Foreign Policy is how a government interacts with other countries. Presidents usually determine and lead the U.S. in deciding
how the U.S. will interact with other countries. Some questions that are determined by foreign policy are: Should we buy and
sell things with other countries? Which countries are we friends with? If we have a dispute over land with another country,
how will we deal with it? What if another country treats our citizens badly?
Can you think of any ways that our country interacts with the people and government in other countries today?
When the United States was a new country the first Presidents struggled to figure out the best foreign policy for the United
States with other countries. In this lesson we will record the foreign policy of the first 5 Presidents.
Watch the slideshow and take notes following the chart.
US Studies by the Minnesota Partnership for Collaborative Curriculum is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 3.0 Unported License.
Foreign Policy of
The First Five
Presidents
Mr. Berner
Who were the first 5 Presidents?
- George Washington (1789-1797)
-John Adams (1797-1801)
-Thomas Jefferson (1801-1809)
-James Madison (1809-1817)
-James Monroe (1817-1825)
What is Foreign Policy?
Foreign Policy is the plan or way that one
country interacts with other countries.
Neutrality- is a policy of not choosing sides in a
dispute or war between other countries
Isolationism is a policy of avoiding political or
military agreements with other countries.
In 1796 what countries surrounded
the United States?
- Canada was controlled by the British
-Spain controlled Florida and most of the land
west of the Mississippi River
-Haiti was controlled by the French
-There were also numerous Native American
Indian groups living throughout the continent
George Washington
-When Washington became president the US
had a very small, weak military.
-The British refused to remove troops from the
Ohio River Valley
-In Europe, France went through a Revolution,
then France declared war on the British
Washington and the treaty with
France
-France was an ally (friend) with the US. France
had supported the US in the Revolutionary War
against Great Britain
-In the treaty of alliance with France, the US and
France agreed to aid and support each other
-The French and many Americans wanted George
Washington to commit US troops to help France
against Great Britain
Washington's Problem
-Washington knew that the US was not
prepared to help France
-He announced a policy of neutrality: The
United States would do nothing to aid France or
Great Britain in their war
-Washington used a policy of isolationismsteer clear of alliances with other countries.
Jay Treaty
-Under the advisement of Washington, John Jay (Chief
Justice of the Supreme Court) went to Great Britain to
convince the British to remove troops from the Ohio Valley.
-The British agreed, and while this was good news for the
US, France did not see it that way.
-France was mad because the US had made an alliance
with their enemy. France felt like the US had broken their
treaty to be allies. In 1796, France began attacking US
merchant ships in the atlantic, sinking 316 American ships
in one year.
Adams and the XYZ Affair
-While France was sinking US ships, John
Adams was elected.
-Adams sent diplomats to France to try to
negotiate peace.
-The diplomats were never seen by the French
Foreign minister- instead they were met by
agents who called themselves "X, Y, and Z"
XYZ and Tribute
-XYZ told Adams' diplomats that no peace talks
would happen unless the US paid the French
foreign minister a large sum of money"Tribute"
-Tribute is money given in exchange for
protection
-The diplomats refused and went back to the
US
Adams- Millions for defense, but not
one cent for tribute
-Adams urged congress to recruit an army of 10,000 men and
build 12 new ships
-The people of the US were outraged- angry at France
-Congress used U.S. warship and privately owned ships to
launch a "half War" on the seas
-The US captured more than 80 armed French vessels
-Adams became very popular, but Adams faced the questionwas the popular thing, war, the best thing for the country?
Adams and Peace
-In 1799, Adams decided peace was the best answer and
sent men to France to work out an agreement
-Most people in the US wanted war with France, they were
mad at Adams
-By the time Adam's peace seekers got to France,
Napoleon had taken over as leader of France.
