Era of Good Feelings and Andrew
Jackson
Themes
• Missouri Comprise
• Monroe Doctrine
• Rise of Andrew Jackson
Era of Good Feelings
(1817-1825)
• Name given to the era of James Monroe’s
Presidency
• James Monroe presidential years (1817-1825)
• Era did not involve fighting between rival
political parties but over representation
• The majority of Americans supported
Monroe’s electoral victory
Missouri Crisis
• In 1819, Missouri applied for statehood as a
slave state
• The balance between the 11 free states and
11 slave states would be broken
• Proposal: Gradually emancipate slaves in
Missouri
• North states: agreed
• South states: disagreed
The Missouri Compromise
(1820-1821)
Spain and Florida
• General Andrew Jackson led U.S. forces into
Florida
• He occupied two Spanish forts and had two
British citizens hanged
• Led to the Adams/Onis Treaty 1819
- Spain ceded Florida to United States
- Americans renounced claims to Texas
- Spain gave up claims to Oregon
North vs. South
• A compromise was needed to resolve the
crisis
• Who: Henry Clay (Speakers of the House of
Representatives)
The Missouri Compromise
(1820-1821)
• Missouri entered the Union as a slave states
• Maine entered the Union as a free state
• In future, slavery was prohibited in the Louisiana
Purchase Territory north of 36,30
• The Mason-Dixon line was now separating the free and
slave states in the Union
- Surveyed in 1763 by Charles Mason and Jeremiah
Dixon which led to form the borders of Pennsylvania,
Maryland, Delaware, and West Virginia
• The Line would later be used as a border between slave
and free states during the Civil War
The Missouri Compromise
(Results)
• Many believed South “won” this conflict
• There was agreement, however, that Congress
had the power to limit slavery in some
territories
• Importance: Foreshadowed future conflicts
between North and South
John Q. Adams
(Secretary of State)
• John Q. Adams served as Monroe’s Secretary
of State
- Oregon Territory
• British and Americans both claimed territory
• Each agreed to joint occupation of the region
- Monroe Doctrine
Spanish Independence
• Spanish colonies gained independence in early
19th Century
• Will foreign countries recognize them or try to
conquer them? France, English, Russia
• British proposed a joint declaration: Each would
oppose interference with new nations and agree
not to establish new colonies in the Americas
*This proposal would halt American expansion in
the west*
Years of Independence
Monroe Doctrine of 1823
• Has James Monroe’s name but was written by
John Q. Adams
1. European powers cannot interfere with
independent nations in the western hemisphere
2. New European colonization in western
hemisphere was prohibited
3. In return, the United States pledged to stay out
of European affairs
*Protecting newly created Spanish nations and
stopping Russian influence in Oregon*
Significance of Monroe Doctrine
• This was the foundation of U.S. foreign policy
• European powers were no longer welcomed in
North America
Presidential Election of 1824
(Candidates)
• Andrew Jackson (Tennessee): Hero of New
Orleans
• John Q. Adams (Massachusetts): Secretary of
State
• William Crawford (Georgia): Treasury
Secretary
• Henry Clay (Kentucky): Speaker of the House
of Representatives
Presidential Election of 1824
•
•
•
-
Election of 1824 – 131 to win
Popular Vote:
Andrew Jackson – 43.1%
John Q. Adams – 30.5 %
William Crawford – 13.1%
Henry Clay – 13.2%
Electoral Vote:
Andrew Jackson – 99
John Q. Adams – 84
William Crawford – 41
Henry Clay - 37
Presidential Election of 1824
• If no candidate wins the majority of electoral
votes – The House of Representatives chooses
the next President among the top three
finishers
• Finalists – Andrew Jackson & John Adams
• Clay (still Speaker of the House) helped Adams
win presidency
• Adams picked Clay to be Secretary of State
• Corruption
John Q. Adams Presidency
(1825-1829)
• Rumors of corruption hurt Adams
• Experience: Diplomat, Senator, Secretary of
State
• Proposals for internal improvement (Ex. 2nd
Bank of America); funding for the arts met
fierce opposition
• Like his father, John Q. Adams was destined to
serve only one term
Election of 1828
• Jackson and his supporters were called
Democrats (Southern Jefferson supporters)
• Accusation:
- Adams = gambler and promoted prostitution
- Jackson = illiterate and married an adulterer
