DATE: 9/23/22

PRESIDENT JAMES MONROE &

THE ERA OF GOOD FEELINGS

DO NOW:

● Why was the War of 1812 called the “Second War of Independence?”
because that was the second time that the British recognized American borders from 1781

● Why do you think the era after the War of 1812 was called the Era of Good Feelings?
The name captured Americans' hopes of partisan and national unity following the War of
1812.

ERA OF GOOD FEELINGS?

The War of 1812, more specifically the victory at the Battle of
New Orleans, had stimulated a feeling of patriotism and
national pride. It helped unite Americans and encouraged the
strengthening of the federal government. Democratic-
Republican James Monroe was elected president in 1816.
Monroe essentially ran unopposed in the presidential election
since the Federalists were discredited by the Hartford
Convention and seen by many as traitors.

Monroe undertook a countrywide good-will tour in 1817. His

visits to New England and to the Federalist stronghold of
Boston, Massachusetts, in particular, were the most significant
of the tour. Here, local journalist Benjamin Russell, in a Boston
Federalist newspaper on July 12, 1817, bestowed the
descriptive phrase “Era of Good Feelings”.

The President's physical appearance, wardrobe and personal attributes were decisive in arousing
good feelings on the tour. He donned a Revolutionary War officer's uniform and tied his long
powdered hair in a queue according to the old-fashioned style of the 18th century. "Tall,
rawboned, venerable", he made an "agreeable" impression and had a good deal of charm and
"most men immediately liked him ... [in] manner he was rather formal, having an innate sense of
dignity, which allowed no one to take liberties. Yet in spite of his formality, he had the unusual
ability to put men at their ease by his courtesy, lack of condescension, his frankness, and what his
contemporaries looked upon as the essential goodness and kindness of heart which he always
radiated."

The Monroe Administration was associated with this time period, known traditionally as the Era of
Good Feelings. But was the Era of Good Feelings appropriately named? Think about this
question throughout the lesson.
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THE AMERICAN SYSTEM

The good feelings and increased nationalism across the nation led to the creation of the
American System, an economic plan advanced by Congressmen Henry Clay of Kentucky.
An outspoken War Hawk from the War of 1812, Clay spurred on by nationalistic feelings
from the War of 1812, believed his economic ideas would promote a strengthening of the
national government. While portions of the American System were enacted under the
previous presidential administration, the effects of the system were felt throughout
Monroe’s two terms in office. The following three policies were part of the American
System and helped promote nationalism.

POLICY HOW IS THIS AN EXPRESSION OF NATIONALISM?

The Tariff of 1816 was a protective tariff made by

Protective Tariff of 1816
(20-25% on imported goods)
James Madison to help pay for internal
improvements, like roads, canals and lighthouses.
People in the North and the East really supported
the tax, but people in the south and west didn't rely
on manufacturing, resented the government,
because it would make the goods more expensive.
The tariff was an example of Nationalism because it
protected American goods of foreign competition
and the US could buy cheaper products.

It would act as fiscal agent for the federal

Second Bank of the US
(First BUS charter expired after 20
years)
government — holding its deposits, making its
payments, and helping it issue debt to the public
— and it would issue and redeem banknotes and
keep state banks' issuance of notes in check.

The largest effect of these internal improvements

was to link rural farmers with markets. In 1816 a
Internal improvements at federal Senate report stated that nine dollars would move
expense one ton of goods from Britain to the United
(canals, roads)
States. Once on American soil, that same nine
dollars covered the costs of moving the goods
just thirty miles inland.
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● How could the American System increase sectional tensions between the West,
South and North?
Expansion lead to economic promise and fueled the manifest destiny but it also lead to sectional
tension over slavery. The north contained a lot of abolitionists while the south was commonly pro-
slavery, this increased sectional tension because each side wanted to see their ideals extended
into the west.

THE MARSHALL COURT

After the War of 1812, the nation was weary of conflict,
both with Europe and among its own regions. It adopted
new nationalist policies to resolve political struggles at
home and abroad. In domestic affairs, the Supreme
Court under Chief Justice John Marshall made key
decisions that strengthened the federal government’s
role in the nation’s economic business.

