. Petersburg until October 23, 1809. He had a good relationship with Tsar Alexander I. While in Russia in 1811, Adams received was selected to be an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States, but he declined the position and remained in St. Petersburg. The Tsar offered to mediate hostilities between the United States and Great Britain during the War of 1812, but this did not come to fruition.
In 1814, Adams was recalled from Russia to serve as chief negotiator of the U.S. commission for the Treaty of Ghent, which ended the War of 1812 between the United States and United Kingdom. He was then sent to be minister to the Court of St. James's (Britain) from 1815 until 1817, a post that was first held by his father.
In 1817, Adams was named as Secretary of State in the Cabinet of President James Monroe. He held that post throughout the entire Monroe Administration from 1817 until 1825. His views generally accorded with those of Monroe. As Secretary of State, he negotiated the Adams–Onís Treaty (which acquired Florida for the United States), the Treaty of 1818, and he is credited with writing the Monroe Doctrine. Many historians regard him as one of the greatest Secretaries of State in American history.
The Floridas were still a Spanish territory, but there was no Spanish presence to speak of. It became a refuge for runaway slaves and native Americans. Monroe sent in General Andrew Jackson who pushed the Seminole Indians south, executed two British merchants who were supplying weapons, deposed one governor and named another, and left an American garrison in occupation. President Monroe believed Jackson had exceeded his instructions, but Adams disagreed. Adams supported Jackson, taking the position that since Spain was not policing her territories, the United States was obliged to act in self-defense.
With the ongoing Oregon boundary dispute, Adams negotiated the Treaty of 1818 with Britain as well as the Rush–Bagot Treaty of 1817. Under his tenure, relations improved with the British.
In formulating the Monroe Doctrine, Adams stated that America "goes not abroad in search of monsters to destroy" lest she "involve herself beyond power of extrication, in all wars of interest and intrigue, of individual avarice, envy, and ambition, which assume the colors and usurp the standard of freedom. The fundamental maxims of her policy would insensibly change from liberty to force." The Monroe Doctrine, which was introduced on December 2, 1823. It stated that further efforts by European countries to colonize land or interfere with states in the Americas would be viewed as acts of aggression requiring U.S. intervention. It was a defining moment in the foreign policy of the United States.
As the 1824 election approached, Adams was viewed by many, especially in New England, as fitting successor for Monroe. The old caucus system of the Democratic-Republican Party had collapsed and the election was a fight based on regional support. Adams had a strong base in New England. His opponents included John C. Calhoun, William H. Crawford, Henry Clay, and Andrew Jackson, who gained notoriety for his victory over the British in the Battle of New Orleans. During the campaign Calhoun dropped out, and Crawford fell ill giving further support to the other candidates. When Election Day arrived, Andrew Jackson won pluralities of the popular and electoral votes, but not a majority of electoral votes. Adams finished second, receiving less than one-third of the popular vote.
Under the terms of the Twelfth Amendment, the presidential election fell to the House of Representatives, which was to choose from the top three candidates: Jackson, Adams, and Crawford. Henry Clay had finished in fourth place and was not on the ballot, but he retained considerable power and influence as Speaker of the House.
Clay's personal dislike for Jackson and the similarity of his position on tariffs and internal improvements to that of Adams caused him to throw his support to Adams. John Quincy Adams was elected by the House on February 9, 1825, on the first ballot. Adams' victory offended Jackson, who had won the most electoral and popular votes and fully expected to be elected president. When Adams appointed Clay as Secretary of State, the position that Adams and his three predecessors had held before becoming president, Jackson was outraged, and claimed that Adams and Clay had struck a "corrupt bargain". This greatly contributed to Adams' loss to Jackson four years later, in the 1828 election.
As president, Adams accomplished only a part of his agenda. During his administration, much of the national debt was paid off. Bud Adams was stymied by a Congress controlled by his enemies, and his lack of patronage networks helped politicians eager to undercut him. He lost his 1828 bid for re-election to Andrew Jackson.