Was john adams a good president

Founding Father, 2nd U.S. president ( to )

This article is about the second president of the United States. For his son, the sixth president, see John Quincy Adams. For other uses, see John Adams (disambiguation).

John Adams
Portrait c.&#;
In office March 4, &#;– March 4,
Vice President	Thomas Jefferson
Preceded by	George Washington
Succeeded by	Thomas Jefferson
In office April 21, &#;– March 4,
President	George Washington
Preceded by	Office established
Succeeded by	Thomas Jefferson
In office April 1, &#;– February 20, [1]
Appointed by	Congress of the Confederation
Succeeded by	Thomas Pinckney
In office April 19, &#;– March 30, [1]
Appointed by	Congress of the Confederation
Succeeded by	Charles W. F. Dumas (acting)
In office October 13, &#;– October 28,
Preceded by	Office established
Succeeded by	Francis Lewis (Continental Board of Admiralty)
In office October &#;– February
Appointed by	Provincial Congress
Preceded by	Peter Oliver
Succeeded by	William Cushing
In office September 5, &#;– November 28,
Preceded by	Office established
Succeeded by	Samuel Holten
Born	October 30, [O.S. October 19, ] Braintree, Massachusetts Bay, British America (now Quincy)
Died	July 4, () (aged&#;90) Quincy, Massachusetts, U.S.
Resting place	United First Parish Church
Political party
Spouse	Abigail Smith &#; &#; (m.&#;; died&#;)&#;
Children	6, including Abigail, John Quincy, Charles, and Thomas
Parents
Education	Harvard College (AB, AM)
Occupation
Signature

John Adams (October 30, – July 4, ) was an American Founding Father who served as the second president of the United States from to Before his presidency, he was a leader of the American Revolution that achieved independence from Great Britain.

2nd president More Americans came to determine that mere commercial ties between the U. Service learning. Professional development. A new proposal was then drawn up demanding that the Treaty of Alliance of be superseded and that France pay for its damages to American property.

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 to 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 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 , 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 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.

John adams date of death: In time, Adams grew close to Abigail. Twelve colonies voted in the affirmative, while New York abstained. Immersive learning for 25 languages. There was a time when several representatives kept getting his opinion and view regarding the framing of a new government.

Adams signed the controversial Alien and Sedition Acts and built up the Army and Navy in an undeclared naval war with France. He was the first president to reside in the White House.

In his bid in 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 started the Adams political family, which includes their son John Quincy Adams, the sixth president. John Adams died on July 4, – the fiftieth anniversary of the adoption of the Declaration of Independence. New Englanders Adams and his son are the only presidents of the first twelve who never owned slaves.

Historians and scholars have favorably ranked his administration.

Early life and education

Further information: Adams political family

John Adams was born on October 30, ,^[a] to John Adams Sr. and Susanna Boylston. He had two younger brothers, Peter and Elihu.

Adams was born on the family farm in Braintree, Massachusetts.^[b] His mother was from a leading medical family of present-day Brookline, Massachusetts. His father was a deacon in the Congregational Church, a farmer, a cordwainer, and a lieutenant in the militia. Adams often praised his father and recalled their close relationship.

Adams's great-great-grandfather Henry Adams immigrated to Massachusetts from Braintree, Essex, England, around

Adams's formal education began at age six at a dame school, conducted at a teacher's home and centered on The New England Primer. He then attended Braintree Latin School under Joseph Cleverly, where studies included Latin, rhetoric, logic, and arithmetic.

Adams's early education included incidents of truancy, a dislike for his master, and a desire to become a farmer, but his father commanded that he remain in school. Deacon Adams hired a new schoolmaster named Joseph Marsh, and his son responded positively. Adams later noted that "As a child I enjoyed perhaps the greatest of blessings that can be bestowed upon men – that of a mother who was anxious and capable to form the characters of her children."

College education and adulthood

At age sixteen, Adams entered Harvard College in , studying under Joseph Mayhew.

As an adult, Adams was a keen scholar, studying the works of ancient writers such as Thucydides, Plato, Cicero, and Tacitus in their original languages. Though his father expected him to be a minister, after his graduation with an A.B. degree, he taught school temporarily in Worcester, while pondering his permanent vocation. In the next four years, he began to seek prestige, craving "Honour or Reputation" and "more defference from [his] fellows", and was determined to be "a great Man".

