Blackwell Reference Online

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(b. Westmoreland County, Va., 28 April 1758; d. New York, N.Y., 4 July 1831) He fought in the R evolutionary W ar and was wounded at T renton . He read law under Thomas J efferson , sat in the Va. legislature in 1782, served in Congress (1783–6), supported the A ntifederalists at the Va. ratifying convention, served as US senator (1790–4), acted as ambassador to France (1794–6), held office as Va. governor (1799–1800 and 1811), assisted the L ouisiana P urchase negotiations, served as minister to Britain (1803–6), and was secretary of state (1811–17, except while secretary of war in 1814–15). He triumphed in the 1816 election for president over Rufus K ing and won reelection in 1820 without opposition. (A single elector cast a vote for John Q. A dams , however.) The E ra of G ood F eelings mainly reflected his personal popularity. His major accomplishment was the M onroe D octrine . ... log in or subscribe to read full text