John Quincy Adams Essays - Adams Family, John Quincy Adams

John Quincy Adams JOHN QUINCY ADAMS John Quincy Adams was born in Braintree (Quincy), Massachusetts on July 11th, 1767. His ancestry lineage was English. Adams' religion was Unitarian. His father, John Adams, was born in Braintree (Quincy), Massachusetts on October 19th, 1735. He died in Quincy, Massachusetts on July 4th, 1826. He had three major occupations. He was a lawyer, a statesman, and the President of the United States. His mother, Abigail Smith Adams, was born in Weymouth Massachusetts on November 11th, 1744. She died in Quincy, Massachusetts on October 28th, 1818. John Quincy Adams had two brothers: Charles Adams who lived between the years 1770 and 1800, and Thomas Boylston Adams who lived between the years 1772 and 1832. He also had two sisters: Abigail Amelia Adams who lived between the years 1765 and 1813, and Susanna Adams who lived between the years 1768 and 1770. Louisa Catherine Johnson was born in London, England on February 12th, 1775 and she died in Washington DC on May 14th, 1852. Louisa was the second daughter of Joshua and Catherine Johnson. John Quincy Adams and Louisa Catherine Johnson were married before eleven a.m. on July 26th, 1767 in London, England at the All Hollows Barking Church. They were married by Mr. Hewlett. The portrait on the next page is of Louisa Catherine Adams at age 43. It was painted by Gilbert Stuart in 1818. John Quincy Adams and Louisa Catherine Adams had four children. Their children were George Washington Adams (1801-1812), John Adams (1803-1834), Charles Francis Adams (1807-1886), and Louisa Catherine Adams (1811-1812). John Quincy Adams had plenty of education, which helped him in his election as President. He studied in Paris, Amsterdam, Leyden, and The Hugue. He received his Bachelor of Arts in 1787 from Harvard and studied law from 1788 to 1790 with Theophilus Parsons. His Pre-presidency occupations consisted of being a lawyer and a professor. These jobs helped Adams to have the confidence he needed to become President. His Pre-Presidential offices consisted of being a Minister to the Netherlands, a Minister to Prussia, a Member of Massachusetts Senate, a Member of United States Senate, a Minister to Russia, a Minister to Great Britain, and a Secretary of State for Massachusetts. Adams' Political Party was Federalist, to 1808; Democratic-Republican, to 1825; National Republican (Whig) thereafter. He was 57 years of age when he was inaugurated as President. Adams was a Congressman and a writer after his presidency. In the election of 1824 Andrew Jackson, William H. Crawford, and Henry Clay ran against John Quincy Adams for president. Although Jackson received more votes than Adams, no candidate had a majority, so the election was submitted to the House of Representatives which, after careful examination of each party, chose Adams. He was and still is the only president ever to be the son of a president. Adams' Inauguration was held on March 4th, 1825 at the Hall of the House of Representatives in Washington, DC. His vice-president was John Calhoun; Secretary of State: Henry Clay; Secretary of Treasury: Richard Rush; Secretary of War: James Barbour, Peter Buell Porter (from June 21st, 1828); Attorney General: John McLean; Secretary of the Navy: Samuel Lewis Southard; Supreme Court Appointment: Robert Trimble (1826). John Quincy Adams' unexpected success as minister to Russia saved him from a political scrap heap to which he had been relegated by those who deplored his disregard for party lines. He had already represented the United States at The Hague and in Prussia, where he had seen the rise of tensions which upset Europe in the early 1800's. His mission in Russia was to urge freedom of the seas, to seek favorable treatment for American shipping in Russian waters, and to reaffirm the desire of the United States to avoid entanglement in continental policies. The Adams's arrived in Saint Petersburg late in 1809 and soon were a part of the capital's social whirl. When fifty-two American ships were seized by Danish privateers, Adams appealed to Alexander the 1st (who was eager for American friendship) to intercede. Through the Czar's efforts, the ships were released. By late 1810, Adams had convinced the Czar to discontinue the capture and detainment of American ships in Russian Ports. The Czar's decision was in defiance of Napoleon's system of