As the War of 1812 drew to a close in the young United States of America, one of the first American political parties was ending as well. The Federalist Party, which had been in existence since the nation’s beginning, slowly faded away during and following the war. As the election of 1816 approached, the former Federalists were too fragmented to select and endorse a candidate, but the popular choice was New Yorker Rufus King, a former adviser to President Washington who had previously been a pillar of the party. His opposition, Virginian James Monroe, was popular among his Democratic-Republican Party leaders and was the chosen successor to two-term president James Madison. The election was won in a landslide, with Monroe gaining 183 of 217 electoral votes (Lindenberg). Monroe believed that his presidency would only be a continuation of a greater American Era of Good Feelings, and was even quoted as saying "Never did a government commence under auspices so favorable, nor ever was success so complete. If we look to the history of other nations, ancient or modern, we find no example of a growth so rapid, so gigantic, of a people so prosperous and happy (Martin Kelly)." Clearly, the nation believed in James Monroe and believed he would not just continue the positive trend in American politics but also lead the country in the right direction. As exhibited by his presidency, he did fulfill both of these expectations.
Following his landslide election, Monroe took a presidential tour of the country. This started his presidency with a positive action, considering he was the only president to visit the northeast in fifteen years—the period of time since the famed Virginia Dynasty began (The American President). During this visit, on July 12, 1817, The Boston Columbian Centinel coined the term “Era of Good Feelings” for Monroe’s term of office. The label, as well as the attitude and optimism shown by the label, remained throughout Monroe’s two terms in office (Electronic Government Project). Just a few short years before Monroe took office, such a welcoming and auspicious moniker for a Democratic-Republican’s presidency would have been a joke.
The Northeast was traditionally a Federalist stronghold vehemently opposed to the Democratic-Republican Party. Despite its previous aversion to the party, the northeast slowly began to warm up to the opposition. Democratic- Republican James Madison led the nation safely through the War of 1812. On top of this, Madison revived the region from an economic depression in its shipping industry and established it as formidable competition to British industries, affectively rebuilding the shattered economy (Lindenberg).
Aside from economic reasons, many other factors contributed to the Era of Good Feelings. An exceedingly obvious one was the demise of the Federalist Party. While the party may not have been in full existence at the time, many Federalists were still vying for power in Congress. They realized the most efficient way to accomplish their goals was to work in full cooperation with the Democratic-Republican administration (Electronic Government Project). With the newfound spirit of cooperation came the death of partisan politics and a feeling of political unity in striving for a common goal. That goal, according to many Federalists, was an agenda of internal improvements for the entire nation. The agenda entailed the chartering of a Second National Bank—the twenty-year charter of the first had expired—as well as the first major protective tariff on American goods and a system of national roads. Although Monroe was strongly opposed to the national roads system, he signed it into law regardless in the spirit of political unity (The American President).
The spirit of nonpartisan politics and amity between parties carried into the judicial system as well. Chief Justice of the Supreme Court John Marshall was able to rule several cases with a Federalist stance without any major opposition (Lindenberg). Two 1819 cases are the most notable: Dartmouth College v. Woodward and McCullough v. Maryland. Dartmouth decided that any corporate charter, such as the charter of New Hampshire’s Dartmouth College, was a legal contract and was not subject to sudden, unmediated change (Electronic Government Project). McCullough ruled that a state could not tax an entity of the Federal Government—in this case, a Maryland branch of the Bank of the United States (Fifth President). These decisions, especially McCullough v. Maryland significantly limited states’ rights, just as the Federalists wanted. John Marshall had the insight to realize that the cooperation with the Democratic-Republicans helped the Federalists more than fighting them could help, and therefore heavily supported the Era of Good Feelings.
A harbinger of doom for the Era came with the Panic of 1819. When the Second National Bank demanded that any currency it had been given be backed by gold or silver, the economy collapsed (Fifth President). The president himself did little to ameliorate the situation; however, his Secretary of Treasury loosened the restrictions on mortgage payments, which did not cause much improvement of the situation. Predictably, the American public raised a massive outcry for reestablishment of the Democratic-Republican administration with more effective leaders—luckily for Monroe the outcry never escalated to the Presidential level (Lindenberg). The Democratic-Republicans began to come to the realization of what a betrayal of their ideals the Era of Good Feelings had been, but simultaneously, the party restructuring that came as a result of the Panic satisfied them for the moment. If the party members had been more incensed, the Era could have imploded; strangely enough, it had yet to reach its peak.
Its peak would soon come, though, with the Election of 1820. The Election of 1820 is often seen as the embodiment of the Era of Good Feelings due to the complete absence of party politics. Despite the trepidation that came with the Panic of 1819, the public still revered James Monroe. Because of the continuation of nonpartisan politics into the election season, Monroe was due to win unanimously. However, out of respect for President George Washington, the only president to be elected unanimously, John Quincy Adams ran in order to receive one electoral vote (Electronic Government Project). Despite the harmony apparent during the election of 1820, a concurrent issue sent the Era of Good Feelings crashing down.
When Missouri wanted to enter the Union and become a state, a fiery debate started over the issue of slavery. Congress was split when it came to allowing slavery in the new state; political goodwill existed no more. The compromise was finally reached to allow Maine to enter the Union as a free state, Missouri as a slave state, and from that point on to set the boundary between slave and free states at the latitude line 36
The Era of Good Feelings is generally said to continue until the end of Monroe’s presidency in 1824. While bad blood had been created over the Missouri Compromise, a compromise had eventually been reached, showing the vestiges of inter-party cooperation. The official end of the era came with the Election of 1824. Nothing like its cordial antecedent, which was one of the most agreeable and amiable elections in American history, the Election of 1824 is remembered for its baffling four candidates all vying for the office of the presidency (Lindenberg). The spirit of nonpartisan, optimistic politics embodied in the Election of 1820 had come to an end, signaling the end of the Era of Good Feelings, a matchlessly genial period in American history.
Works Cited
Electronic Government Project. “The Era of Good Feelings.” 2004. Eagleton Institute of Politics, Rutgers University. 18 Mar. 2004 <http://www.eagleton.rutgers.edu/e-gov/e-politicalarchive.htm>.
Gehrman, Carl. The Fifth President: James Monroe. 2000. 18 Mar. 2004. <http://userpages.umbc.edu/~cgehrm1/pres_site/presidents/jmonroe.html.>
Kelly, Martin. About American History: Quotes from James Monroe. 2004. 18 Mar. 2004. <http://americanhistory.about.com/cs/jamesmonroe/a/quotemonroe.htm>.
Lindenberg, Gail. James Monroe. N.d. 18 Mar. 2004 <http://216.132.160.230/KoTrain/Courses/JMO/JMO_Campaigns_and_Elections.htm>.
The American President. “James Monroe.” 2003. University of Virginia. 18 Mar. 2004 <http://www.americanpresident.org/history/jamesmonroe/biography/DomesticAffairs.common.shtml>.
