John Quincy Adams Dbq

John Quincy Adams, America’s sixth President was born July 11, 1767 in Braintree, Massachusetts to the former president John Adams and his wife Abigail Adams. He was a child that grew up during the American Revolution. He was able to experience and watch the Battle of Bunker Hill with his mother from his house. John Quincy Adams did not attend school when he was young. He was tutored by his cousin and his father’s law clerk. He did not acquire a real education until he traveled with his father. When his father became the ambassador to France and also Netherlands, John Quincy accompanied him on the missions he took. While in Europe with his father he was able to attend Leiden University where he graduated in 1781.

He later attended Harvard University where he received not only a law degree but he also received a Bachelor’s and Master’s Degree in Arts. He took the bar in 1791 where he passed and began his career as a lawyer in Boston. Quincy’s love for politics came from watching his father. Having a father that was a man of power allowed Quincy to gain a lot of political insight which led to his successful political and presidential career.

John Quincy Adams was not only known for his

prestigious work as America’s sixth president but also for his work outside his presidency term. Quincy’s career began when he was asked by President George Washington to be the Minister to Netherlands. He accompanied Francis Dana to Russia as his private secretary. His job with Dana was to help the United States gain recognition.
Before his presidency Quincy served as the Secretary to the minister of Russia.

As Secretary to the minister Adams was able to strengthen the relationship between Russia and the U.S. which also helped the U.S. become Russia’s leading trading partner. He was the ambassador to the Netherlands under the watchful eye of George Washington. Then he worked as ambassador for Prussia under his father John Adams. His main objective was to improve the relationship between Prussia and the U.S. In order to excel at his position John Quincy had to learn German which ultimately led him to be able to communicate the Treaty of Amity and Commerce. Before leaving to Prussia John Quincy Adams married Louisa Catherine Johnson who was the daughter of United States' first Consul, Joshua

Johnson.
Louisa was America’s first foreign born First Lady. He served as the last ambassador role was to Russia and the United Kingdom under James Madison. Quincy Adams also served as the Senator of Massachusetts when Thomas Jefferson was president. As Senator he approved the Louisiana Purchase. His support of the Louisiana Purchase and the Embargo was opposite belief from the Federalist Party lines and caused him to lose his spot as Senator.
Finally he was Secretary of State under James Monroe. As Secretary of State he was one of the primary negotiators of the 1819 Transcontinental Treaty with Spain. Quincy was known as one of the greatest secretaries of state because he helped get Florida from Spain for only five million dollars through the Adams-Onís Treaty. He also was responsible for the Treaty of 1818. It helped solve the boundary issues between The United States and The United Kingdom. Adams served as Secretary of State from September 1817 until March 1825.
He continued to impress others when he helped write the Monroe Doctrine. The Monroe Doctrine stated that . Adams was in charge of the Commission that discussed the Treaty of Ghent in 1814 which brought the War of 1812 with Great Britain to an end.
The Presidential campaign did not come easy for John Quincy Adams. He was up against four other candidates that were up against him. The fight for presidency was between John Quincy Adams, John Calhoun, Andrew Jackson, Henry Clay and William Crawford. Being that Calhoun was nominated for the vice president position, the votes had to determine who would win. Jackson received the most votes by getting 99 electoral votes for the presidency, then came Adams in second with 84, next was Crawford with 41 and in last was Clay with 37. Even though Jackson received the most votes in the general election no one received majority of the votes and a President had to be chosen by the House of Representatives. John Quincy Adams was elected as the president from 1825 until 1829.
During his Presidency Adams worked on many things. He proposed the Tariff of Abominations which would protect American manufacturers but it caused the prices of good to go up and the law was not passed. This proposal majorly affected him not being reelected for another term. His main focus as President was to find a way to fix internal improvements. As President he was able to get the national debt down from around sixteen million dollars to five million dollars. His cabinet during his Presidency consisted of his Vice President: John C. Calhoun, Secretary of State: Henry Clay, Secretary of Treasury: Richard Rush, Secretary of War: James Barbour (1825-1828), Peter B. Porter (1828-1829), Attorney General: William Wirt, Secretary of the Navy: Samuel L. Southard. After Adams first term he run again but was beat by Jackson. After his loss Adams retired for a short time only to return back to the political light be elected to serve as a part of The House of Representatives.
His job in the House of Representatives was very successful.