Virginians seem to dominate the early pantheon of American presidents. Four of the first five presidents were Virginians by birth. The last of these four – and the last president from the generation of founding fathers – is James Monroe. Most American high school students learn to associate his name with the “Monroe Doctrine” – the contention that Europe should not further colonize the Americas. While this position is perhaps his most lasting legacy, this book taught me that his life conveyed much more than that. He was a soldier, a family man, a diplomat, a governor, and a unifying president.
Monroe did not come from money, but he achieved an education alongside future Supreme Court Chief Justice John Marshall. Wounded in the Revolutionary War, he served alongside the famous Frenchman the Marquis de Lafayette. Aiming to serve his country first, he pursued public service more than financial stability through his career. When the government was unwilling to pay his expenses while a diplomat in Europe, he took out loans to pay his own way. Like Thomas Jefferson, he died under financial duress.
During the War of 1812, he took over the government when James Madison proved not up to the task of defending Washington, DC, from invasion. Because the government was legally unable to take out loans to defend itself, Monroe as Secretary of State did so in his own name. The American people appreciated these courageous actions and promoted him to the presidency in the next election. The Federalist party faded away because of their talk of secession during the War of 1812, and Monroe began to govern American in a one-party system.
A one-party system seemed to be almost utopian at first. Monroe was extremely popular while governing in the so-called Era of Good Feelings. However, without a competitive partisan framework, individual politicians gratified their own ego instead of following their leaders, and personal squabbles predominated at the end of Monroe’s two terms. In fact, Monroe’s second term became described as a “lame duck” period – then a new term in American politics.
I lack a historian’s bona fides to critique this book’s historiography. I did find it interesting and engaging. I learned a lot about Monroe that had been either forgotten or never learned. As the last founder-president, he’s often overlooked when listing the great presidents, but like a lot of presidential biographers do, Unger seems to call this assessment into question with his subject. Monroe was extremely popular and certainly more effective than either John Adams or Madison. He personified how to put the needs of country above those of one’s personal self. I now appreciate better what he added to the fabric of America.
The Last Founding Father: James Monroe and a Nation’s Call to Greatness
By Harlow Giles Unger
Narrated by Michael McConnohie
Copyright (c) 2009
Audible Studios
ASIN B0030HF9LA
Length: 12:23
Genre: Presidential Biography
www.amazon.com