Presidents and Faith: James Monroe
James Monroe was born on April 28, 1758, in Westmoreland County, Virginia. He was the eldest son of Spence Monroe, a moderately prosperous planter. Like the three Virginian Presidents elected before him, Monroe was born and baptized in what at the time called the Church of England. When the 13 colonies declared their independence, the word “England” was dropped from the name of the Church and they renamed their denomination The Protestant Episcopal Church in the United States of America. Monroe was baptized in Washington Parish in Westmoreland County. He studied at Campbelltown Academy, which was run by the Rev. Archibald Campbell, the rector of Washington Parish. Future secretary of state and chief justice John Marshall was one of his classmates there.
Monroe attended the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, where the president and faculty were clergy of the former Church of England. There Monroe attended daily morning and evening prayer in the College chapel in what today is known as the Sir Christopher Wren Building. He also attended Sunday worship at neighboring Bruton Parish Church. Monroe left after the college after two years to join the Continental Army in 1776, where he was quickly commissioned as a lieutenant. He fought in battles in New York and New Jersey, wintered with Washington at Valley Forge, and was wounded at the Battle of Trenton. In 1780 Monroe left the army as a colonel to study law at William and Mary and in Richmond under Thomas Jefferson, who became a lifelong friend, political mentor, and neighbor.
Monroe practiced law in Fredericksburg and served in the Virginia House of Delegates and on the Council of the State of Virginia. He served in the Congress of the Confederation and as minister to France during the Washington administration. With Jefferson and James Madison, he helped to organize the Democratic-Republican party. When Congress moved to New York City, Monroe met Elizabeth Kortright, who was also an Episcopalian. The couple were married at her home parish of Trinity Church on Wall Street. The couple raised their two daughters, Eliza and Maria Hester, in the Episcopalian Church. While practicing law in Fredericksburg, Monroe attended St. George’s Episcopal Church and briefly served as a vestryman of the parish.
After serving as governor of Virginia, Monroe gained national fame for his role in the Louisiana Purchase, while he was Minister (Ambassador) to France. He went on to serve as minister to Great Britain and Spain in the Jefferson administration, and as secretary of state and secretary of war under James Madison during the War of 1812.
Madison was elected fifth president of the United States in 1816. His two terms as president are noted for the Era of Good Feelings, the Missouri Compromise, the establishment of the Indian Territory, the purchase of Florida, and especially the Monroe Doctrine.
Despite his being an active church member, Monroe’s public statements and speeches do not contain much in the way of religious commentary or allusion. This includes his autobiography. In his first inaugural address, Monroe praised the idea of religious freedom, boasting that Americans may worship “the Divine Author” in any manner they choose. He concluded the address by saying:
"Relying on the aid to be derived from the other departments of the Government, I enter on the trust to which I have been called by the suffrages of my fellow-citizens with my fervent prayers to the Almighty that He will be graciously pleased to continue to us that protection which He has already so conspicuously displayed in our favor."
In Monroe’s second inaugural address, he gave credit to a Higher Power for protecting the nation, stating:
"In surmounting, in favor of my humble pretensions, the difficulties which so often produce division in like occurrences, it is obvious that other powerful causes, indicating the great strength and stability of our Union, have essentially contributed to draw you together. That these powerful causes exist, and that they are permanent, is my fixed opinion; that they may produce a like accord in all questions touching, however remotely, the liberty, prosperity, and happiness of our country will always be the object of my most fervent prayers to the Supreme Author of All Good."
He concluded by stating that "with a firm reliance on the protection of Almighty God, I shall forthwith commence the duties of the high trust to which you have called me."
In 1817 Monroe embarked on a tour of the nation in which less than half of the numerous short speeches he made contained religious references. Instead, Monroe spoke more about civic virtues.
After serving two terms and leaving the presidency at the age of 67, Monroe gave up his dream of retiring at his home at Highland. The Presidency had left him a poorer man financially than when he entered the office and he was forced to sell his home to satisfy his creditors. He moved to his plantation of Oak Hill in Loudoun County, Virginia. Elizabeth Monroe, whose increasingly fragile health had provided another reason for moving closer to Washington, died in 1830. Ten months later, on July 4, 1831, Monroe died in New York City at the home of his younger daughter, Maria Hester Gouverneur.
