War of 1812 and the Era of Good Feelings

The American Economy After the War of 1812

Following the War of 1812, the American economy experienced growth.
President James Madison had to address the issue of the expired charter of the Bank of the United States.
The rechartering of the bank was controversial, with debates between different regions.

The Northeast generally supported the bank, while the South and the West tended to oppose it.
Despite opposition, Madison and Congress established a new Bank of the United States.
Madison shifted his stance, believing a national bank was in the country's best interest.

Congress passed the Tariff of 1816, the first tariff intended to protect industry.
The goal was to protect Northern manufacturing, which had expanded during the war.
Raising tariffs on imported goods would encourage people to buy American-made products.
New England favored the tariff because it protected their manufacturing interests.
The South opposed the tariff because manufacturing was not located there, and they had to pay higher prices without benefiting.
This created a sectional issue between the North and the South.

James Monroe won the election of 1816, succeeding Madison, who served two terms.
Monroe was the last of the Revolutionary generation to serve as president, understanding the struggle for American independence.
Monroe was a Republican who believed in states' rights and a limited national government, similar to Madison's earlier views.
The period was known as the Era of Good Feelings because America was at peace, and the economy was prosperous.
Tensions existed beneath the surface, but overall, the nation appeared to be in good shape.
Monroe was reelected in 1820.

Relations with Great Britain improved during Monroe's presidency.
The Convention of 1818 with Britain established the northern limit of the Louisiana Purchase.
The agreement also established the joint occupation of the Oregon territory.
The boundary was determined, with British territory to the north and American territory to the south.
The Oregon territory was jointly controlled by both America and Britain.

The Transcontinental Treaty of 1819 resolved issues with Spain.
America gained Florida from Spain.
The treaty established the remaining boundary of the Louisiana Purchase territory.
The boundary excluded Texas from the Louisiana Purchase territory.
In the future, there would be claims that America shouldn't have agreed to the boundary established in the treaty.

The admission of Missouri into the Union became a contentious issue threatening to divide the nation.
In 1819, there was an equal number of slave and free states, resulting in a balance of power in the Senate.
The issue of slavery in the territory west of the Mississippi River needed to be addressed.
The previous agreements didn't account for the extra territory from the Louisiana Purchase.
Slavery was the central issue when admitting Missouri.
After debate, a compromise was reached to admit Maine as a free state and Missouri as a slave state, maintaining the balance of power in the Senate.
An amendment was added to exclude slavery from the rest of the Louisiana territory north of Missouri's border.

The Missouri Compromise Line was established as part of the compromise.
The Arkansas territory would be a slave state when it applied for statehood.
All territory north of the line, except for Missouri, would be free.
The Missouri Compromise Line was acceptable at the time, but future generations would question it.

Spain lost most of its American empire, leading to concerns about potential reclamation attempts.
President James Monroe presented his annual message to Congress, incorporating a proposal by Secretary of State John Quincy Adams.
This proposal became known as the Monroe Doctrine.
The Monroe Doctrine stated that the American continents were not open for future colonization by European countries.
America would not interfere with existing European colonies in America.
However, America would oppose any attempts by European powers to regain or establish new colonies.
In return for Europe staying out of future colonization, America would stay out of internal European affairs.
America believed that the form of government in the Western Hemisphere was too different from that in Europe, making European intervention a threat..

All candidates in the election of 1824 were Republicans because the Federalist Party had become virtually nonexistent.
John Quincy Adams was a candidate.
Adams and Clay supporters gave all their votes to Adams.
It was basically a backroom deal.