Presidents and Their Cabinets: James Monroe
James Monroe came to the presidency with an impressive resume. He had been served in both houses of Congress, as Governor of his state, Ambassador to the great powers of Europe, and had simultaneously held two major cabinet positions. When the British burned the U.S. Capitol and the White House on August 24, 1814, President James Madison fired General John Armstrong as Secretary of War and asked Monroe for help, appointing him Secretary of War on September 27. Monroe resigned as Secretary of State on October 1, 1814, but no successor was ever appointed and thus from October 1814 to February 28, 1815, Monroe held both Cabinet posts. As commander of the war effort, Monroe ordered General Andrew Jackson to defend against a likely attack on New Orleans by the British, and he asked the governors of nearby states to send their militias to reinforce Jackson. He also called on Congress to draft an army of 100,000 men, increase compensation to soldiers, and establish a new national bank to ensure adequate funding for the war effort. The war ended with the signing of the Treaty of Ghent, but news of the war's end didn't reach the United States until after Jackson's victory in the Battle of New Orleans.
Monroe decided to seek the presidency in the 1816 election. His war-time leadership had established him as the leading candidate. Still, Monroe's candidacy was challenged at the 1816 Democratic-Republican congressional nominating caucus by Secretary of the Treasury William H. Crawford and New York Governor Daniel D. Tompkins. The opposition did not prevent Monroe from winning his party's nomination. Tompkins won the party's vice presidential nomination. The Federalists, weakened by their unpopular opposition to the War of 1812, nominated Rufus King as their presidential nominee, but they attracted little support after the conclusion of a popular war that they had opposed. Monroe received 183 of the 217 electoral votes, winning every state but Massachusetts, Connecticut, and Delaware.
In selecting his cabinet, Monroe wisely sought to achieve balance in his cabinet positions. First and foremost was his selection of a New Englander to the most important position of Secretary of State. Monroe believed such a choice to be important for national unity. He chose Adams, who was respected and experienced as a diplomat. Adams served as Secretary of State for all of Monroe's eight-year presidency, from 1817 to 1825. Taking office in the aftermath of the War of 1812, Adams knew that the country had been fortunate in avoiding territorial losses, and he intended to make sure that the nation avoiding another war with a European power, particularly Britain. Monroe and Adams agreed on most major foreign policy issues. Both favored neutrality towards the Latin American wars of independence, peace with Great Britain, and peaceful expansion into the North American territories of the Spanish Empire.
Monroe chose southerner John C. Calhoun, as Secretary of War, another outstanding choice for his cabinet. Calhoun completely reorganized the War Department to overcome its serious deficiencies that had become apparent during the War of 1812. Monroe had considered offering the post to warhawk Henry Clay, who had been one of the negotiators of the Treaty of Ghent. Clay chose to turn down the War Department and remain as Speaker of the House.
Monroe kept William Crawford, a southernor, in the post of Treasury Secretary. After the War of 1812 ended, Congress had authorized the creation a national bank in the form of the Second Bank of the United States. Crawford had served as the Ambassador to France until 1815, shortly after the end of the war. Upon his return home, James Madison had appointed him as Secretary of War. After choosing not to pursue the 1816 presidential race Crawford agreed to accept the post of Secretary of the Treasury and remained in that position through the rest of Madison's term and James Monroe's entire administration. He planned his own run for the presidency, but those came to an end when Crawford suffered a severe stroke in 1823.
At the time there were two other cabinet positions for Monroe to select. As his Attorney-General he chose Richard Rush of Pennsylvania (son of founding father Dr. Benjamin Rush), but Rush held the position only for ten months before taking up the post of Ambassador to Great Britain. Rush was succeeded by William Wirt, who remained in that office for the next twelve years, serving under Monroe and John Quincy Adams.
Monroe rounded up his cabinet by choosing Benjamin Crowninshield, a Republican from Massachusetts, as Secretary of the Navy. His brother Jacob Crowninshield had held the post ten years earlier. In Monroe's cabinet, Crowninshield managed the transition to a peacetime force in the years following the War.