When Monroe died in 1831, he was buried from Trinity Church, the principal Episcopal church in New York City. The Episcopal bishop of New York and the rector of Trinity Church conducted the service from the Book of Common Prayer. In the same month the Episcopal bishop of Virginia conducted a memorial service for Monroe in Virginia. According to one Monroe biographer, no letters survive in which Monroe discussed his religious beliefs.
Monroe attended the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, where the president and faculty were clergy of the former Church of England. There Monroe attended daily morning and evening prayer in the College chapel in what today is known as the Sir Christopher Wren Building. He also attended Sunday worship at neighboring Bruton Parish Church. Monroe left after the college after two years to join the Continental Army in 1776, where he was quickly commissioned as a lieutenant. He fought in battles in New York and New Jersey, wintered with Washington at Valley Forge, and was wounded at the Battle of Trenton. In 1780 Monroe left the army as a colonel to study law at William and Mary and in Richmond under Thomas Jefferson, who became a lifelong friend, political mentor, and neighbor.
Monroe practiced law in Fredericksburg and served in the Virginia House of Delegates and on the Council of the State of Virginia. He served in the Congress of the Confederation and as minister to France during the Washington administration. With Jefferson and James Madison, he helped to organize the Democratic-Republican party. When Congress moved to New York City, Monroe met Elizabeth Kortright, who was also an Episcopalian. The couple were married at her home parish of Trinity Church on Wall Street. The couple raised their two daughters, Eliza and Maria Hester, in the Episcopalian Church. While practicing law in Fredericksburg, Monroe attended St. George’s Episcopal Church and briefly served as a vestryman of the parish.
After serving as governor of Virginia, Monroe gained national fame for his role in the Louisiana Purchase, while he was Minister (Ambassador) to France. He went on to serve as minister to Great Britain and Spain in the Jefferson administration, and as secretary of state and secretary of war under James Madison during the War of 1812.
Madison was elected fifth president of the United States in 1816. His two terms as president are noted for the Era of Good Feelings, the Missouri Compromise, the establishment of the Indian Territory, the purchase of Florida, and especially the Monroe Doctrine.
Despite his being an active church member, Monroe’s public statements and speeches do not contain much in the way of religious commentary or allusion. This includes his autobiography. In his first inaugural address, Monroe praised the idea of religious freedom, boasting that Americans may worship “the Divine Author” in any manner they choose. He concluded the address by saying:
"Relying on the aid to be derived from the other departments of the Government, I enter on the trust to which I have been called by the suffrages of my fellow-citizens with my fervent prayers to the Almighty that He will be graciously pleased to continue to us that protection which He has already so conspicuously displayed in our favor."
In Monroe’s second inaugural address, he gave credit to a Higher Power for protecting the nation, stating:
"In surmounting, in favor of my humble pretensions, the difficulties which so often produce division in like occurrences, it is obvious that other powerful causes, indicating the great strength and stability of our Union, have essentially contributed to draw you together. That these powerful causes exist, and that they are permanent, is my fixed opinion; that they may produce a like accord in all questions touching, however remotely, the liberty, prosperity, and happiness of our country will always be the object of my most fervent prayers to the Supreme Author of All Good."
He concluded by stating that "with a firm reliance on the protection of Almighty God, I shall forthwith commence the duties of the high trust to which you have called me."
In 1817 Monroe embarked on a tour of the nation in which less than half of the numerous short speeches he made contained religious references. Instead, Monroe spoke more about civic virtues.
After serving two terms and leaving the presidency at the age of 67, Monroe gave up his dream of retiring at his home at Highland. The Presidency had left him a poorer man financially than when he entered the office and he was forced to sell his home to satisfy his creditors. He moved to his plantation of Oak Hill in Loudoun County, Virginia. Elizabeth Monroe, whose increasingly fragile health had provided another reason for moving closer to Washington, died in 1830. Ten months later, on July 4, 1831, Monroe died in New York City at the home of his younger daughter, Maria Hester Gouverneur.
When Monroe died in 1831, he was buried from Trinity Church, the principal Episcopal church in New York City. The Episcopal bishop of New York and the rector of Trinity Church conducted the service from the Book of Common Prayer. In the same month the Episcopal bishop of Virginia conducted a memorial service for Monroe in Virginia. According to one Monroe biographer, no letters survive in which Monroe discussed his religious beliefs.