He decided to become a lawyer, writing his father that he found among lawyers "noble and gallant achievements" but, among the clergy, the "pretended sanctity of some absolute dunces". He had reservations about his self-described "trumpery" and failure to share the "happiness of [his] fellow men".

When the French and Indian War began in , Adams, aged nineteen, felt guilty he was the first in his family not to be a militia officer; he said "I longed more ardently to be a Soldier than I ever did to be a Lawyer".

Law practice and marriage

In , Adams began reading law under James Putnam, a leading lawyer in Worcester.

In , he earned an A.M. from Harvard,^[16] and in was admitted to the bar. He developed an early habit of diary writing; this included his impressions of James Otis Jr.'s challenge to the legality of British writs of assistance, which allowed British officials to search a home without notice or reason.

Otis's argument against the writs inspired Adams to the cause of the American colonies.

In , Adams explored aspects of political theory in seven essays written for Boston newspapers. Under the pen name "Humphrey Ploughjogger", he ridiculed the selfish thirst for power he perceived among the Massachusetts colonial elite. Adams was initially less well known than his older cousin Samuel Adams, but his influence emerged from his work as a constitutional lawyer, his analysis of history, and his dedication to republicanism.

Adams often found his own irascible nature a constraint in his political career.

In the late s, Adams fell in love with Hannah Quincy; he was poised to propose but was interrupted by friends, and the moment was lost. In , he met year-old Abigail Smith, his third cousin,^[20] through his friend Richard Cranch, who was courting Abigail's older sister.

Adams initially was not impressed with Abigail and her two sisters, writing that they were not "fond, nor frank, nor candid".

In time, Adams grew close to Abigail. They were married on October 25, , despite the opposition of Abigail's mother. The pair shared a love of books and proved honest in their praise and criticism of each other.

After his father's death in , Adams had inherited a 9+1&#;2-acre (&#;ha) farm and a house where they lived until ^[22]

John and Abigail had six children: Abigail (known as "Nabby") in ,John Quincy in , Susanna in , Charles in , Thomas in , and Elizabeth in Susanna died when she was one year old, while Elizabeth was stillborn.

All three of Adams's sons became lawyers. Charles and Thomas were unsuccessful, became alcoholics, and died at a relatively young age. In contrast, John Quincy excelled and launched a political career, eventually becoming president himself.

Career before the Revolution

Opponent of Stamp Act

Further information: Stamp Act

Adams rose to prominence leading widespread opposition to the Stamp Act.

The Act was imposed by the British Parliament without consulting the American legislatures. It required payment of a direct tax by the colonies for stamped documents,^[29][30] and was designed to pay for the costs of Britain's war with France. Power of enforcement was given to British vice admiralty courts, rather than common law courts.^[30] These Admiralty courts acted without juries and were greatly disliked.^[29] The Act was despised for both its monetary cost and implementation without colonial consent, and encountered violent resistance, preventing its enforcement.

Adams authored the "Braintree Instructions" in , in a letter sent to the representatives of Braintree in the Massachusetts legislature. It explained that the Act should be opposed since it denied two fundamental rights guaranteed to all Englishmen (and which all free men deserved): to be taxed only by consent and to be tried by a jury of one's peers.

The instructions were a succinct and forthright defense of colonial rights and liberties, and served as a model for other towns.

Adams also reprised his pen name "Humphrey Ploughjogger" in opposition to the Stamp Act in August of that year. Included were four articles to the Boston Gazette. The articles were republished in The London Chronicle in as True Sentiments of America, or A Dissertation on the Canon and Feudal Law.

He also spoke in December before the governor and council, pronouncing the Stamp Act invalid in the absence of Massachusetts representation at Parliament. He noted that many protests were sparked by a popular sermon of Boston minister Jonathan Mayhew, invoking Romans 13 to justify insurrection.^[35] While Adams strongly opposed the Act in writing, he rebuffed attempts by Samuel Adams, a leader in the popular protest movements, to involve him in mob actions and public demonstrations.