-Napoleon made peace with the US, release US prisoners
and the US agreed to not hold France liable for lost ships/
property
Peace was not popular- Adams lost
the next election
-Adams choose the Olive Branch, another way
to say peace
-Because he choose peace, he lost popularity
with the people
-Jefferson defeated Adams in the next election,
but Adams said he had no regrets- he did what
he knew to be best for the country
Jefferson deals with thieves and
pirates (for real)
-Adam's peace didn't last for very long, in 1803
Jefferson was back dealing with France and
Great Britain (they were fighting again)
-Great Britain had also taken up the practice of
Impressment. This meant that the British navy
was stopping US merchant ships and searching
them for British deserters. Not only were they
capturing men who had left the British Navy, they
were kidnapping US citizens too!
Kidnappers, Thieves and Pirates!
Oh My!
-When the US ship the Chesapeake was
stopped by British ship the Leopard, the US
refused to allow the British on board to search
for deserters, the Chesapeake fired on the US
ship and killed or wounded 21 American
Soldiers
-American ships also faced threat from the
Barbary States of North Africa- Pirates in the
Mediterranean were seizing ships and holding
crews ransom
Jefferson Battles Pirates
-Jefferson sent ships to the Mediteranean to
protect US Merchants and shoot cannons at
Tripoli
-The US naval ships also set up a blockade to
stop
-The US ship Philadelphia runs aground and
the crew is taken for ransom by Pirates
Tripoli Pirates make a deal, but the
others need to be destroyed
-Tripoli signed a peace treaty with the US in
1805: They stopped attacking US ships and
the US paid them $60,000
-Pirates from Algiers, Morocco and Tunis
continued to overtake US ships.
-In 1815 US and European Naval forces finally
destroyed the Pirate bases in the
Mediterranean
Jefferson's Embargo on France and
Britain
-Jefferson tried to make peace with France and
Great Britain- stop them attacking ships,
stealing merchants cargo and end
Impressment- but talks did not work
-Jefferson proposed an embargo- Government
order that forbids trades with another countryHe wanted the embargo against France and
Great Britain until they stopped attacking US
ships
Jefferson's Embargo only hurts US
citizens
-Put 55,000 US sailors out of work
-Made it illegal to sell things to customers
France and Great Britain
-In 1809 Congress repealed the Embargo Act
-France and Great Britain continued their
attacks.
Protecting the sailors falls next to
Madison
-In 1809 President Madison tries to get France
and Great Britain to stop their attacks on US
ships
-France agrees first and Madison cuts off all
trade with Great Britain
-Great Britain continues Impressment and is
also arming the Native American Resistance on
the frontier
Madison abandon's isolationism and
declares war!
-Losses at sea, National Pride, and a wanting
to make the frontier safe for white settlers all
lead to War
-On July 17, 1812 Congress declares wr on
Great Britain
-At the time the US had only 7,000 troops and
16 ships
A Stalemate, but feels like a victory
-Both sides claimed victory, but the Treaty of Ghent didn't
address any of the issues that the US had been fighting for
-Native American Indians were driven out of the Ohio
Valley, leaving it safer for white settlers
-Nation Pride for US citizens goes up, "We are so great!"
-US begns to produce their own goods because of the ban
Madison had placed on goods from Europe sparked
increased manufacturing
Monroe hopes to return to
isolationism, but it doesn't work out
-1817 Monroe becomes President
-US is turning attention away from Eruope and
looking at Latin America
-Countries from Mexico to the tip of South
America were revolting against Spain
-The US and Great Britain were excited for new
countries in Latin America
Europe eyes Latin America- new
land for them to colonize?
-Some European countries started talking
about helping Spain regain their territories
-In 1823 Great Britain asked the US to join in
sending a message to European rulers, "Leave
Latin America Alone"
-Monroe wanted to stay neutral, but wasn't sure
what to do- if Europe tried to re-take Latin
America, maybe they woud want the US too?
Monroe Doctrine
-In 1823 Monroe made a speech to Congress
announcing his policy:
The Western Hemisphere was no longer opne
to European Colonization- Stay out, or we will
put you out.
-Europe called it arrogant
-US citizens called it standing up for Freedom
A strong and confident nation
-The Monroe Doctrine told the world that the
US was a strong and confident nation, not a
weak collection of states.
-The US should be respected by the world
Source
Hart, Diane. History Alive! The United States Through
Modern Times. Rancho Cordova, CA: Teachers'
Curriculum Institute, 2014. Book.