James Monroe~Our Fourth President

Jame's Monroe's three terms as president was unparalleled in presidential residency. He was born in 1758 in Westmorleand County, Virginia and was the last Republican president from that state. He studied economics and then later became a close friend of James Madison. This association with Madison helped propel Monroe's political career which included two years in the Virgina Assembly, the Congress of Confederation and a Minister to Spain.

A major issue taken on by Monroe while President was slavery. Monroe was an astute abolitionist and it was reflected in his signing of the Missouri Compromise. His foreign policy was his strongest contribution to the U.S. and his famed Monroe Doctrine, which he penned exclusively, deterred European intervention in America. The concern was primarily for central America and the slowing of Spanish colonization in that region.

James Monroe's reign as the president was know as the "Era of Good Feeling" due to his anti-slavery attitude and concern for stable foreign relations.