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James Monroe Presidential $1 Coin — Fifth President, 1817-1825
• Born: 28 April 1758
• Birthplace: Westmoreland County, Virginia
• Died: 4 July 1831
• Best Known As: President of the United States, 1817-1825
James Monroe served one term as governor of Virginia, then was sent to France by Thomas Jefferson to negotiate the Louisiana Purchase. An officer during the American Revolution, Monroe was an all-around statesman whose career included stints as congressman, senator, foreign diplomat and cabinet member.
In 1811 he was appointed Secretary of State under President James Madison, and in 1816 Monroe won the presidential election. He was easily re-elected in 1820 (winning 231 of 232 electoral votes), and his administration was termed "The Era of Good Feelings", a time when the United States focused on expansion and ignored the troubles of the European nations.
He is famous for the Monroe Doctrine (1823), which proclaimed U.S. hostility toward any European intervention in the Americas.
Monrovia, the capital of Liberia, is named after President Monroe... Monroe's was the first inauguration held outdoors... He was married to Elizabeth Kortright Monroe in 1786. He died less than a year after she died... Monroe died on 4 July 1831, five years to the day after Jefferson and John Adams.
Virginia native James Monroe was exceptionally qualified to serve as the United States’ fifth president. Not only was he a Revolutionary War soldier, he was champion of the Bill of Rights, U.S. diplomat in Europe, governor of Virginia, senator, secretary of state, secretary of war, and negotiator of the Louisiana Purchase, before being overwhelmingly elected president in 1816.
His time in office is known as the “Era of Good Feelings” for the peace and booming economy the country enjoyed.
The Monroe Doctrine, a foundation of American foreign policy introduced in an 1823 message to Congress, warned European powers against expansionism in the Western Hemisphere.
Monroe’s presidency was also marked by the Missouri Compromise, which preserved a balance of free states and slave states in the United States and prohibited slavery in western territories above the 36/30’ north latitude line.