In , a town meeting of Braintree elected Adams as a selectman.

With the repeal of the Stamp Act in early , tensions with Britain temporarily eased. Putting politics aside, Adams moved his family to Boston in April to focus on his law practice. The family rented a house on Brattle Street that was known locally as the "White House".

He, Abigail, and the children lived there for a year, then moved to Cold Lane; later they moved again to a larger house in Brattle Square in the center of the city. In , Adams successfully defended the merchant John Hancock, who was accused of violating British acts of trade in the Liberty Affair. With the death of Jeremiah Gridley and the mental collapse of James Otis Jr., Adams became Boston's most prominent lawyer.

Counsel for the British: Boston Massacre

Further information: Boston Massacre

Britain's passage of the Townshend Acts in revived tensions, and an increase in mob violence led the British to dispatch more troops to the colonies.

On March 5, , when a lone British sentry was accosted by a mob, eight of his fellow soldiers reinforced him, and the crowd around them grew to several hundred.

John adams 2 president biography template Suspecting that he might be hiding material favorable to France, Republicans in the House, with the support of Federalists who had heard rumors of what was contained in the messages, voted overwhelmingly to demand that Adams release the papers. Other organizations. He returned to farming life in the months after. Classroom management.

The soldiers were struck with snowballs, ice, and stones, and in the chaos the soldiers opened fire, killing five civilians, in the infamous Boston Massacre. The accused soldiers were arrested on charges of murder. When no other attorneys would come to their defense, Adams was impelled to do so despite the risk to his reputation.

He believed no person should be denied the right to counsel and a fair trial. The trials were delayed so that passions could cool.

The week-long trial of the commander, Captain Thomas Preston, began on October 24 and ended in his acquittal, because it was impossible to prove that he had ordered his soldiers to fire. The remaining soldiers were tried in December when Adams made his famed argument regarding jury decisions: "Facts are stubborn things; and whatever may be our wishes, our inclinations, or the dictates of our passion, they cannot alter the state of facts and evidence."^[43] Adams won an acquittal for six of the soldiers.

Two, who had fired directly into the crowd, were convicted of manslaughter. Adams was paid a small sum by his clients.^[22]

According to biographer John E. Ferling, during jury selection Adams "expertly exercised his right to challenge individual jurors and contrived what amounted to a packed jury.

Not only were several jurors closely tied through business arrangements to the British army, but five ultimately became Loyalist exiles." While Adams's defense was helped by a weak prosecution, he "performed brilliantly." Ferling surmises that Adams was encouraged to take the case in exchange for political office; one of Boston's seats opened three months later in the Massachusetts legislature, and Adams was the town's choice to fill the vacancy.

The prosperity of his law practice increased from this exposure, as did the demands on his time.

In , Adams moved his family to Braintree, Massachusetts, but kept his office in Boston; he noted "Now my family is away, I feel no Inclination at all, no Temptation, to be any where but at my Office." After some time in the capital, he became disenchanted with the rural and "vulgar" Braintree as a home for his family – in August , he moved them back to Boston.

He purchased a large brick house on Queen Street, not far from his office. In , Adams and Abigail returned the family to the farm due to the increasingly unstable situation in Boston, and Braintree remained their permanent Massachusetts home.^[47]

American Revolution

Adams, who had been among the more conservative of the Founding Fathers, persistently held that while British actions against the colonies had been wrong, open insurrection was unwarranted and peaceful petition with the view of remaining part of Great Britain was preferable.

His ideas began to change around , as the British Crown assumed payment of the salaries of Governor Thomas Hutchinson and his judges instead of the Massachusetts legislature. Adams wrote in the Gazette that these measures would destroy judicial independence and place the colonial government in closer subjugation to the Crown.

After discontent among members of the legislature, Hutchinson delivered a speech warning that Parliament's powers over the colonies were absolute and that any resistance was illegal. John Adams, Samuel, and Joseph Hawley drafted a resolution adopted by the House of Representatives threatening independence as an alternative to tyranny. The resolution argued that the colonists had never been under the sovereignty of Parliament: their charter, as well as their allegiance, was exclusive to the King.

