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National Republican Party | |
|---|---|
| Other name | Adams-Clay Republicans Adams's Men Anti-Jacksonians |
| Leader | John Quincy Adams Henry Clay |
| Founded | 1824; 201 years ago (1824) |
| Dissolved | 1834; 191 years ago (1834) |
| Split from | Democratic-Republican Party |
| Preceded by | Democratic-Republican Party Federalist Party |
| Merged into | Whig Party |
| Ideology | |
| National affiliation | Democratic-Republican Party (1824) |
TheNational Republican Party, also known as theAnti-Jacksonian Party or simplyRepublicans,[12] was apolitical party in the United States which evolved from a conservative-leaning faction of theDemocratic-Republican Party that supportedJohn Quincy Adams in the1824 presidential election.
Known initially asAdams-Clay Republicans in the wake of the 1824 campaign, Adams's political allies in Congress and at the state-level were referred to as "Adams's Men" duringhis presidency (1825–1829). WhenAndrew Jackson becamepresident, following his victory over Adams in the1828 election, this group became theopposition, and organized themselves as "Anti-Jackson". The use of the term "National Republican" dates from 1830.[citation needed]
Henry Clay was the party's nominee in the1832 election, but was defeated by Jackson. The party supported Clay'sAmerican System of nationally financedinternal improvements and a protectivetariff. After the 1832 election, opponents of Jackson, including the National Republicans,Anti-Masons and others, coalesced into theWhig Party.
Before the election of John Quincy Adams to the presidency in 1825, theDemocratic-Republican Party, which had been the only national American political party for over a decade, began to fracture, losing its infrastructure and identity. Its caucuses no longer met to select candidates because now they had separate interests. After the 1824 election, factions developed in support of Adams and in support of Andrew Jackson. Adams politicians, including most ex-Federalists (such asDaniel Webster and Adams himself), would gradually become members of the National Republican Party; and those politicians that supported Jackson would later help form the modernDemocratic Party.
After Adams's defeat in the 1828 election, his supporters regrouped around Henry Clay. Now the "anti-Jackson" opposition, they soon organized as the National Republican Party. Led by Clay, the new party maintained its historic nationalistic outlook and desired to use national resources to build a strong economy. Its platform was Clay'sAmerican System of nationally financedinternal improvements and a protective tariff, which would promote faster economic development. More important, by binding together the diverse interests of the different regions, the party intended to promote national unity and harmony.
Historians refer to the National Republican Party, but the term Anti-Jackson was frequently used at the time. For instance in 1830,Alexander McIlhenny recorded in his diary, "May 29th: I attended the Anti Jackson meeting at Sultzers inTaney Town. Addressed a few words to the meeting."[13]: 130
The National Republicans saw the Union as a corporate, organic whole. Hence, the rank and file idealized Clay for his comprehensive perspective on the national interest. Conversely, they disdained those they identified as "party" politicians forpandering to local interests at the expense of the national interest.[14] The party met innational convention in late 1831 and nominated Clay for the presidency andJohn Sergeant for the vice presidency.
TheWhig Party emerged in 1833–1834 after Clay's defeat as a coalition of National Republicans, along withAnti-Masons, disaffected Jacksonians and people whose last political activity had been with the Federalists a decade before. In the short term, the Whig Party formed with the help of other smaller parties in a coalition against President Jackson and his reforms.
John Quincy Adams was the only president to come from the National Republican Party.
| # | Name (lifespan) | Portrait | State | Presidency start date | Presidency end date | Time in office |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 | John Quincy Adams (1767–1848) | .jpg) | Massachusetts | March 4, 1825 | March 4, 1829 | 4 years, 0 days |
| Election | Ticket | Popular vote | Electoral vote | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Presidential nominee | Running mate | Percentage | Electoral votes | Ranking | |
| 1828 | John Quincy Adams | Richard Rush | 44.0 | 83 / 261 | 2 |
| 1832 | Henry Clay | John Sergeant | 37.4 | 49 / 286 | 2 |
| Congress | Years | Senate[15] | House of Representatives[16] | President | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total | Pro-Jackson | Pro-Adams | Others | Vacancies | Total | Pro-Jackson | Pro-Adams | Others | Vacancies | ||||||
| 19th | 1825–1827 | 48 | 26 | 22 | — | — | 213 | 104 | 109 | — | — | John Quincy Adams[17] | |||
| 20th | 1827–1829 | 48 | 27 | 21 | — | — | 213 | 113 | 100 | — | — | ||||
| Congress | Years | Total | Pro-Jackson | Anti-Jackson | Others | Vacancies | Total | Pro-Jackson | Anti-Jackson | Others | Vacancies | President | |||
| 21st | 1829–1831 | 48 | 25 | 23 | — | — | 213 | 136 | 72 | 5 | — | Andrew Jackson | |||
| 22nd | 1831–1833 | 48 | 24 | 22 | 2 | — | 213 | 126 | 66 | 21 | — | ||||
| 23rd | 1833–1835 | 48 | 20 | 26 | 2 | — | 240 | 143 | 63 | 34 | — | ||||
| 24th | 1835–1837 | 52 | 26 | 24 | 2 | — | 242 | 143 | 75 | 24 | — | ||||
Long before Samuel Huntington, Adams understood our modern "clash of civilizations." Adams believed that history had set the liberal West on a collision course with the Islamic East. In Adams's day, as in ours, many sophisticated Europeans thought that the two civilizations ought to compromise their differences in the name of peace. Unfortunately, Adams found, compromise was not always possible. As then constituted, Islamic civilization would not accept Western notions of liberty, equality, and progress, and for that reason the West had to fight to defend both its principles and its interests.
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