Historians call the period between 1815 and 1824 as “Era of Good Feelings,” during which the United States experienced a boost in nationalism and prosperity under the leadership of President James Monroe. However, upon further exploration of the period, it becomes hard to truly characterize it as the era of “good feelings” even though it started on a positive note – the end of the war with the victory of America over Britain at the New Orleans battle. Consequently, the American nation experienced an uprise in patriotic feelings as the population united over the victory.
As time passed, it became evident that optimism was being replaced with more pessimism. For example, the Panic of 1819 was a severe economic depression affecting the country caused by falling imports and exports as well as declining agricultural prices (Preston). Moreover, the same year, the Missouri Territory applied to be admitted to the unity, with 16% of the settlers in the area being enslaved blacks. Ultimately, the House refused to admit Missouri as a slave state because the government understood the changing nature of the natural divide regarding slavery. The President feared that further dispute would result in a divide in the Union, which is why he advocated for the compromise in Congress.
Divides in society during Monroe’s presidency emerged in the context of opposing Federalists due to their lack of support for the war.
As a result, parties started declining because of the wrongful belief that the government could successfully operate without their presence. The significant divide over sociopolitical and economic issues and the emergence of different parties led to Monroe’s desire to establish coalitions to reduce the gaps in opinions and help reach a consensus for the programs’ enactment.
Work Cited
Preston, Daniel. “James Monroe: Domestic Affairs.” Miller Center. Web.