The Boston Tea Party, a demonstration against the Tea Act and the British East India Company's tea monopoly over American merchants, took place on December 16, Protestors demolished chests of tea worth about ten thousand pounds on the British schooner Dartmouth, anchored in Boston harbor.

The Dartmouth owners briefly retained Adams as legal counsel regarding their liability for the destroyed shipment. Adams applauded the destruction of the tea, calling it the "grandest Event" in the history of the colonial protest movement, and writing in his diary that it was an "absolutely and indispensably" necessary action.^[51]

Continental Congress

Member of Continental Congress

In , at the instigation of Samuel Adams, the First Continental Congress was convened in response to the Intolerable Acts, a series of deeply unpopular measures intended to punish Massachusetts, centralize authority in Britain, and prevent rebellion in other colonies.

Four delegates were chosen by the Massachusetts legislature, including John Adams, who agreed to attend, despite an emotional plea from his friend, Attorney General Jonathan Sewall, not to.

Shortly after he arrived in Philadelphia, Adams was placed on the member Grand Committee tasked with drafting a letter of grievances to King George III.

The committee soon split into conservative and radical factions. Although the Massachusetts delegation was largely passive, Adams criticized conservatives such as Joseph Galloway, James Duane, and Peter Oliver who advocated a conciliatory policy towards the British or felt that the colonies had a duty to remain loyal to Britain, although his views at the time aligned with those of conservative John Dickinson.

Adams sought the repeal of objectionable policies, but at this stage he continued to see benefits in maintaining the ties with Britain. He renewed his push for the right to a jury trial.^[56] He complained of what he considered the pretentiousness of the other delegates, writing to Abigail, "I believe if it was moved and seconded that We should come to a Resolution that Three and two make five We should be entertained with Logick and Rhetorick, Law, History, Politicks and Mathematicks, concerning the Subject for two whole Days, and then We should pass the Resolution unanimously in the Affirmative."^[57] Adams ultimately helped engineer a compromise between the conservatives and the radicals.

The Congress disbanded in October after sending the petition to the King and showing its displeasure with the Intolerable Acts by endorsing the Suffolk Resolves, which called for a boycott of British goods.^[59]

Adams's absence was hard on Abigail, who was left alone to care for the family. She still encouraged her husband in his task, writing: "You cannot be, I know, nor do I wish to see you an inactive Spectator, but if the Sword be drawn I bid adieu to all domestick felicity, and look forward to that Country where there is neither wars nor rumors of War in a firm belief that thro the mercy of its King we shall both rejoice there together."^[60]

News of the opening hostilities with the British at the Battles of Lexington and Concord made Adams hope that independence would soon become a reality.

Three days after the battle, he rode into a militia camp and, while reflecting positively on the high spirits of the men, was distressed by their poor condition and lack of discipline. A month later, Adams returned to Philadelphia for the Second Continental Congress as the leader of the Massachusetts delegation.

According to biographer John E. Trump Joseph R. Adams chose his Secretary of State John Marshall. Profiles in Courage book television series The Adams Chronicles miniseries Mutiny on the Amistad book Amistad film John Adams book miniseries.

He moved cautiously at first, noting that the Congress was divided between Loyalists, those favoring independence, and those hesitant to take any position. He became convinced that Congress was moving in the proper direction – away from Great Britain. Publicly, Adams supported "reconciliation if practicable," but privately agreed with Benjamin Franklin's confidential observation that independence was inevitable.

In June , with a view of promoting union among the colonies against Great Britain, he nominated George Washington of Virginia as commander-in-chief of the army then assembled around Boston.^[65] He praised Washington's "skill and experience" as well as his "excellent universal character." Adams opposed various attempts, including the Olive Branch Petition, aimed at finding peace.

Invoking the already-long list of British actions against the colonies, he wrote, "In my opinion Powder and Artillery are the most efficacious, Sure, and infallibly conciliatory Measures We can adopt."^[68] After his failure to prevent the petition from being enacted, he wrote a private letter derisively referring to Dickinson as a "piddling genius." The letter was intercepted and published in Loyalist newspapers.

