The early1820’s were a time of great change and expansion in America. The population increased 33% in under ten years, making it just shy of ten million people legally residing within its borders. Furthermore, the caste system of slavery was beginning to fray at its edges and become incoherent for the ethics of society. This massive influx of immigrants, and internal freeing of slaves put a heavy strain on US territory, and demanded for expansion. As the US grew further West, the issue of foreign affairs became extremely evident. The president at this time of expansion was James Monroe, a man of French and Skotish decent and the last founding father to be president. He was elected for his second term in 1821, and eventually in 1823, he developed and anounced his solution to the growing issue of forign affairs, particularly relating to Europe. The Monroe Doctrine (actually coined the “Monroe Doctrine” in 1850) was a policy dictating how the country should take action against other countries in matters of colonies and the expansion in the west. Simply put, it was scripture dictating the flow of expansion and development. …show more content…
It further declared Americas independence “The American continents … are henceforth not to be considered as subjects for future colonization by any European powers.”, but additionally negotiate terms in which America would and would not engage in european affairs “”. Unfortunatly for America this passive aggressive atitude had nothing to back it up. Americas army was practically a few motivated rovolutionaries with homespun weapons and ragtag (clothes). There navy was laughable compared to the fleets of the English, resulting in Europe paying little mind to the (shy) statements of the
The Declaration of Independence refers to “our constitution”, in this respect they were referring to the Ancient British Constitution. The United States was expressing the fundamental aspects of British politics; among these were Classic Republicanism, Enlightenment Liberalism, and Protestant Christianity. In the Declaration they balanced all of these English traditions; expressing what they believed to be the true spirit of the British Constitution. As Edmund Burke would say, “(the Revolution) was carried out not to create new liberties but to preserve old ones” (Wood, p. 58). The main issue that the colonies had with the British following 1763, was England’s belief in the doctrine of
James Monroe will always be best known by his Doctrine, but what most people don’t know is that most of the Monroe Doctrine was written by the Secretary of State, John Quincy Adams. Also that Adams was the one who told him to do it. The Monroe Doctrine was originally a letter to congress in 1823. The document stated that it was the end of colonizing the Americas.
Terms-Second BUS/Tariff of 1816/ The AMERICAN SYSTEM/Virginia Dynasty/Era of Good Feelings/Treaty of 1818/ Panic of 1819/Florida Purchase Treaty/Tallmadge Amendment/Russo-American Treaty of 1824/ Questions/Essays 1. The Monroe Doctrine was a bold statement of American Foreign Policy. It discusses its origins, its focus at the time, and the impact it had during the pre-Civil War period of American diplomacy. 2.
This conclusion seemed to contradict every presumption about Great Britain’s imperial power. In all other conflicts, the British seemed to win decisively but the problem in the American Revolution lies with Britain underestimating the colonists. The British were blind to America’s symbolic presence as an end to an imperial structure. France and Spain aided the colonists in hopes of defeating the tyrannical empire. Britain underestimated George Washington and the Continental Army. Over time, the colonial militias trained in the European fashion and transformed into a challenging force. Ultimately, the most distinctive miscalculation of the British was the perseverance of the colonists and their fight for freedom. While Britain was fighting for control over yet another revenue source, America was fighting for independence and principle. The difference between the motivations was the predominant factor in deciding the
Even more complicated than Russia and even more influential in persuading Monroe and Adams that the Monroe Doctrine was necessary was the nation who had the most presence in the New World-- Spain. The Spanish colonies and territorial claims were massive spanning from Florida out to the West coast, including the Oregon territory, down through Central America and spanning almost all of the South American continent. After the wars in Europe ended, the previous King of Spain was replaced by King Ferdinand VII. Though a series of rebellions threatened his hold on the Spanish crown, the Congress of Vienna agreed to aid King Ferdinand in securing his throne and in 1822 the reinstallation of absolute monarchy in Spain was successful (Robertson). This caused concern for Monroe because King Ferdinand was adamant on restoring balance and control in the Spanish colonies (McDougall). There was also concern, as aforementioned, that Russia would intervene to
...arliament, caused the colonies to become more and more independent throughout the eighteenth century. Yet the colonists wanted to exhaust every remedy to their grievances before resorting to war. Declaring independence was never going to be a swift process, as each colony progressed at a different rate. Nonetheless, forming a colonial army at the same time as attempting to negotiate peaceful conciliation with the British was not at first a popular decision, yet to many the benefits outweighed the possible losses. In the end, the rejection of the Olive branch represented a watershed in the evolution of a national identity that was completely independent of a British identity, for its dismissal stiffened the patriots’ resolve toward independence and paved the way for the penning of a much more famous letter to the king, the Declaration of Independence.