• Andrew Jackson won the presidency; ending
the “Era of Good Feelings”
Jackson and Democracy
• Elimination of property qualifications to vote
• Jackson Heroism: Was a hero during the Battle of
New Orleans and had a well known hatred for
Native Americans
• Jackson supported the will of the American
people to govern:
- voters should directly elect President and
Senators
*We still have electoral college today, but we NOW
directly elect our Senators*
Tariff of Abominations
•
•
-
Congress passed a protective tariff in 1828
It was very unpopular in the South:
Raised the cost of manufactured items
Other nations established tariffs hurting
American exports
• This hurt the South because they exported
many of their goods to Europe
South Carolina Exposition and Protest
(1828)
•
•
Response to Tariff of Abominations:
Tariff violated the Constitution
States had the right to nullify such laws
The author: Andrew Jackson’s Vice President,
John C. Calhoun
*This ideology was directly based off of the
Virginia and Kentucky Resolution in 1789
Nullification Crisis
• President Jackson did not approve of the
tariffs but rejected the concept of nullification
• Jackson and Calhoun are now torn apart on
major issues
• Calhoun resigned as Vice President
*A compromise was needed*
Compromise Solution
• A new tariff (passed in 1833) gradually
lowered tariff rates
• Force Bill: Allowed President to use force to
collect tariff revenues
• Henry Clay – Great Compromiser
Bank Crisis
• Jackson distrusted and had a hatred for the Bank
of the United States
• He, and others, believed its policies had
influenced the Panic of 1819
• Jackson vetoed the bank’s renewal in 1832:
-It was unconstitutional
- It was harmful to the nation
- Bank only served the interest of wealthy
elites
Bank Crisis
• Andrew Jackson defeated Henry Clay and was
re-elected in 1832
• Federal money was withdrawn from Bank of
the United States and placed into “pet banks”
in the states
• Would lead to the “death” of the Bank of the
United States in 1836
Jackson’s Opponents
• Whigs: Name given to political party opposed
to Jackson
• Labeled Andrew Jackson – King Andrew I
• Second American party system evolved
- Democratic Party
- Whigs
Limits to Jacksonian Democracy
• Jackson was a slave holder
• There were over 100 slaves on his plantation
in Tennessee
• While Andrew Jackson repeatedly stated
supported rights for all. All meaning “whites”
males
• He did not support equality for women
• Indian Removal Act of 1830
Indian Removal
• The Cherokee were told to assimilate into U.S.
society
- They adopted a written constitution that they
wrote
• However, once gold was found on their land in
Georgia, the state government forced their
power on them
Indian Removal
(Supreme Court)
• Chief Justice John Marshall
- Cherokee should not be forced to move
• Jackson ignored the ruling; enforced the
Indian Removal Act
• Minor Cherokee leaders agreed to give up
land for money
Cherokee Trail of Tears (1838)
• 15,000- 18,000 were
forced to move
• 25% died along the way
Martin Van Buren
• Won the election of 1836
• Van Buren, Jackson’s Vice President, was seen
as Jackson’s puppet
• Took office in 1837 and was greeted by the
Panic of 1837
Panic of 1837
• Resulted from:
- Bad harvests in Europe caused English
Banks to call in loans it had given to the U.S.
- Cotton prices went down
- Everyone rushed to the banks to withdraw
all their money before it was too late
• Whigs accuse Jackson’s anti-bank policies for the
fall of the economy
Panic of 1839
• After the Panic of 1837 was resolved another
took place in 1839
• Banks again were failing along with the
economy and businesses
• This would eventually lead to the lose of Van
Buren’s second term and the end of the Age of
Jackson
Election of 1840
• Whig leader William Henry Harrison would
beat Martin Van Buren for the presidency
• Harrison’s inauguration speech took hours and
hours to finish in the rain
• Because of this Harrison developed
pneumonia and died soon after
• 1st President of U.S. to die in office
• John Tyler, Harrison’s Vice President, will now
serve as president from 1841-1845
Review
• Missouri Crisis and Monroe Doctrine were
important events during this era
• Describe the accomplishments and limitations
of Andrew Jackson’s Presidency. Overall, how
would you evaluate his years in office?