Supporting the National Bank. The Constitution did not

specifically grant the federal government the right to
charter a national bank. Hence, a bitter argument over
the bank had raged ever since Alexander Hamilton’s
time. In 1819, the issue made its way to the Supreme
Court. The case involved Maryland’s attempt to wipe out
the National Bank by levying heavy taxes on it.
Maryland’s action challenged Congress’s authority to
create such an institution.

In McCulloch v. Maryland, Chief Justice Marshall ruled that Congress did have the
authority to charter the bank. The elastic clause proved that the federal government had
greater powers than those spelled out in the Constitution, Marshall said. As a result, the
bank itself was legal. Furthermore, Chief Justice Marshall stressed that because the
national government had created the bank, no state had the power to tax it. “The power
to tax is the power to destroy,” he pointed out. No state could destroy by taxes what the
federal government under the Constitution had created.

Regulating Commerce. A man named Aaron Ogden purchased a state license giving
him exclusive rights to operate a New York to New Jersey steamboat line. When a
competitor, Thomas Gibbons, started a business on the same route, Ogden sued him.
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Gibbons said he operated under federal license. In the 1824 case Gibbons v. Ogden,
Chief Justice Marshall declared that states could not regulate commerce on interstate
waterways. In effect the ruling gave the federal government authority over all types of
interstate business.

● Why are these court cases important?

Although judicial review had a long history in American and British thought, Marbury was
nonetheless extremely important for establishing the Supreme Court's independence and ability to
strike down laws of Congress that it deemed unconstitutional.

● How were the decisions of the Marshall Court expressions of nationalism?

The Supreme Court decisions also reflected nationalism. The Supreme Court cases empowered
the central government and expanded the power and independence of the Supreme Court.

● How do these decisions illustrate John Marshall’s political beliefs?

Marshall was guided by a strong commitment to judicial power and by a belief in the
supremacy of national over state legislatures. His judicial vision was very much in keeping
with the Federalist political program.

PANIC OF 1819
In 1819 a financial panic swept across the country. The growth in trade that followed the War of
1812 came to an abrupt halt. Unemployment mounted, banks failed, mortgages were foreclosed,
and agricultural prices fell by half. Investment in western lands collapsed.

The panic was frightening in its scope and impact. In New York State, property values fell from
$315 million in 1818 to $256 million in 1820. In Richmond, property values fell by half. In
Pennsylvania, land values plunged from $150 an acre in 1815 to $35 in 1819. In Philadelphia,
1,808 individuals were committed to debtors' prison. In Boston, the figure was 3,500.

For the first time in American history, the problem of urban poverty commanded public attention.
In New York in 1819, the Society for the Prevention of Pauperism counted 8,000 paupers out of a
population of 120,000. The next year, the figure climbed to 13,000. Fifty thousand people were
unemployed or irregularly employed in New York, Philadelphia, and Baltimore, and one foreign
observer estimated that half a million people were jobless nationwide. To address the problem of
destitution, newspapers appealed for old clothes and shoes for the poor, and churches and
municipal governments distributed soup. Baltimore set up 12 soup kitchens in 1820 to give food
to the poor.

The downswing spread like a plague across the country. In Cincinnati, bankruptcy sales occurred
almost daily. In Lexington, Kentucky, factories worth half a million dollars were idle. Matthew
Carey, a Philadelphia economist, estimated that 3 million people, one-third of the nation's
population, were adversely affected by the panic. In 1820, John C. Calhoun commented: "There
has been within these two years an immense revolution of fortunes in every part of the Union;
enormous numbers of persons utterly ruined; multitudes in deep distress."

The panic had several causes, including a dramatic decline in cotton prices, a contraction of
credit by the Bank of the United States designed to curb inflation, an 1817 congressional order
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requiring hard-currency payments for land purchases, and the closing of many factories due to
foreign competition.

The panic unleashed a storm of popular protest. Many debtors agitated for "stay laws" to provide
relief from debts as well as the abolition of debtors' prisons. Manufacturing interests called for
increased protection from foreign imports, but a growing number of southerners believed that
high protective tariffs, which raised the cost of imported goods and reduced the flow of
international trade, were the root of their troubles. Many people clamored for a reduction in the
cost of government and pressed for sharp reductions in federal and state budgets. Others,
particularly in the South and West, blamed the panic on the nation's banks and particularly the
tight-money policies of the Bank of the United States.

