Children
James and Elizabeth had three children:
- Eliza Kortright Monroe Hay (1787–1835): Eliza appeared to many a haughty, pompous socialite, quick to remind others of her good breeding and lofty station. In 1808 she married George Hay, a prominent Virginia attorney who had served as prosecutor in the trial of Aaron Burr. on alienated most of Washington society for her refusal to call on wives of the diplomatic corps, as was the custom. She caused another social furor in closing her sister's wedding to all but family and friends. For all her apparent vanity, however, she demonstrated genuine compassion during the fever epidemic that swept Washington during Monroe's term. She spent many sleepless nights selflessly caring for victims. Following the deaths of her husband and father, she moved to Paris, converted to Catholicism and lived in a convent. Her daughter, Hortense, was named in honor of her friend, Hortense de Beauharnais, step-daughter of Napoleon.
- James Spence Monroe (1799–1801): The only son of the Monroes was sickly and he died in early childhood. His name is merely a speculation, as his grave reads "J.S. Monroe", and not this name.
- Maria Hester Monroe-Gouverneur (1803–1850) was still a child when her father was elected president. Maria finished school in Philadelphia before moving into the White House in 1819. On March 9, 1820, she married her first cousin, Samuel L. Gouverneur, in the first wedding of a president's child at the White House. Many in Washington criticized the Monroes for keeping the wedding private; just 42 members of the family and close friends were invited. Friction between Maria's husband and her outspoken sister strained family relations thereafter. The Gouverneurs moved to New York City. Former President Monroe, upon losing his wife in 1830, moved in with them. President John Quincy Adams appointed her husband postmaster of New York City.
Read more about this topic: Elizabeth Monroe
Famous quotes containing the word children:
“Children treat their friends differently than they treat the other people in their lives. A friendship is a place for experimenting with new ways of handling anger and aggression. It is an arena for practicing reciprocity, testing assertiveness, and searching for compromise in ways children would not try with parents or siblings.”
—Lawrence Kutner (20th century)
“When we choose to be parents, we accept another human being as part of ourselves, and a large part of our emotional selves will stay with that person as long as we live. From that time on, there will be another person on this earth whose orbit around us will affect us as surely as the moon affects the tides, and affect us in some ways more deeply than anyone else can. Our children are extensions of ourselves in ways our parents are not, nor our brothers and sisters, nor our spouses.”
—Fred Rogers (20th century)
“Our children do not want models of perfection, neither do they want us to be buddies, friends, or confidants who never rise above their own levels of maturity and experience. We need to walk that middle ground between perfection and peerage, between intense meddling and apathy—the middle ground where our values, standards, and expectations can be shared with our children.”
—Neil Kurshan (20th century)