As president, Monroe tried to ease partisan tensions and reunite the nation. He embarked on a tour of the country that was well received. Under his watch the United States extended its reach from the Atlantic to the Pacific, by acquiring harbor and fishing rights in the Pacific Northwest. The United States and Britain jointly occupied the Oregon Country. In addition to the acquisition of Florida, the 1819 Adams–Onís Treaty secured the westernmost section of the southern border of the United States along the 42nd Parallel to the Pacific Ocean and represented America's first determined attempt at creating an "American global empire". Nationalism surged and partisan acrimony subsided. This swell of national pride survived the Panic of 1819 and a dispute over the admission of Missouri that led to the Compromise of 1820. Monroe won near-unanimous reelection. His presidency concluded a period of American presidential history before the beginning of Jacksonian democracy.
Monroe decided to seek the presidency in the 1816 election. His war-time leadership had established him as the leading candidate. Still, Monroe's candidacy was challenged at the 1816 Democratic-Republican congressional nominating caucus by Secretary of the Treasury William H. Crawford and New York Governor Daniel D. Tompkins. The opposition did not prevent Monroe from winning his party's nomination. Tompkins won the party's vice presidential nomination. The Federalists, weakened by their unpopular opposition to the War of 1812, nominated Rufus King as their presidential nominee, but they attracted little support after the conclusion of a popular war that they had opposed. Monroe received 183 of the 217 electoral votes, winning every state but Massachusetts, Connecticut, and Delaware.
In selecting his cabinet, Monroe wisely sought to achieve balance in his cabinet positions. First and foremost was his selection of a New Englander to the most important position of Secretary of State. Monroe believed such a choice to be important for national unity. He chose Adams, who was respected and experienced as a diplomat. Adams served as Secretary of State for all of Monroe's eight-year presidency, from 1817 to 1825. Taking office in the aftermath of the War of 1812, Adams knew that the country had been fortunate in avoiding territorial losses, and he intended to make sure that the nation avoiding another war with a European power, particularly Britain. Monroe and Adams agreed on most major foreign policy issues. Both favored neutrality towards the Latin American wars of independence, peace with Great Britain, and peaceful expansion into the North American territories of the Spanish Empire.
Monroe chose southerner John C. Calhoun, as Secretary of War, another outstanding choice for his cabinet. Calhoun completely reorganized the War Department to overcome its serious deficiencies that had become apparent during the War of 1812. Monroe had considered offering the post to warhawk Henry Clay, who had been one of the negotiators of the Treaty of Ghent. Clay chose to turn down the War Department and remain as Speaker of the House.
Monroe kept William Crawford, a southernor, in the post of Treasury Secretary. After the War of 1812 ended, Congress had authorized the creation a national bank in the form of the Second Bank of the United States. Crawford had served as the Ambassador to France until 1815, shortly after the end of the war. Upon his return home, James Madison had appointed him as Secretary of War. After choosing not to pursue the 1816 presidential race Crawford agreed to accept the post of Secretary of the Treasury and remained in that position through the rest of Madison's term and James Monroe's entire administration. He planned his own run for the presidency, but those came to an end when Crawford suffered a severe stroke in 1823.
At the time there were two other cabinet positions for Monroe to select. As his Attorney-General he chose Richard Rush of Pennsylvania (son of founding father Dr. Benjamin Rush), but Rush held the position only for ten months before taking up the post of Ambassador to Great Britain. Rush was succeeded by William Wirt, who remained in that office for the next twelve years, serving under Monroe and John Quincy Adams.
Monroe rounded up his cabinet by choosing Benjamin Crowninshield, a Republican from Massachusetts, as Secretary of the Navy. His brother Jacob Crowninshield had held the post ten years earlier. In Monroe's cabinet, Crowninshield managed the transition to a peacetime force in the years following the War.
As president, Monroe tried to ease partisan tensions and reunite the nation. He embarked on a tour of the country that was well received. Under his watch the United States extended its reach from the Atlantic to the Pacific, by acquiring harbor and fishing rights in the Pacific Northwest. The United States and Britain jointly occupied the Oregon Country. In addition to the acquisition of Florida, the 1819 Adams–Onís Treaty secured the westernmost section of the southern border of the United States along the 42nd Parallel to the Pacific Ocean and represented America's first determined attempt at creating an "American global empire". Nationalism surged and partisan acrimony subsided. This swell of national pride survived the Panic of 1819 and a dispute over the admission of Missouri that led to the Compromise of 1820. Monroe won near-unanimous reelection. His presidency concluded a period of American presidential history before the beginning of Jacksonian democracy.