The well-respected Dickinson refused to greet Adams and he was for a time largely ostracized. Ferling writes, "By the fall of no one in Congress labored more ardently than Adams to hasten the day when America would be separate from Great Britain." In October , Adams was appointed chief judge of the Massachusetts Superior Court, but he never served, and resigned in February ^[65] In response to queries from other delegates, Adams wrote the pamphlet Thoughts on Government, which laid out an influential framework for republican constitutions.

Independence

Throughout the first half of , Adams grew increasingly impatient with what he perceived to be the slow pace of declaring independence.

In the Second Continental Congress in Philadelphia, he helped push through a plan to outfit armed ships to launch raids on enemy vessels. Later in the year, he drafted the first set of regulations for the provisional navy. Adams drafted the preamble to the Lee Resolution of colleague Richard Henry Lee. He developed a rapport with delegate Thomas Jefferson of Virginia, who had been slower to support independence but by early agreed that it was necessary.

On June 7, , Adams seconded the Lee Resolution, which stated that the colonies were "free and independent states."

Prior to independence being declared, Adams organized a Committee of Five charged with drafting a Declaration of Independence. He chose himself, Jefferson, Benjamin Franklin, Robert R. Livingston and Roger Sherman.

Jefferson thought Adams should write the document, but Adams persuaded the committee to choose Jefferson. Many years later, Adams recorded his reasoning to Jefferson: "Reason first, you are a Virginian, and a Virginian ought to appear at the head of this business. Reason second, I am obnoxious, suspected, and unpopular.

You are very much otherwise. Reason third, you can write ten times better than I can." The Committee left no minutes, and the drafting process itself remains uncertain. Accounts written years later by Jefferson and Adams, although frequently cited, are often contradictory. Although the first draft was written primarily by Jefferson, Adams assumed a major role.

On July 1, the resolution was debated in Congress. It was expected to pass, but opponents such as Dickinson made a strong effort to oppose it. Jefferson, a poor debater, remained silent while Adams argued for its adoption. Many years later, Jefferson hailed Adams as "the pillar of [the Declaration's] support on the floor of Congress, [its] ablest advocate and defender against the multifarious assaults it encountered."^[81] On July 2, Congress officially voted for independence.

Twelve colonies voted in the affirmative, while New York abstained. Dickinson was absent. On July 3, Adams wrote to Abigail that "yesterday was decided the greatest question which was ever debated in America, and a greater perhaps never was nor will be decided among men." He predicted that "[t]he second day of July, , will be the most memorable epoch in the history of America," and would be celebrated annually.

Congress approved the Declaration of Independence on July 4.

During the congress, Adams sat on ninety committees, chairing twenty-five, an unmatched workload among the congressmen. As Benjamin Rush reported, he was acknowledged "to be the first man in the House." In June , Adams became head of the Board of War and Ordnance, charged with recording the officers in the army and their ranks, the disposition of troops throughout the colonies, and ammunition.

He was referred to as a "one man war department," working up to eighteen-hour days and mastering the details of raising, equipping and fielding an army under civilian control. Adams functioned as a de facto Secretary of War. He kept extensive correspondences with Continental Army officers concerning supplies, munitions, and tactics.

Adams emphasized to them the role of discipline in keeping an army orderly. He authored the "Plan of Treaties," laying out Congress's requirements for a treaty with France. He was worn out by the rigor of his duties and longed to return home.

Adams's early education included incidents of truancy, a dislike for his master, and a desire to become a farmer, but his father commanded that he remain in school. He has several claims to fame prior to becoming the President of the United States of America. However, this fact was not ignored by his opponents and was often used against him. Adult education.

His finances were unsteady, and the money that he received as a delegate failed to cover his expenses. However, the crisis caused by the defeat of the American soldiers kept him at his post.

After defeating the Continental Army at the Battle of Long Island on August 27, , British Admiral Richard Howe determined that a strategic advantage was at hand, and requested that Congress send representatives to negotiate peace.

A delegation consisting of Adams, Franklin, and Edward Rutledge met with Howe at the Staten Island Peace Conference on September Howe's authority was premised on the states' submission, so the parties found no common ground. When Lord Howe stated he could view the American delegates only as British subjects, Adams replied, "Your lordship may consider me in what light you please, except that of a British subject." Adams learned many years later that his name was on a list of people specifically excluded from Howe's pardon-granting authority.