By 1823 the panic was over. But it left a lasting imprint on American politics. The panic led to
demands for the democratization of state constitutions, an end to restrictions on voting and office
holding, and heightened hostility toward banks and other "privileged" corporations and
monopolies. The panic also exacerbated tensions within the Republican Party and aggravated
sectional tensions as northerners pressed for higher tariffs while southerners abandoned their
support of nationalistic economic programs.

● What were the causes of the Panic of 1819?

The panic had several causes, including a dramatic decline in cotton prices, a contraction of credit
by the Bank of the United States designed to curb inflation, an 1817 congressional order requiring
hard-currency payments for land purchases, and the closing of many factories due to foreign
competition.

● How did the Panic of 1819 lead to sectional tensions and divisions?
The panic led to demands for the democratization of state constitutions, an end to
restrictions on voting and office holding, and heightened hostility toward banks and other
"privileged" corporations and monopolies.
THE MISSOURI QUESTION
In 1819 Congress began debating the admission of Missouri into the United States as a
slave state. The basic issue at stake was slavery. The Northwest Ordinance of 1787 had
established that no state northwest of the Ohio River could be a slave state. But because
Missouri was not northwest of the Ohio River, it was not covered by this definition.
Several members of Congress from the North objected to admitting Missouri as a slave
state. They were worried that another slave state would increase the power of the
southern states in the Senate. Southern states replied that the federal government had no
business dictating to states what they could and could not do. They feared that if the
federal government could forbid slavery in Missouri, it could do so elsewhere.
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THINK, PAIR,
SHARE: How
could you
solve this
problem?
Think about a
potential compromise to this potentially volatile situation. Then, turn to your partner and
discuss both of your plans. Be prepared to then share them with the class.

One potential compromise attempt was made by James Tallmadge of New York. He
proposed what is known as the Tallmadge Amendment that stated,

“And provided also, That the further introduction of slavery or involuntary servitude be
prohibited, except for the punishment of crimes whereof the party shall be duly convicted:
and that all children of slaves born within the said state after the admission thereof into the
Union shall be free, but may be held to service until the age of twenty-five years.”

● Do you think this amendment will pass? Why or why not?

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After months of bitter debate, Congress reached what is now called the Missouri Compromise. It
was signed into law in 1820. The Missouri Compromise had two main points: 1) slavery would be
permitted in Missouri; at the same time, Maine was carved out of what had been northern
Massachusetts and admitted into the Union as a free state. This arrangement kept the balance in
the Senate between slave and free states. 2) Furthermore, Congress agreed that as the United
States expanded westward, states north of 36 30’ N latitude would be free states where slavery
would be forbidden.

● How was the Missouri Compromise based on nationalism?

● Was this compromise fair to both sides? Explain.

● Is this a good solution to the extension of slavery question? Explain.

Activity: Divide the classroom into two halves – one side is yes, one side is no. Have
students go to one side of the room based on how they would answer the question above.
Then have students discuss why they chose the way they did. Allow students to switch
sides if their opinion changes.

In response to the Missouri Compromise, former President Thomas Jefferson was not
optimistic about the nation’s future:

“I had for a long time ceased to read the newspapers or pay any attention to public
affairs, from which I am not distant. But this momentous question, like a fire bell in
the night, awakened and filled me with terror. I considered it at once as the [death]
knell of the Union. It is hushed indeed for the moment, but this is a reprieve only,
not a final sentence. A geographical line, coinciding with a marked principle, moral
and political, once conceived and held up to the angry passions of men, will never
be obliterated; and every new irritation will mark it deeper and deeper.”

● How does Jefferson feel about the underlying issue of the Missouri Compromise?
Why does he feel this way?
Still active in politics, Thomas Jefferson strongly opposed the attempt to keep slavery out of
Missouri. As you examine this letter from Jefferson to John Holmes, consider his arguments
against these restrictions and also against the geographical line drawn by the compromise
between free and slave states.

MONROE’S FOREIGN POLICY

In the realm of foreign affairs, James Monroe sought to improve the country's
international reputation and assert its independence. Due to his solid working relationship
with Secretary of State John Quincy Adams, the two men successfully pursued an
aggressive foreign policy, especially with regard to European intervention in the Americas.
 DATE: 9/23/22

Treaties with Britain. In its early days, the Monroe administration wanted to improve
relations with Britain, a powerful nation that the US had recently fought two wars against.
Toward that end, it negotiated two important treaties with Britain that resolved border
disputes held over from the War of 1812. The Rush-Bagot Treaty of 1817, demilitarized
the Great Lakes, limiting each country to one 100-ton vessel armed with a single 18-
pound cannon on Lake Champlain and Lake Ontario. Moreover, the Convention of 1818
fixed the present U.S.-Canadian border from Minnesota to the Rocky Mountains at the
49th parallel. The accords also established a joint U.S.-British occupation of Oregon for
the next ten years.

