La Belle Americaine: Elizabeth Monroe and the Architecture of Soft Power (Monroe First Ladies Part 1)
Year(s) Discussed: 1768-1817
Join me and my special guest, Ann Foster of the Vulgar History podcast, as we dive into the life of Elizabeth Kortright Monroe, a woman whose leadership was defined by elegance, resilience, and strategic diplomacy during a formative era of American political history. As we explore the evolution of U.S. First Ladies, you will see how Elizabeth and her daughters, Eliza and Maria, navigated the high-stakes world of international diplomacy while also coping with loss and immense personal sacrifice that contributed to health issues that would follow Elizabeth into the President’s House.
Sources used for this episode can be found at https://www.presidenciespodcast.com.
Special thanks to Ann Foster of the Vulgar History podcast for joining me for this episode, and please be sure to check out her book, Rebel of the Regency: The Scandalous Saga of Caroline of Brunswick, Britain's Queen Without a Crown!
Sources used for both parts of the Monroe First Ladies episode:
- Ammon, Harry. James Monroe: The Quest for National Identity. Charlottesville, VA and London: University Press of Virginia, 1999 [1971].
- Brown, Stuart Gerry, ed. The Autobiography of James Monroe. Syracuse, NY: Syracuse University Press, 2017.
- Duncan, Mike. Hero of Two Worlds: The Marquis de Lafayette in the Age of Revolution. New York: PublicAffairs, 2021.
- McGrath, Tim. James Monroe: A Life. New York: Penguin Random House, 2020.
- Seale, William. The President’s House: A History, Volume One. Washington, DC: White House Historical Association, 1986.
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