Adams was unimpressed with Howe and predicted American success. He was able to return home to Braintree in October before leaving in January to resume his duties in Congress.

Diplomatic service

Main article: Diplomacy of John Adams

Commissioner to France

Adams advocated in Congress that independence was necessary to establish trade, and conversely, trade was essential for the attainment of independence; he specifically urged negotiation of a commercial treaty with France.

He was appointed, along with Franklin, Dickinson, Benjamin Harrison from Virginia, and Robert Morris from Pennsylvania, "to prepare a plan of treaties to be proposed to foreign powers." While Jefferson was writing the Declaration of Independence, Adams worked on the Model Treaty, which authorized a commercial agreement with France but contained no provisions for formal recognition or military assistance.

The treaty adhered to the provision that "free ships make free goods," allowing neutral nations to trade reciprocally while exempting an agreed-upon list of contraband. By late , America's finances were in tatters, and that September a British army had defeated General Washington and captured Philadelphia. More Americans came to determine that mere commercial ties between the U.S.

and France would not be enough, and that military assistance would be needed. The defeat of the British at Saratoga was expected to help induce France to agree to an alliance.

In November , Adams learned that he was to be named commissioner to France, replacing Silas Deane and joining Franklin and Arthur Lee in Paris to negotiate an alliance with the French.

James Lovell invoked Adams's "inflexible integrity" and the need to have a youthful man who could counterbalance Franklin's age. On November 27, Adams accepted, wasting no time. Abigail was left in Massachusetts to manage their home, but it was agreed that year-old John Quincy would go with Adams, for the experience was "of inestimable value" to his maturation.

On February 17, , Adams set sail aboard the frigate Boston, commanded by Captain Samuel Tucker. The trip was stormy and treacherous. The ship was pursued by British vessels, with Adams personally taking up arms to help capture one. A cannon malfunction wounded several sailors and killed one. On April 1, the Boston arrived in France, where Adams learned that France had agreed to an alliance with the United States on February 6.

Adams was annoyed by the other two commissioners: Lee, whom he thought paranoid and cynical, and the popular and influential Franklin, whom he found lethargic and overly deferential to the French. He assumed a less visible role but helped manage the delegation's finances and record-keeping. Frustrated by the perceived lack of commitment on the part of the French, Adams wrote a letter to French foreign minister Vergennes in December, arguing for French naval support in North America.

Franklin toned down the letter, but Vergennes ignored it. In September , Congress increased Franklin's powers by naming him minister plenipotentiary to France while Lee was sent to Spain. Adams received no instructions. Frustrated by the apparent slight, he departed France with John Quincy on March 8, On August 2, they arrived in Braintree.

In late , Adams was appointed as the sole minister charged with negotiations to establish a commercial treaty with Britain and end the war.

Following the Massachusetts constitutional convention, he departed for France in November, accompanied by his sons John Quincy and 9-year-old Charles. A leak forced the ship to land in Ferrol, Spain, and Adams and his party spent six weeks travelling overland to Paris. Constant disagreement between Lee and Franklin eventually resulted in Adams assuming the role of tie-breaker in almost all votes on commission business.

He increased his usefulness by mastering French. Lee was eventually recalled. Adams closely supervised his sons' education while writing to Abigail about once every ten days.

In contrast to Franklin, Adams viewed the Franco-American alliance pessimistically. The French, he believed, were involved for their own self-interest, and he grew frustrated by what he saw as their sluggishness in providing substantial aid.

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The French, Adams wrote, meant to keep their hands "above our chin to prevent us from drowning, but not to lift our heads out of water." In March , Congress, trying to curb inflation, voted to devalue the dollar. Vergennes summoned Adams for a meeting. In a letter sent in June, he insisted that fluctuation of the dollar value without an exception for French merchants was unacceptable and requested that Adams write to Congress asking it to "retrace its steps." Adams bluntly defended the decision, not only claiming that the French merchants were doing better than Vergennes implied but voicing other grievances he had with the French.

