The Papers of James Madison: 27 April 1795-27 March 1797

by James Madison, J. C. A. Stagg, Thomas A. Mason

The Papers of James Madison documents the life and work of one of the most important political and constitutional thinkers in our nation's history. A vital project that continues to add new volumes, this publication has been consulted for decades by scholars and students for primary-source material by and about the fourth president. Rotunda now makes this invaluable resource available in a new online edition.So significant were Madison's accomplishments before he reached the White House, they very nearly overshadow his tenure as president. As chief author of the Constitution, he provided a framework through which the nation could function after independence. Madison was also one of the primary authors--with John Jay and Alexander Hamilton--of the Federalist Papers, as well as the Bill of Rights (a document about which he was ambivalent but which he recognized as crucial to ratification).Madison was a member of the first Congress and, with Thomas Jefferson, founded the Democratic-Republican Party. As secretary of state under Jefferson, he oversaw the Louisiana Purchase. He succeeded his friend as president and was the first to conduct a war as president under the Federal Constitution.Madison's life touched on all the central issues of his times--which is to say, the cornerstone events of our history. His writings--covering his rivalry with Patrick Henry, his alliance with Jefferson, his eventual break with Hamilton, his marriage to Dolley Madison--bring us into contact with the most dynamic figures of the era.This new digital edition collects all the volumes published thus far in the print edition's Secretary of State series and Presidential series--as well as the Congressional series, including now-out-of-print volumes that are becoming increasingly difficult to find. New volumes will be added to the digital edition in periodic installments, rounding out the most extensive collection available of the fourth president's writings.This online resource contains all of the editorial content of the print edition and adds to this a powerful XML-based search functionality, linked cross-references, and the ability to navigate chronologically or by series volume. As part of the new Rotunda platform, it can be included in searches across the entire American Founding Era Collection, providing invaluable additional context to the great statesman's works.

527 pages, Hardcover

Published January 1, 1989

About the author

For James Madison, Episcopal Bishop and president of the College of William & Mary, see https://www.goodreads.com/author/show....

James Madison, Jr. was an American politician and the fourth President of the United States (1809–1817), and one of the Founding Fathers of the United States. Madison was the last founding father to die. Considered to be the "Father of the Constitution", he was the principal author of the document. In 1788, he wrote over a third of the Federalist Papers, still the most influential commentary on the Constitution. As a leader in the first Congresses, he drafted many basic laws and was responsible for the first ten amendments to the Constitution (said to be based on the Virginia Declaration of Rights), and thus is also known as the "Father of the Bill of Rights". As a political theorist, Madison's most distinctive belief was that the new republic needed checks and balances to limit the powers of special interests, which Madison called factions. He believed very strongly that the new nation should fight against aristocracy and corruption and was deeply committed to creating mechanisms that would ensure republicanism in the United States.

As leader in the House of Representatives, Madison worked closely with President George Washington to organize the new federal government. Breaking with Treasury Secretary Alexander Hamilton in 1791, Madison and Thomas Jefferson organized what they called the republican party (later called the Democratic-Republican Party) in opposition to key policies of the Federalists, especially the national bank and the Jay Treaty. He secretly co-authored, along with Thomas Jefferson, the Kentucky and Virginia Resolutions in 1798 to protest the Alien and Sedition Acts.

As Jefferson's Secretary of State (1801-1809), Madison supervised the Louisiana Purchase, doubling the nation's size, and sponsored the ill-fated Embargo Act of 1807. As president, he led the nation into the War of 1812 against Great Britain in order to protect the United States' economic rights. That conflict began poorly as Americans suffered defeat after defeat by smaller forces, but ended on a high note in 1815, with the Treaty of Ghent, after which a new spirit of nationalism swept the country. During and after the war, Madison reversed many of his positions. By 1815, he supported the creation of the second National Bank, a strong military, and a high tariff to protect the new factories opened during the war.