Really Cool Stuff about James Monroe
1. James Monroe and John Marshall, the future Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, were friends their entire lives. They both met at 11 years and 14 years of age respectively at a little local school in Virginia. After that, they both attended William and Mary together and then enlisted in the Continental Army together. They both became lawyers and even though their paths diverged after that, John moving up the ladder of the law profession at home and becoming a Federalist, James moving into the diplomatic arena abroad as a Republican, they remained good friends throughout. It was culmination of this very long relationship when John Marshall was able to be at James Monroe’s inauguration, administering the oath of office. “ Now, Marshall, the nation’s chief judicial officer, was facilitating the accession of his boyhood friend to the nation’s chief executive post. It was an enormous personal triumph for both men, and the estimated eight thousand spectators roared their approval after the president took his oath” (p. 264).
2. It was hard to tell through Unger’s unctuous ebullience, but I really think that James Monroe had a sense of humor. For example, during one of his tours to the West in which Indian raids were a real threat, he remarked that “It is possible that I may lose my scalp…but if either a little fighting or great deal of running will save it I shall escape safe” (p. 54).
3. Before Aaron Burr could duel Alexander Hamilton, James Monroe had scheduled a duel with Hamilton himself. The irony of it all is that Aaron Burr went to both men and talked them out of it. Thus Monroe and Hamilton never dueled, leaving Hamilton alive to face Burr seven years later. At the time Hamilton was killed, Burr was actually Vice President of the United States under Jefferson.
4. You have to give Monroe some credit on the Louisiana Purchase. After all, he was like the greatest bargain hunter ever! “The parcel of land that Monroe bought, however, was the largest territory any nation had ever acquired peacefully from another in world history—almost one million square miles, an area larger than Great Britain, France, Germany, Spain, and Portugal combined…And he negotiated a bargain price—the equivalent of $15 million, or four cents an acre compared to the average price of $2 an acre for which the US government was then selling unsettled federal lands” (p. 163).
5. George Washington was actually the first president to take a small tour of the new United States but James Monroe was the first president to tour the West. He began in New England (which began the Era of Good Feelings) and then later hit the middle states, the south and finally the newly developed West, including Tennessee and Kentucky.
6. The term “White House” is generally believed to have started around this time. “Workers were still restoring the presidential mansion when President Monroe returned to Washington in September 1819, but they had slathered the blackened exterior sandstone with a thick coat of brilliant white paint that endowed the building with a new name: ‘The White House’” (p. 277).
7. It was also under James Monroe’s presidency that the first marriage occurred in the White House. Monroe’s youngest daughter, Maria Hester, was married to Samuel Gouverneur on March 9, 1820
8. As slavery became more of an issue, many people tried different ways to solve it. One group, called the American Colonization Society, decided that universal emancipation was necessary but that something needed to be done with the slaves once freed. Although not against slavery, per se, Monroe did all in his power to help the Society achieve their goal of sending the slaves back to their native towns in Africa. “Using Monroe administration funds, the Society began settling emancipated slaves on the site [Cape Mesurado in West Africa], which they subsequently named Monrovia to honor the American president” (p. 298).
9. Monroe was the third President to die on the Fourth of July, fifty-five years after the Declaration of Independence was signed.
I was not a fan of this book (I think that is patently obviously) but I will say that there were some good portions. This was a nice, succinct account of James Monroe’s life and presidency, including all the important stuff. Unger took the chronological approach to Monroe’s life and pretty much left nothing out. In fact, I can safely say that I am wiser where James Monroe is concerned. There also was a really lovely amount of illustrations. No, I don’t usually read picture books but when you’re reading history it’s always nice to actually see who you are reading about. Thus, every chapter included a portrait of a person whom Monroe came into contact with. Overall, the book included 5 maps and 37 pictures! Unger also does a really good job on important background information. For instance, he includes a great explanation of specie and the issues that the Articles of Confederation faced dealing with it. Not to mention the general lack of ready money that most people experienced during that time. Unger also gave us good information about the Articles of Confederation in general and what that meant for the nation. I was really impressed with all this background because I’m on book #5 and didn’t read about it anywhere else.
As for the writing style and general portrayal of Monroe, I did not enjoy the method that Unger used here. The entire book is Monroe-centric, and not in the way that biographies usually are. Most biographers, at least the ones that I’ve read, may have a decided partiality toward their subject but for the sake of good history, they will usually incorporate the good with the bad. Not Unger. The Last Founding Father is all-Monroe, all the time. Now Unger does, almost by chance, bring up some of Monroe’s faults but they are never really ascribed to him. If bad things happen to Monroe, it seems to be always at the expense of someone else. For instance, when Monroe failed as a diplomat to France (the first time) and was brought home to the US in some disgrace, Unger (and Monroe) ascribed this to the various Secretaries of State. Other “enemies” of Monroe who had duplicitously screwed him in one way or
another are really too numerous to count.
As I’ve mentioned before, the prologue is absolutely dripping with idolatry of Monroe so that I almost wanted to vomit. Unfortunately, the clumsy handling of our last Founding Father greatly soured my liking of Monroe. And we were on page 2! I know that’s a little unfair to the memory of our fifth President but I can’t help it. I tried to remain unbiased and to cull from the obsessed ranting the justice that Monroe deserved—I really did—but it was so hard. I get annoyed when history is abused in this blatant and ugly way. Geez, let Monroe’s deeds speak for themselves!
Another issue I have with Unger’s writing is his insatiable use of melodrama and his wide, sweeping generalities. The melodrama of this book was unreal! Beginning on page one (remember the quote from chapter one above?), this book oozes over-the-top imagery and sensational statements…kinda like you get from cheap romance novels. Oh, here’s a good example: “The victory restored Britain’s arrogant belief in her invincibility and reignited her insatiable lust for empire” (p. 237). Are you kidding me—“lust for empire!?!” How about this: “Members of Congress stood to applaud—and cheer—some of them trembling with awe as they watched him make his way down the aisle—the Last of the Founding Fathers” (p. 314). I’m sorry but if I’m to believe this, then I’ll need to see some primary source material documenting this alleged “trembling.”
I do not want to judge Monroe poorly here so I will say that he did many magnificent things within his lifetime. From the moment he was born into a small farmer’s family to being wounded in the Revolution to becoming a lawyer to being posted overseas to becoming President of the United States of America, James Monroe was a quintessential example of the American Dream! And I can’t overlook the truly miraculous accomplishments that he was able to give to our fledgling nation. Through his influence and persistence, we would double in size and be able to hold our heads up through two wars. He was truly a great man.
In conclusion, I would not recommend reading this book. Well, if you want a good laugh or to see how not to write a biography then go ahead. I’m almost tempted to either read another biography of Monroe or to read another book by Unger to see if he always writes this way. But, honestly, I’m not that curious. The James Madison bio was hard to read because it was so dry and detailed but Unger’s book was even harder to read. The way he rammed Monroe down my throat was a bitter pill indeed.
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