Transcript Father of the Constitution

‘Father of the
Constitution’
James Madison
Also known as the face on the $5000 bill (fun fact of the day!)
Abby Bilenkin, Nicholas Cooper, Phoebe Lai,
Angela Wang
ART THOU MAD, SON?
Life before presidency
● Born: March 16, 1751, Port Conway, Virginia
● Education: College of New Jersey (now Princeton
University, graduated 1771)
● Marriage: September 15, 1794, to Dolley Payne
Todd
● No children (one raised from Dolley’s first
marriage)
Dolley Payne
Early Political Career
Began politics in VA State
Legislature in order to reform &
help the people
Worked with Madison to
draft VA’s Statute of
Religious Freedom
1776 1778
●
●
●
1784
Const. Conv.:
Authored VA Plan
Persuaded VA to give up
their NW territory to
Congress
Drafted Constitution
(AKA Father of
Constitution)
VA House of Delegates
VA Convention
VA Council of State
1789→
1787
with GW until policies
aligned w/ Federalists.
Responsible for
Constitutional
Convention
1793
1800→
Jefferson President, Madison
Secretary of State
w/ Jefferson→ DemocratRepublicans
Presidential Career
● Presidential Terms: 4th President of the United
States (1809–1813; 1813-1817)
● Political Affiliation: Democratic-Republican
● Died: June 28, 1836, Montpelier, Orange
County, Virginia
1st Election: 1808
Ran with: George Clinton as VP (supported for
Jefferson) for the Republicans
Against: Charles Cotesworth Pinckney of the
Federalist Party with Rufus King as VP
Won with a 122 to 47
electoral vote
George Clinton
Charles Pinckney
Issues: Shaky pre-term Foreign Relations
•
•
•
French vs Brits: US caught in crossfire
Impressment: British forced/enslaved US merchants to join British
navy
Chesapeake-Leopard Incident (June 22, 1807)
o British warship Leopard fired at US frigate Chesapeake, looking for
Brit. Navy deserters
o US captain of Chesapeake surrenders & Brits take 4 U.S men
hostage
● UPROAR! Partly responsible for Madison’s decision to declare War of
1812
British warship Leopard fires at US frigate Chesapeake
Shaky Pre-term Foreign Policies
•
•
Jefferson’s Embargo act: prevented U.S ships
from trading overseas → economic depression
o Replaced by 1809 Non-Intercourse Act just
before Madison’s term (allowed ships to trade
everywhere but France and England)
o Offered to continue trade if Britain & France
respected US neutrality...they didn’t.
Madison’s attempt: Macon’s Bill # 2…(next slide)
1st term Issue (1808): Foreign Trade
•
Madison signed Macon’s Bill #2 (1810): removed
all France & Brit. trade restrictions as long as
they respected neutrality
o Looked good on paper; Napoleon claimed to
respect neutrality...but he lied.
o Repealed his naval blockade on Britain so he
could use US ships instead
o This would end neutrality
● Macon’s Bill #2 didn’t work...and ultimately
couldn’t prevent war
Re-election of 1812
● Ran against DeWitt Clinton and Jared Ingersoll
● VP: Elbridge Gerry
● Won with a 128 to 89 electoral vote total, and won all
Southern States
Jared Ingersoll
DeWitt Clinton
Elbridge Gerry
2nd term issues: War Hawks
•
•
War Hawks = Western congressmen eager for land
o demanded US to declare war on GB, expel
Spanish from Florida, invade Canada
Madison yields to War Hawks - US declares war
o Ended in disaster: War Hawk’s quick move to
attack Canada ended in surrender & most NW
territory falls to British
2nd Term Issue - British Offense
•
1814: After defeating Napoleon, Brits go offensive
o
•
•
+Capture of Capital
Brit ships raided ports from Georgia to Maine
o Stopped only in Baltimore: Brits couldn’t blast past Fort
McHenry
DC captured and burned by Brits in 1814
Although Madison vowed to rebuild capital, attack
was a heavy blow to US
2nd Term Issue: End of the War of 1812
•
•
•
Ratification of Treaty of Ghent ended war, brought
back pre-war status quo
Began Era of Good Feelings - less fighting between
parties, more patriotism
Although Americans suffered many losses during
war, treaty outcome was relatively favorable for
them
Treaty of Ghent
2nd Term Issue: Rechartering Bank of US
•
•
Hamilton’s 1st Bank charter expired in 1811 after 20 years
As Republican, Madison opposed 1st Bank (creation of national
banks not in Bill of Rights)
o Felt no need to renew 1st Bank but to recharter (opposed by
conservatives & state bankers)
•
No bank = BAD NEWS: US in massive debt after War of 1812
o To deal with debt, private banks issue paper banknotes
→ major inflation
● 1816: Madison learns he needs one, and recharters the Bank!
● Overall: Madison’s delay of the bank recharter took a long time
to solve problems but successfully implement 2nd Bank of US
Wise Words
“Philosophy is common sense with big words”
-James Madison
=
+
Works Cited
Kelly, Martin. "James Madison-4th President of the United
States." About.com. About.com, n.d. Web. 2 Dec. 2013.
"James Madison." The White House. The White House, n.d.
Web. 30 Nov. 2013.
"Miller Center." American President: James Madison: Domestic Affairs. University
of
Virginia, n.d. Web. 02 Dec. 2013.
"War of 1812." History.com. A&E Television Networks, n.d. Web. 30 Nov. 2013
"War of 1812 Evaluation." War of 1812 Evaluation. The National Society United
State Daughters, 29 Aug. 2012. Web. 11 Dec. 2013.