Spanish Florida. For years, southern plantation owners and white farmers in Georgia,
Alabama, and South Carolina had lost runaway slaves to the Florida swamps. Seminole
and Creek Indians offered refuge to these slaves and led raids against white settlers in the
border regions. The U.S. government could do little about the problem because the
swamps lay deep within Spanish Florida. If the United States moved decisively against
the Seminoles, it would risk war with Spain. Although the United States had tried to
convince Spain to cede the territory on various occasions, its efforts had failed.

With the end of the War of 1812, the U.S. government turned its attention to the raids.
President Monroe sent General Andrew Jackson, the hero of the Battle of New Orleans,
to the Florida border in 1818 to stop the incursions. Liberally interpreting Monroe’s (some
say purposely) vague instructions, Jackson's troops invaded Florida, captured a Spanish
fort, took control of Pensacola, and overthrew the Spanish governor. He also executed
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two British citizens whom he accused of having incited the Seminoles to raid American
settlements.

The invasion of Florida caused quite a stir in Washington, D.C. Although Jackson said he
had acted within the bounds of his instructions, Secretary of War John C. Calhoun
disagreed and urged Monroe to reprimand Jackson for acting without specific authority.
In addition, foreign diplomats and some congressmen demanded that Jackson be
punished for his unauthorized invasion. Secretary of State John Quincy Adams came to
Jackson's defense, stating that Jackson's measures were, in fact, authorized as part of
his orders to end the Indian raids. Monroe ultimately agreed with Adams. To the
administration, the entire affair illustrated the lack of control Spain had over the region.
Secretary of State Adams thought that he could use the occasion to pressure Spain to
sell all of Florida to the United States. Preoccupied with revolts throughout its Latin
American empire, Spain understood that the United States could seize the territory at will.
Adams convinced Spain to sell Florida to the United States and to drop its claims to the
Louisiana Territory and Oregon. In return, the United States agreed to relinquish its claims
on Texas and assume responsibility for $5 million that the Spanish government owed
American citizens. The resulting treaty, known
as the Adams-Onís Treaty of 1819, was
considered a great success.

THE MONROE DOCTRINE

A major concern for President Monroe was that

European countries, which were recovering
from several years of warfare, would resume
their efforts to colonize the Western
Hemisphere. Starting in 1815, Spain’s colonies
had rebelled and won independence. Monroe
had to decide what type of relations to have
with these new nations.

● Why would these colonies want their

independence?
Many colonists were angry because no one
represented their needs in the British
government. Colonists believed they did not
have self-government. The British forced
colonists to allow British soldiers to sleep and eat
in their homes. The colonists joined together to
fight Britain and gain independence.
● Why would European countries want
their colonies back?
Many European nations exhibited a growing interest in colonies as sources of raw materials and new
markets and as potential outlets for excess population and for administrators who could not be
accommodated at home. Opportunities for individual adventurism and profit also ran high.
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● Why would the US side with these new nations instead of the European powers?
because the Europeans had a lot of power

American policy on these urgent matters was spelled out firmly by President Monroe in
his yearly address to Congress on December 2, 1823. The speech, influenced by
Secretary of State John Quincy Adams, established a policy that has been followed to
some degree by every President since Monroe. In the following excerpts, President
Monroe expressed his foreign policy, known as the Monroe Doctrine.

Directions: With a partner, read and analyze the brief excerpts from the Monroe Doctrine below. Then, translate each
quote into simpler language. Finally, discuss the questions that follow.

QUOTE I THINK MONROE MEANT…

1. “…the American continents…are the continents of America will no longer

henceforth not to be considered as belong to Europe
subjects for future colonization by
any European powers…”

2. “…The citizens of the United States The citizens of the United States cherish
cherish sentiments the most friendly the most friendly sentiments in favor of the
in favor of the liberty and happiness liberty and happiness of their fellow men on
of their fellow-men on that side of the that side of the Atlantic.
Atlantic. In the wars of the European
powers in matters relating to
themselves we have never taken any
part, nor does it comport with our
policy to do so. It is only when our
rights are invaded or seriously
menaced that we…make preparation
for our defense.”

