QUICK FACTS
Nickname: Last Cocked Hat
Years in office: 1817–1825
Political party: Democratic-Republican
Birthday: April 28, 1758
Official presidential portrait of James Monroe
by Samuel F. B. Morse, ca. 1819
Washington Crossing the Delaware, by Emanuel Leutze, 1851 (Metropolitan Museum of Art)
You have likely seen this iconic painting before, but did you know there are two future presidents depicted here? Washington takes center stage in this painting, leading his men across the Delaware on December 25, 1776. But, next to him, holding the flag, is James Monroe. It isn’t perfectly accurate (Monroe and Washington were actually on different boats), but it does bring to light the Revolutionary War service of our fifth president.
Check out the map below to learn more.
James Monroe was the last of the Virginia Dynasty who served as president during our founding era. The Federalist party had all but disappeared. Monroe, a framer of the Constitution and Revolutionary War hero, easily won.
President Monroe ran unopposed in this election. Only one elector cast a vote for John Quincy Adams, possibly to protect the legacy of the unanimously elected Washington, or possibly because he did not like Monroe.
BIRTHPLACE
Colonial Beach, VA
HOME
Highland, Charlottesville, VA
CROSSING THE DELAWARE
Washington Crossing, PA
GRAVESITE
Richmond, VA
BOOKS
Davis, Kenneth C., and Pedro Martin. Don’t Know Much about the Presidents. New York: HarperCollins Publishers, 2014.
DeGregorio, William A., and Aaron Jaffe. The Complete Book of U.S. Presidents. Fort Lee, NJ: Barricade Books, Inc., 2017.
Kane, Joseph Nathan, and Janet Podell. Facts about the Presidents: A Compilation of Biographical and Historical Information. New York: H.W. Wilson, 2009.
WEBSITES
Encyclopedia Britannica, britannica.com
Library of Congress, loc.gov
Miller Center, University of Virginia, millercenter.org/the-presidency
The White House, whitehouse.gov
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