Before reading this biography, I was like most Americans when it came to their knowledge of John Adams:
- Second president.
- First one-termer.
- First vice president.
- Pretty short guy, even for the era.
- His presidency was a bit of a mess thanks to England and France being at war and his request to have laws passed to make it illegal to criticize him.
Now I think he’s my favorite Founder. He didn’t write anything significant during America’s formation like Jefferson, Madison and Hamilton (the one getting a whitewash) because he was busy elsewhere, see below. No, the strength and flaws in his character are what puts him up higher on my list, he seemed more human than Washington. Another big boost to his prestige, he didn’t own any slaves and this was legal in Massachusetts until 1783. He could’ve afforded the luxury of forced labor on his farm(s) yet he thought slavery was immoral and contradictory to Christianity.
Ferling starts with a little backstory regarding John’s family. He’s the son of Deacon John Adams and Susanna, a couple farmers living on the outskirts of Boston. There’s nothing terribly remarkable about them. They’re educated people so John continues their tradition of attending Harvard in his teens when the university only produced predominantly two types of graduates: ministers and lawyers. Adams chooses the latter. An apprenticeship follows and a few years later, he becomes a respected lawyer practicing in the Boston area. He marries Abigail and over the years they have four children: Nabby (neé Abigail), John Quincy, Charles and Thomas.
It’s been a while since I’ve read the book but Adams was like many colonial intellectuals when England began ratcheting up its presence in the Colonies after the French and Indian War (Europe: Seven Years War) through their taxes, conciliatory or believed that Parliament could be reasoned with. Numerous Colonial legislators naively thought they were counterparts or peers to Whitehall. HA! Most of us also know Adams came to prominence by being the defense attorney for the British soldiers arrested for the Boston Massacre. He chose to defend them out of his belief in everyone receiving a fair trial trumping his growing desire for independence. There may have been some scheming behind the scenes through his cousin Samuel Adams, a Sons of Liberty agitator. Samuel figured no Boston jury would acquit and if the best qualified defenders in the area failed, England had to accept the outcome. Bad move, John succeeded in getting the officer in charge acquitted and six out of the eight soldiers received a favorable result, not guilty. Those two who were pronounced guilty just had their thumbs branded, the punishment for manslaughter. The case made John Adams a celebrity.
As I mentioned earlier, defending those soldiers had no effect on Adams’ sentiments and disenchantment with the English government. When the conventions took place, he was heavily involved in numerous committees, wrote most of the drafts to review, and was co-architect on how the Colonies should proceed.
When the Revolution started, Adams spent more time abroad. He was sent to France first to find out what the hell Franklin was doing because Washington needed assistance desperately. At Versailles, Franklin proved to be a more skilled political animal as he pushed Adams into irrelevance. It bruised Adams’ ego but it gave him the opportunity to be more useful in Holland securing financial aid when the Continental Congress re-assigned him.
During the two years after victory at Yorktown, Adams transferred to London to aid in the peace treaty and negotiate trade rights for the new country.
Adams returns sometime after the Constitution ratification. Sadly, his time abroad gave him less democratic leanings, especially in who should be allowed to vote. Unlike Washington, he is very bigoted against Catholics and Jews along with those who don’t own property by proposing an American aristocracy being needed. He does accept the position of vice president to balance out the geographical interests with Washington’s presidency. Given the job’s description to help oversee the Senate, Adams was excited to participate and share his experience, after all, he was in the original Continental Congress. No dice. He’s mostly shut out and begins the long tradition of the veep being a ceremonial gig until Darth Cheney.
Upon Washington’s retirement, Adams runs a stealthy campaign to be president. Back in the early days of the US, candidates didn’t openly run for the seat, it was considered crass. The stumping was done by proxy through political allies and newspapers. One thing he did make clear, he wasn’t going to accept being vice president for a third term.
He wins but Thomas Jefferson comes in second, making a rival his vice. Recalling what little influence he had in the role, Adams doesn’t think the Virginian can do much harm. He could have had a smoother time if he didn’t miscalculate a different nemesis, Hamilton, who meddles indirectly through the Cabinet. Wishing to maintain continuity, Adams retained Washington’s last Cabinet, not knowing three of them consult Hamilton to direct their actions/advice.
For the next four years the Adams presidency was tumultuous. Even though Adams is often labelled a Federalist, he didn’t share their desire for war with France. Despite all the negative things branded on John Adams, he deserves more praise for his greatest achievement, preventing the young country from going to war with either England (Jefferson and the Republicans’ desire) or France. He argued it would be a disaster, neutrality was the best course. This decision cost him the election and he did it knowingly.
After his defeat, Adams sets up the transition for Jefferson and quietly exits Philadelphia (the acting Capital) with no fanfare for his Boston home. He was a pretty frugal Founder too. Adams had $13,000 ($200,000 today) put away and didn’t die broke. It didn’t last, the bank hold the money collapsed in 1803. His son John Quincy intervened by buying up all the family property to keep John and Abigail solvent.
Adams would go on to live another 25 years which was an incredible accomplishment since few made it past 70 in his era.
Adams spent his remaining years reading, writing, settling old scores as he outlived most contemporaries and enjoying the his grandchildren’s company. There was a reconciliation with Jefferson but it wasn’t as dramatic as promoted; it was some correspondence and Adams wrote most of it. Living to be 91 had its downside for Adams unfortunately. His wife Abigail passed in late 1818, their only daughter Nabby died from cancer around 1813 and son Charles drank himself to death in 1800. Not everything was sad, his proudest moments came via son John Quincy. This son became a respected diplomat (he’s a legend in the US State Department), a Senator for Massachusetts, negotiated the Ware of 1812 peace treaty, aided in the acquisition of Florida and was President Monroe’s Secretary of State. Adams even lived long enough to see John Quincy become president. Knowing John, he probably felt vindication in addition to pride.
I posed this question with Washington so I will with Adams. Was he a good or bad president? I think he was in-between like his predecessor. His only and biggest accomplishment, preventing a war. His cabinet debacle and occasional fragile ego outbursts are what drag him down to mediocre. Another deciding factor against him was what little the POTUS had to do (Speaker of the House was more in charge) leading him to take long recesses at his Boston home. He also maintained the continuity of America’s presidency without it sliding into despotism.
Ferling’s book is a third as long as Chernow’s Washington. I apologize for the review being almost twice the word count. However, I feel John Adams deserves a little more respect and publicity for his career.
I’m now taking recommendations on a good cradle-to-grave book about Thomas Jefferson.