3. “…With the movements in this

hemisphere we are of necessity more
immediately connected, and by
causes which must be obvious to all
enlightened and impartial observers.
The political system of the allied
powers is essentially different in this
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respect from that of America.”

4. “We owe it, therefore, to candor and

to the amicable relations existing
between the United States and those
powers to declare that we should
consider any attempt on their part to
extend their system to any portion of
this hemisphere as dangerous to our
peace and safety.”

5. “With the existing colonies or

dependencies of any European
power we have not interfered and
shall not interfere.”

6. “Our policy in regard to Europe,

which was adopted at an early stage
of the wars which have so long
agitated that quarter of the globe,
nevertheless remains the same,
which is, not to interfere in the
internal concerns of any of its
powers …”

7. “It is impossible that the allied

powers should extend their political
system to any portion of either
continent without endangering our
peace and happiness; nor can
anyone believe that our southern
brethren, if left to themselves, would
adopt it of their own accord.”

8. “It is still the true policy of the United

States to leave the parties to
themselves, in hope that other
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powers will pursue the same

course…”

QUESTIONS FOR ANALYSIS AND DISCUSSION

● In what ways, if any, does the Monroe Doctrine invoke U.S. sympathy for
revolutionary governments in South America?

● In what ways, if any, does the Monroe Doctrine address American concerns for
peace and safety?

● If you were living in the United States in 1823, would you agree with the Monroe
Doctrine? Why or why not?
The Monroe Doctrine is the best known U.S. policy toward the Western Hemisphere. Buried in a
routine annual message delivered to Congress by President James Monroe in December 1823,
the doctrine warned European nations that the United States would not tolerate further
colonization or puppet monarchs.

● In what ways, if any, does the Monroe Doctrine address American desires to expand
its territory?

● Was the United States justified in issuing the Monroe Doctrine? Explain your
answer.

● How would you grade President Monroe’s foreign policy (A-F)? Explain your answer.
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WRAP IT UP!

Did the Era of Good Feelings live up to its name? Write a paragraph in response to this
question. Be sure to include a strong thesis statement, a significant amount of evidence,
and several transitions.
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ESSENTIAL QUESTION RUBRIC

Exceeds Meets Below Far Below
Standards Standards Standards Standards
The thesis The thesis The thesis The thesis
statement clearly statement makes a statement is statement is
and concisely point, but is a bit vague and does missing, unrelated
states a main too broad. not make a to the topic, or
INTRODUCTION argument that Adequately concrete point. cannot be
& THESIS directly and addresses the Contains an supported.
STATEMENT thoroughly question/task. unfocused topic
addresses the Thesis is that lacks clear
question/task. supportable but direction.
Thesis is only provides a
supportable and weakly arguable
arguable. 4 stance. 3 2 1

Includes all the Includes some of Includes few of Includes few to

necessary points the necessary the necessary none of the
that supports the points that support points that necessary points
thesis statement. the thesis support the that support the
SUPPORTING The details are well statement. The thesis statement. thesis statement.
EVIDENCE organized. details are The details are The details are
organized fairly not organized disorganized.
4 well. 3 well. 1
2
Demonstrates Spelling, Some spelling, Frequent
correct spelling, punctuation, and punctuation, and misspelled words,
correct use of capitalization capitalization misused or missing
punctuation, errors occur but do errors occur that punctuation and
grammar, and not detract from detract from the capitalization
capitalization. the overall quality overall quality of greatly detract
CONVENTIONS Work is legible. of the paragraph. the paragraph. form the overall
OF GOOD Specific Contains some Occasional quality and
WRITING vocabulary is minor grammatical grammatical understanding of
apparent. Evidence errors. Some errors. Evidence the paragraph. No
of revision and specific vocabulary of proofreading is evidence of
proofreading is is apparent. less apparent. revision and
obvious. Evidence of Limited amount proofreading.
revision and of specific Includes few to no
proofreading is vocabulary specific vocabulary
probable. present. terms.
3 2
4 1
Includes at least Includes only one
two different & properly used
TRANSITIONS properly used transition
transition words
2 1
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Overall Score: ________________