James Monroe married Elizabeth Kortright, a woman ten years his junior, on February 16, 1786. She was from New York City and was considered to be extremely beautiful. However, she did suffer from ailments that kept her in later years from consistently acting the part of first lady. She and President Monroe had two daughters, Eliza and Maria Hester.

Background

Elizabeth was the daughter of a businessman, Laurence Kortright, who had also been an officer in the British Army. James Monroe married her and actually lived with her father while Monroe was serving in the Continental Congress. When she went to France with her husband, she played an important role in saving the Marquis de Lafayette's wife from the guillotine. She was very popular in France and received the nickname la belle Americaine.

Unpopular First Lady

Unfortunately, she was not as well loved at home once she became first lady. She was often not able to attend official functions due to chronic ailments and her daughters took over at these times. She was not one to entertain the Washington socialites as Dolley Madison had before her, and this caused many to dislike her. Further, she kept her daughter Maria's White House wedding private, which was seen as rude. Elizabeth died in 1830 at the Monroe's Oak Hill estate.