Global InformationJohn Adams information
John Adams | |
|---|---|
 Portrait c. 1800–1815 | |
| 2nd President of the United States | |
| In office March 4, 1797 – March 4, 1801 | |
| Vice President | Thomas Jefferson |
| Preceded by | George Washington |
| Succeeded by | Thomas Jefferson |
| 1st Vice President of the United States | |
| In office April 21, 1789 – March 4, 1797 | |
| President | George Washington |
| Preceded by | Office established |
| Succeeded by | Thomas Jefferson |
| 1st United States Minister to Great Britain | |
| In office April 1, 1785 – February 20, 1788[1] | |
| Appointed by | Congress of the Confederation |
| Succeeded by | Thomas Pinckney |
| 1st United States Minister to the Netherlands | |
| In office April 19, 1782 – March 30, 1788[1] | |
| Appointed by | Congress of the Confederation |
| Succeeded by | Charles W. F. Dumas (acting) |
| United States Envoy to France | |
| In office November 28, 1777[2][3] – March 8, 1779 | |
| Preceded by | Silas Deane |
| Succeeded by | Benjamin Franklin |
| Chairman of the Marine Committee | |
| In office October 13, 1775 – October 28, 1779 | |
| Preceded by | Office established |
| Succeeded by | Francis Lewis (Continental Board of Admiralty) |
| 12th Chief Justice of the Massachusetts Superior Court of Judicature | |
| In office October 1775 – February 1777 | |
| Appointed by | Provincial Congress |
| Preceded by | Peter Oliver |
| Succeeded by | William Cushing |
| Delegate from Massachusetts to the Continental Congress | |
| In office September 5, 1774 – November 28, 1777 | |
| Preceded by | Office established |
| Succeeded by | Samuel Holten |
| Personal details | |
| Born | October 30, 1735 [O.S. October 19, 1735] Braintree, Massachusetts Bay, British America (now Quincy) |
| Died | July 4, 1826 (aged 90) Quincy, Massachusetts, U.S. |
| Resting place | United First Parish Church |
| Political party |
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| Spouse |
Abigail Smith
(m. 1764; died 1818) |
| Children | 6, including Abigail, John Quincy, Charles, and Thomas |
| Parents |
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| Education | Harvard College (AB, AM) |
| Occupation |
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| Signature |  |
John Adams (October 30, 1735 – July 4, 1826) was an American statesman, attorney, diplomat, writer, and Founding Father who served as the second president of the United States from 1797 to 1801. Before his presidency, he was a leader of the American Revolution that achieved independence from Great Britain. During the latter part of the Revolutionary War and in the early years of the new nation, he served the U.S. government as a senior diplomat in Europe. Adams was the first person to hold the office of vice president of the United States, serving from 1789 to 1797. He was a dedicated diarist and regularly corresponded with important contemporaries, including his wife and adviser Abigail Adams and his friend and political rival Thomas Jefferson.
A lawyer and political activist prior to the Revolution, Adams was devoted to the right to counsel and presumption of innocence. He defied anti-British sentiment and successfully defended British soldiers against murder charges arising from the Boston Massacre. Adams was a Massachusetts delegate to the Continental Congress and became a leader of the revolution. He assisted Jefferson in drafting the Declaration of Independence in 1776 and was its primary advocate in Congress. As a diplomat he helped negotiate a peace treaty with Great Britain and secured vital governmental loans. Adams was the primary author of the Massachusetts Constitution in 1780, which influenced the United States Constitution, as did his essay Thoughts on Government.
Adams was elected to two terms as vice president under President George Washington and was elected as the United States' second president in 1796. He was the only president elected under the banner of the Federalist Party. Adams's term was dominated by the issue of the French Revolutionary Wars, and his insistence on American neutrality led to fierce criticism from both the Jeffersonian Republicans and from some in his own party, led by his rival Alexander Hamilton. Adams signed the controversial Alien and Sedition Acts, and built up the Army and Navy in the undeclared naval war with France. He was the first president to reside in the White House.
In his bid in 1800 for reelection to the presidency, opposition from Federalists and accusations of despotism from Jeffersonians led to Adams losing to his vice president and former friend Jefferson, and he retired to Massachusetts. He eventually resumed his friendship with Jefferson by initiating a continuing correspondence. He and Abigail generated the Adams political family, including their son John Quincy Adams, the sixth president. John Adams died on July 4, 1826 – the fiftieth anniversary of the adoption of the Declaration of Independence. Adams and his son are the only presidents of the first twelve who never owned slaves. Historians and scholars have favorably ranked his administration.
- ^ a b "John Adams (1735–1826)". United States Department of State: Office of the Historian. Retrieved September 30, 2018.
- ^ "To John Adams from Daniel Roberdeau, 28 November 1777". Adams Papers, Massachusetts Historical Society. Retrieved May 10, 2020.
I congratulate you or rather my Country in the choice of you this day as a Commissioner to France for the united States, in lieu of Mr. Dean who is recalled.
- ^ United States. Continental Congress; Ford, Worthington Chauncey; Hunt, Gaillard; Fitzpatrick, John Clement; Hill, Roscoe R.; Harris, Kenneth E.; Tilley, Steven D.; Library of Congress. Manuscript Division (1904). Journals of the Continental Congress, 1774–1789. University of California Libraries. Washington: U.S. Govt. print off. p. 975. Retrieved May 10, 2020.
Congress proceeded to the election of a commissioner to the Court of France in the room of S. Deane, Esqr. and, the ballots being taken, John Adams, a delegate in Congress from Massachusetts bay, was elected.
- ^ McCullough 2001, p. 599.