John Adams and France: A Remarkable but Costly Relationship

On March 4, 1797, John Adams was inaugurated second President of the United States in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He was preceded by President George Washington, who had served two terms in office. George Washington was elected by popular acclamation due to his military leadership in the Revolutionary War. John Adams was narrowly elected and had little popular support such as had been evident in the Washington Administration for two terms. John Adams stood up for his beliefs and was willing to absorb the consequences of his actions. A staunch patriot Adams would not compromise his belief that the United States should become an independent nation. He also developed diplomatic skills and assisted the United States in gaining key recognition from Holland. As President, Adams steered the nation through turmoil and kept the nation out of a war it could not afford. Many of his contemporaries labeled Adams as being mentally unbalanced, but he achieved most of the goals he pursued with little or no support.

Grantor dc:publisher

Wake Forest University

Year dc:date.issued

2009

Author dc:creator

• McCreary, Larry

• presidents

Language dc:language.iso

en_US

Handle dc:identifier.uri

http://hdl.handle.net/10339/14771

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:wakespace.lib.wfu.edu:10339/14771