The alliance had been made over two years before. During that period, an army under the comte de Rochambeau had been sent to assist Washington, but it had yet to do anything of significance and America was expecting French warships. These were needed, Adams wrote, to contain the British armies in the port cities and contend with the powerful British Navy.

However, the French Navy had been sent not to the United States but to the West Indies to protect French interests there. France, Adams believed, needed to commit itself more fully to the alliance. Vergennes responded that he would deal only with Franklin, who sent a letter back to Congress critical of Adams. Adams then left France of his own accord.

Ambassador to the Dutch Republic

In mid, Adams traveled to the Dutch Republic.

One of the few other republics at the time, Adams thought it might be sympathetic to the American cause. Securing a Dutch loan could increase American independence from France and pressure Britain into peace. At first, Adams had no official status, but in July he was formally given permission to negotiate for a loan and took up residence in Amsterdam in August.

Adams was originally optimistic and greatly enjoyed the city, but soon became disappointed. The Dutch, fearing British retaliation, refused to meet Adams.

Before he had arrived, the British found out about secret aid the Dutch had sent to the Americans and authorized reprisals against their ships, which only increased their apprehension. Word had also reached Europe of American battlefield defeats. After five months of not meeting with a single Dutch official, Adams in early pronounced Amsterdam "the capital of the reign of Mammon." He was finally invited to present his credentials as ambassador to the Dutch government at The Hague on April 19, , but they did not promise any assistance.

In the meantime, Adams thwarted an attempt by neutral European powers to mediate the war without consulting the United States. In July, Adams consented to the departure of both of his sons; John Quincy went with Adams's secretary Francis Dana to Saint Petersburg as a French interpreter, in an effort to seek recognition from Russia, and a homesick Charles returned home with Adams's friend Benjamin Waterhouse.

In August, shortly after being removed from his position of sole head of peace treaty negotiations, Adams had "a major nervous breakdown." That November, he learned that American and French troops had decisively defeated the British at Yorktown. The victory was in large part due to the assistance of the French Navy, which vindicated Adams's stand for increased naval assistance.

News of the American triumph at Yorktown convulsed Europe.

In January , after recovering, Adams arrived at The Hague to demand that the States General answer his petitions. His efforts stalled, and he took his cause to the people, successfully capitalizing on popular pro-American sentiment. Several provinces began recognizing American independence. On April 19, the States General formally recognized American independence and acknowledged Adams as ambassador.

On June 11, with the aid of the Dutch Patriotten leader Joan van der Capellen tot den Pol, Adams negotiated a loan of five million guilders. In October, he negotiated a treaty of amity and commerce. The house that Adams bought during this stay in the Netherlands became the first American embassy on foreign soil.^[]

Treaty of Paris

After negotiating the loan with the Dutch, Adams was re-appointed as the American commissioner to negotiate the war-ending treaty, the Treaty of Paris.

Vergennes and France's minister to the United States, Anne-César de La Luzerne, disapproved of Adams, so Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, John Jay, and Henry Laurens were appointed to collaborate with Adams, although Jefferson did not initially go to Europe and Laurens was posted to the Dutch Republic following his imprisonment in the Tower of London.

In the final negotiations, securing fishing rights off Newfoundland and Cape Breton Island proved both very important and very difficult.

In response to very strict restrictions proposed by the British, Adams insisted that not only should American fishermen be allowed to travel as close to shore as desired, but that they should be allowed to cure their fish on the shores of Newfoundland. This, and other statements, prompted Vergennes to secretly inform the British that France did not feel compelled to "sustain [these] pretentious ambitions." Overruling Franklin and distrustful of Vergennes, Jay and Adams decided not to consult with France, instead dealing directly with the British.

During these negotiations, Adams mentioned to the British that his proposed fishing terms were more generous than those offered by France in and that accepting would foster goodwill between Britain and the United States while putting pressure on France. Britain agreed, and the two sides worked out other provisions afterward. Vergennes was angered when he learned from Franklin of the American duplicity, but did not demand renegotiation.

He was surprised at how much the Americans could extract. The independent negotiations also allowed the French to plead innocence to their Spanish allies, whose demands for Gibraltar might have caused significant problems. On September 3, , the treaty was signed and American independence was recognized.

Ambassador to Great Britain

Adams was appointed the first