James Monroe was the fifth President of the United States (1817–1825) and the last President from the Founding Fathers. On New Year’s Day, 1825, at the last of his annual White House receptions, President James Monroe made a pleasing impression upon a Virginia lady who shook his hand: “He is tall and well formed.

He was elected to the Virginia Assembly in 1782 and then served on the Council of State, which advised the governor. Elected to the Continental Congress in 1783, Monroe worked for expanding the power of Congress, organizing government for the western country, and protecting American navigation on the Mississippi River.

Returning to the Virginia House of Delegates in 1799, Madison campaigned for the election of Thomas Jefferson as President. When Jefferson won, Madison became secretary of state, a position which he retained until his own election to the presidency in 1808.

James Madison created the basic framework for the U.S. Constitution and helped write the Bill of Rights. He is therefore known as the Father of the Constitution. He served as the fourth U.S. president, and he signed a declaration of war against Great Britain, starting the War of 1812.

From his middle years on, Madison was plagued with “biliousness.” This included attacks of “bilious fever” 1. A physician writing in the 1960s thought these symptoms of chronic cholecystitis 1 (inflammation of the gallbladder). Chronic arthritis afflicted Madison from middle age onwards 1.

He was constantly of poor health and that is the main reason why in the musical he is coughing because in real life he often was.

The best national anthems

• Uruguay. Controversially, perhaps, it’s Uruguay that takes the top spot musically for David Mellor.
• Poland. David gives a big thumbs up to this “really good tune”, which was used by Sir Edward Elgar in his piece Polonia, in a tribute to Poland during the First World War.
• Russia.
• Switzerland.
• Japan.
• USA.
• Germany.
• France.

Whitney Houston, Super Bowl XXV People wept in the stands and in front of their televisions, and song itself became a top-20 pop hit after the game. Her performance at Tampa Stadium in Tampa, Fla.

These are the 6 best performances of the National Anthem ever

1. U.S. Military Academies combined choirs.
2. Lady Gaga, Super Bowl L.
3. 1991 NHL All-Star Game.
4. Buckingham Palace after 9/11.
5. Boston Bruins game following Boston bombing.
6. Whitney Houston, Super Bowl XXV.

Christina Aguilera

Rachel Platten, best known for “Fight Song,” messed up the national anthem not once, but twice, while performing before the NWSL soccer game between the Utah Royals and the Chicago Red Stars in April. She forgot the words and had to start over, asking the crowd for help.

Because she broke a cardinal rule of singing it. The internet was not kind to Fergie’s national anthem rendition at the NBA All-Star Game. There were clips of NBA players laughing during her performance. And lots of people calling it the worst.