The 605 documents presented in Volume 7 of The Papers of James Monroe date from April 1814, the midpoint of Monroe's term as secretary of state under President James Madison, to March 1817, just prior to his inauguration as president. Volume 7 opens in the midst of the War of 1812, documenting Monroe's role as military adviser to President Madison during an ill-fated defense of Washington in August 1814, his appointment as secretary of war in September 1814, and his return to the State Department in March 1815, when he began the work of normalizing relations with the European nations after the end of the Napoleonic wars. Relations with Great Britain remained uneasy, but Monroe reduced friction by negotiating the 1817 Rush-Bagot Treaty, which led to disarmament of the Great Lakes.

Numerous documents detail the ill will between the United States and Spain caused by the war, disagreement over possession of Florida, and the revolutions in Spain's American colonies. The volume also addresses the presidential election of 1816. Monroe, in line with the accepted practice at the time, avoided any overt acts that would indicate he was seeking the office. Correspondence with friends and confidants and several campaign essays written by Monroe nevertheless reveal a strategy of a quiet campaign to garner support for his candidacy.