Non-fiction: First Inaugural Address of James Monroe

Overview and Tone
James Monroe’s First Inaugural Address, delivered on March 4, 1817, sets a conciliatory, confident tone at the dawn of the so-called Era of Good Feelings. Speaking after the War of 1812 and amid global upheaval, Monroe praises the nation’s resilience and prosperity and urges a politics of harmony. He frames his administration as a steward of a maturing republic blessed with vast resources, expanding population, and a robust spirit of liberty, while acknowledging the obligations and dangers that accompany such growth.

Constitutional Principles and National Unity
Monroe centers the Constitution as the guide for all policy, emphasizing a government of limited, enumerated powers and a careful balance between federal authority and state prerogatives. He presents fidelity to the Constitution not as narrow restraint but as the surest path to stability and liberty. With party animosities receding, he calls for unity around shared republican principles rather than factional loyalty, arguing that broad agreement on constitutional fundamentals can sustain national cohesion while accommodating debate on particulars.

Foreign Policy and Defense
Surveying a volatile international landscape, Monroe pledges friendship with all nations and entanglement with none. He supports strict neutrality and the peaceful assertion of American rights, especially on the seas, while signaling firmness in the face of external pressure. National security, he argues, requires a practical, layered defense: permanent coastal fortifications to shield harbors and commercial cities; a capable regular army to garrison and support those works; a disciplined militia for rapid augmentation; and, above all, a strong navy. He describes naval power as both a protector of maritime commerce and a deterrent that can project resolve without inviting large standing armies. This defense system should be built methodically, tailored to resources, and sustained through professional training and institutions.

Economy, Finance, and Internal Improvements
Monroe links prosperity to fiscal prudence and sound public credit. He urges timely payment of the national debt and careful husbanding of revenue, chiefly from customs, to avoid burdensome taxation. He recognizes the emergence of domestic manufactures accelerated by wartime disruptions and suggests measured, temporary support to allow them to take root alongside agriculture and commerce, all within a framework that avoids permanent distortions.

On internal improvements, canals, roads, and related infrastructure, he argues they are essential for national cohesion, economic efficiency, and defense, knitting together distant regions and lowering the costs of trade. Yet he is sensitive to constitutional limits. If doubt persists about federal authority to fund such projects, he recommends a constitutional amendment to settle the question clearly, thereby enabling a durable, national system of improvements without straining the charter.

Territory, Native Nations, and Public Lands
With the frontier advancing and new states joining the Union, Monroe backs policies that integrate territories on an equal footing while managing public lands to encourage orderly settlement and support revenue. He calls for a just and humane approach to Native nations, honoring treaties, protecting their rights, and promoting efforts to improve their material condition through peaceful means. The goal, he suggests, is to reconcile expansion with fairness and stability, minimizing conflict through law and good faith.

Civil Administration and Significance
Monroe promises moderation, economy, and merit in appointments, seeking to reduce partisan rancor and reinforce public trust. He portrays republican government as dependent on civic virtue and public education, confident that an informed citizenry will sustain liberty better than any executive design.

The address functions as a governing blueprint for the postwar republic: restraint in foreign entanglements, credible defenses anchored by fortifications and a navy, fiscal responsibility, encouragement of productive enterprise, and nationally beneficial infrastructure grounded in clear constitutional authority. It captures a moment of optimism while candidly acknowledging the hard work of building institutions capable of matching the nation’s vast potential.