Alexander Hamilton

by Ron Chernow

Occasionally, his troubled past burst in upon him unexpectedly. After Yorktown, Hamilton was informed that his half brother Peter Lavien had died in South Carolina, leaving token bequests of one hundred pounds apiece to Hamilton and his brother, James.

The memories of his West Indian childhood left Hamilton with a settled antipathy to slavery.

Eliza had direct contact with these domestic slaves, to the extent that her grandson surmised that she was “probably her mother’s chief assistant in the management of the house and slaves.”

There is no definite proof, but three oblique hints in Hamilton’s papers suggest that he and Eliza may have owned one or two household slaves as well.

Few, if any, other founding fathers opposed slavery more consistently or toiled harder to eradicate it than Hamilton—a

I saw he was destitute of any fixed principles.”

As would often occur in the future, his avowed preference for an elite based on merit was misconstrued by enemies into a secret adoration of aristocracy.

Clinton knew how to capitalize on the “cold, suspicious temper of small country freeholders” with their “narrow” jealousies.

Hamilton’s besetting fear was that American democracy would be spoiled by demagogues who would mouth populist shibboleths to conceal their despotism. George Clinton, Thomas Jefferson, and Aaron Burr all came to incarnate that dread for Hamilton.

“a commercial convention otherwise than as a stepping stone to a general convention to form a general constitution.”

Whether through luck, premeditation, or a knack for making things happen, Hamilton continued to demonstrate his unique flair for materializing at every major turning point in the early history of the republic.

they would urge the states to send delegates to a convention in Philadelphia the following May to amend the Articles of Confederation.

In 1776, John Adams had predicted accurately that “the most intricate, the most important, the most dangerous and delicate business” of the postwar years would be the creation of a central government.

“Among those who began early to work for reform three names stand out: Washington, Madison and Hamilton.

Smith, Jefferson sent his famous reassurance: “The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants.”

Many delegates believed they were enlightened, independent citizens, concerned for the commonweal, not members of those detestable things called factions.

The venue for the convention was the gunmetal-gray East Room of the redbrick State House, where the Declaration of Independence had been signed.

finding him impressive, if a little too self-consciously the strutting young genius.

respectable assembly he was ever in in his life”?44 The fifty-five delegates representing twelve states—the

Princeton graduates (nine) trumped Yale (four) and Harvard (three)

Hamilton’s attendance was spotty, but this wasn’t atypical.

only about thirty of the fifty-five delegates were present much of the time.

the convention had a mandate only to revise the Articles of Confederation.

create a strong central government. This “Virginia Plan”

the convention agreed overwhelmingly that “a national government ought to be established consisting of a supreme legislative, executive and judiciary.”

New Jersey Plan envisioned one chamber, with each state casting one vote.

For obvious reasons, many large states gravitated toward the Virginia Plan, while smaller states coalesced around the New Jersey Plan.

ventilated room he spoke and spoke and spoke. Before the day was through, he had given a six-hour speech

Hamilton probably had the gravest doubts about the wisdom of the masses and wanted elected leaders who would guide them.

his optimistic view of America’s potential coexisted with an essentially pessimistic view of human nature. His faith in Americans never quite matched his faith in America itself.

Hamilton had toyed with creating a new hybrid form of government that would have the continuity of a monarchy combined with the liberties of a republic, guarding against both anarchy and tyranny.

Fearing aristocrats as well as commoners, Hamilton wanted to restrain abusive majorities and minorities.

Hamilton recommended a Supreme Court that would consist of twelve judges holding lifetime offices on good behavior.

“he had no scruple in declaring . . . that the British Gov[ernmen]t was the best in the world and that he doubted much whether anything short of it would do in America.”

Hamilton’s speech “has been praised by everybody [but] . . . supported by none.”

Hamilton often seemed a man suspended between two worlds. He never supported a nobility, hereditary titles, or the other trappings of aristocracy. He never again uttered a kind word for monarchy. Still, he wondered whether republican government could withstand popular frenzy and instill the deep respect for law and authority that obtained in monarchical systems and that would safeguard liberties.

Benjamin Franklin wanted a unicameral legislature and an executive council in lieu of a president. He also opposed a presidential veto on

The June 18 speech was to prove one of three flagrant errors in his career.

Hamilton was asked why the framers omitted the word God from the Constitution, he replied, “We forgot.”

America should concentrate on domestic tranquillity while disregarding its interests abroad:

Connecticut Compromise,

This broke the deadlock, though the Senate’s composition introduced a lasting political bias in American life in favor of smaller states.

York, George III’s second son, from Britain to head an American monarchy, Hamilton traced this absurdity to a letter sent “to one James Reynolds of this city”—the first reference he ever made to the man whose wife would someday be his fatal enchantress.

Through the years, Hamilton was to exhaust himself in efforts to refute lies that grew up around him like choking vines.

“held to service or labor.”

Jeffersonian Republicans over Hamiltonian Federalists.

“The finish given to the style and arrangement fairly belongs to the pen of Mr. Morris.”

the Constitution represented a glorious compromise for every signer.

Paranoid thinking seems to be a legacy of all revolutions,

Poison-pen artists on both sides wrote vitriolic essays that were overtly partisan, often paid scant heed to accuracy, and sought a visceral impact.