James Monroe

(1758-1831) politician, statesman, President of the United States

James Monroe became President after more than 40 years of public service. He had fought in the Revolutionary War. During the first years of independence, he had served in the Virginia Assembly and in the Congress of the Confederation. He later became a U.S. Senator; Minister to France, Spain, and Great Britain; and Governor of Virginia. During the War of 1812, he served as Secretary of State and Secretary of War at the same time.

Monroe was tall and rawboned, and had a military bearing. His gray-blue eyes invited confidence. Even John Quincy Adams, who