With the widespread of Thomas Paine’s Common Sense, American independence gained extensive support. As Paine insisted, “membership in the British empire was a burden to the colonies, not a gift.” Finally, on July 2, 1776, the Congress declared the United States as an independent nation, and America soon gained international recognition.
Primarily, the United States foreign policy behind the Monroe Doctrine was introduced by President James Monroe in the midst of many Latin American countries gaining their independence from Spain. The doctrine stated that attempts by European countries to colonize or interfere with states in the Western Hemisphere would be viewed as acts of aggression and U.S. intervention would be necessary. The Monroe Doctrine set the precedent for various foreign policies that would result in U.S. involvement in Latin America.
One main focus of Washington’s farewell address was to alert the citizens of the U.S. that America should not get involved in foreign relations, especially with the flare between the French and the British. He wanted America to stay neutral in foreign matters and not hold long term alliances with other nations. He stated “Europe has a set of primary interests, which to us have none, or a very remote relation.” He included how it is unwise for America to implicate itself with artificial ties. Washington believed that if America did conduct with foreign nations then they would influence people as well as government to act as they wanted. In other words, Washington encouraged Americans to take advantage as a new union and avoid as much political affairs with others.
They had their own way of wording it but it all was the same. I really like how Thomas Paine worded it the best by stating “In order for the colonist to prosper in the long term, the colonies need to be independent.” Paine all so states “by declaring independence, America will be able to ask for help of other countries in its struggle of freedom.” The colonist just needed to break away so they could grow on their own. By the colonist breaking away is how the United States of America was formed. As it states in Thomas Jefferson’s Declaration of Independence “The new government will reserve the right to levy war, make peace, make alliance with foreign nations, conduct trade, and do anything else that nations do.” With that being said that means that the colonist had to come up with their own government. That all so gave them the right to reach out to other’s for trade of goods and anything else that they may need help with, but not having to answer to
In conclusion, it is evident that the freedom of America was not free. It was bought with a price. This freedom was gained through years of sacrifice and the American victory in the Revolutionary War. It’s military assets, the aid from foreign countries, and the unwavering, inspiring spirit of independence were significant factors in the colonial victory. Without these three components, the Revolutionary War would have been lost and America would not be as we know it today.
A big issue Monroe tried to act on was British impressments, which is the practice of capturing U.S. sailors and making them serve in the British navy. This caused a slight rift between President Jefferson, Secretary of State Madison, and Monroe, after the two didn’t see the means of signing a treaty that Monroe thought would make the relationship between the two countries better. Monroe finally came to an understanding, repairing the broken bond between the three friends (Minister to France and Britain). This would pay off when newly appointed President James Madison would give the position of Secretary of State to James Monroe (Secretary of State and Secretary of War).
Although the treaty was ultimately a failure, it helped to mend the bonds between the two nations and it lead to the American sovereignty over the entire northwest without any problems. The Alien and Sedition Acts were four bills passed by President John Adams and were also important regarding American foreign policy because of the amount interest from foreigners who wanted to become citizens of the new United States. The Sedition Act allowed the government to prosecute those who engaged in overtly negative speech or conduct against the government and the purpose of the Alien Act was that it placed a lot of obstacles in the way of potential American citizens. The immigrants could potentially become citizens but it was difficult. The United States had faced issues concerning foreign policy because of the risk of losing parts of the continent or their new states to the larger, more powerful European countries, who could claim parts of the land as colonies of their own. The Monroe Doctrine was crucial in preserving the nationalism in the United States because it strengthened their standing and saved them from losing their progress. President Monroe, along with the help of John Quincy Adams, created the treaty known as the Monroe Doctrine in order to solidify the United States and make
...erall, Great Britain wanted to rule colonies to benefit themselves and only concerned for their own welfare and not that of the American people.
The Monroe Doctrine and the Manifest Destiny stated America's philosophies regarding foreign policy. The Monroe Doctrine (1823), crafted by President Monroe and Secretary of State John Quincy Adams, was a statem...