Madison's Montpelier A nice one-day trip from Northern Virginia can include both Montpelier and Jefferson's Monticello. Both homes are especially gorgeous if you can catch them during the fall leaf season. The view from the Monticello grounds is spectacular. Montpelier is interesting for what the Du Pont family did when they owned it. Montepelier has recently undergone a major reconstruction project to restore it to its original condition. When the DuPont family owned the property, they remodeled it in interesting fashion, but in the process the historic layout was lost. The restoration project, funded by the Montpelier Foundation, was begun in 2003 and completed in 2008. |
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James Madison was a close friend and political ally of Jefferson. Madison's home, Montpelier, near Orange, Virginia, is about 27 miles from Monticello. Madison and Jefferson exchanged frequent visits when able, and their collected correspondence fills three hefty volumes. Madison was selected as Jefferson's successor by Republicans in Congress and won the election of 1808 easily. Madison is sometimes viewed as being temperamentally unsuited for leadership, but a closer examination of his performance at the Constitutional Convention of 1787, his term as Speaker of the House, as Secretary of State under Jefferson and as President reveals that while he was small in stature and lacked a strong speaking voice, he knew how to get things done. Dolly Madison, known for her physical attractiveness and cleverness at entertaining and decorating, was a sophisticated political companion who knew how to use her feminine charms in the service of her husband's political career. Ever faithful to her "Jemmy," Dolly entertained at the White House in a manner suggestive of the salons of Paris, collecting information and seeing to it that those who needed her husband's ear could get it. Like many other great women in supporting roles, Dolly Madison served her husband and her country well, and is best known for having saved a famous portrait of George Washington from the British as they approached and then burned the White House in 1814.
A summary of Madison's White House years:
By 1812 troubles between the United States and Great Britain and France had reached a point of no return. Although the War of 1812 has been called the least necessary of all American wars (at least until Vietnam), in retrospect the American government under Jefferson and Madison pursued reasonable (if somewhat ineffective) policies in defense of America's neutral rights. It is true that great profits can be earned through trade in time of war, and greed was no doubt a factor that pushed American merchant captains into repeated confrontations with both nations. Still, nations have a right to carry on business even when part of the world is at war. The major goal of American foreign policy during this era was to try to give the President enough flexibility so that he could punish nations that treated us badly and reward those who were more cooperative. Unfortunately Great Britain and France were locked in mortal combat and neither was inclined to be cooperative with anybody, least of all the fledgling new republic across the ocean. In the end, British domination of the seas was the factor that put the Americans at odds with them. Though the French behaved almost as badly as the British, an American war with France was unlikely, first because a French invasion of America (or vice versa) was virtually out of the question. Furthermore, impressment of American sailors was hardly practiced by the French, and leftover antagonisms from the Revolution still rankled both American and the British. For all their differences, France was America's ally in winning independence, something Americans were unlikely to lose sight of. "God forget us, if we forget/the sacred sword of Lafayette" is a well-remembered epithet for much of American history) Causes of the War of 1812
Madison's term ended on a fairly positive note. Whether a victory or a lucky draw, the American people felt satisfied with the results of the war, largely because of Jackson's victory at New Orleans and several spectacular naval triumphs. Further, the old Federalist Party was now all but gone, and a new "era of good feelings" was ushered in. Threatening talk about the "Virginia Dynasty" gradually died out. Madison's legacy is still being debated, but in general it can be said that he was one of the key figures in the creation of the American Republic. He seems to this observer to be moving out of the shadow of his more famous Virginia brethren, and deserves his title of "Father of the Constitution." He lived until 1836, the last of the greats of that era to pass on. Go to Monroe Administration PageUpdated August 3, 2013 Copyright © Henry J. Sage 2001 |
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