Not Your Father's Founders (17 page)

New York, New York
November 27, 1746–February 26, 1813
Mr. Eclectic

The resumes of young New York gentlemen in the mid-1700s, including Robert R. Livingston's, could have been printed on a standard form. All they had to do was fill in their names and birth dates. From that point on, the form would have read “Born, studied at King's College, passed the bar exam, worked at or opened a law practice …”

The passage of the Stamp Act changed that rubber stamp form for many of them—especially Robert R. Livingston.

Robert Livingston and his brother William were suspected of being active with the Sons of Liberty in New York in the era of the Stamp Act revolt. Most of the Sons were not eager to reveal their identities for fear of retribution. In fact, Robert lost his job as a recorder of the city of New York in 1775 because of his anti-British sympathies—but in that same year he was elected to the New York Provincial Congress. That body, in turn, sent him to the Second Continental Congress.

There was no doubt that Livingston believed that a split between the colonies and Britain was inevitable, but he was not prepared to advocate independence when he first arrived in Philadelphia.

Nevertheless, Livingston was appointed to a five-person committee responsible for preparing a draft of the Declaration of Independence. The committee turned the job over to Jefferson, who completed the draft ultimately signed by fifty-six members of the Congress. Livingston was not among them—but not because he was opposed to it.

New York's Provincial Assembly had recalled Robert R. Livingston to vote on a name change from “province” to “state.” Livingston left Philadelphia early in July to work on the name change and help a committee draft a new state constitution. As a result, he was not in Philadelphia on August 2, 1776, to sign the Declaration of Independence.

New York state adopted its new constitution in 1777. The delegates named Livingston the state's first chancellor (governor) in conformance with the new document.

He retained that position until 1801. Livingston also continued to serve in the Continental Congress during 1777 and 1779–81. He was constantly involved in and apprised of war-related activities that might affect his state.

From 1781–83, Livingston served as the country's secretary of foreign affairs and participated in the peace talks with the French government in an effort to draft a treaty to end the war. There were few events of historical significance in the next twenty years in which Livingston was not involved.

He chaired New York's U.S. Constitution ratification committee in 1788. But he was not comfortable with federal positions because they conflicted with his duties as chancellor. He turned down assignments as minister to France and secretary of the navy in the 1790s.

Finally, he gave in. The fact that he had to give up his chancellor's position due to state constitutional limitations probably had something to do with it, but Livingston accepted President Thomas Jefferson's offer to serve as his minister to France. It was a wise selection by Jefferson.

Livingston was instrumental in coordinating the Louisiana Purchase in 1803 and easing the tension between France and the United States that had resulted in their 1798–1800 Quasi-War. Livingston decided by 1804 that he had done enough for his country and opted to end his public service career.

After close to forty years of public service, Livingston was ready to pursue his numerous and varied hobbies. While he was in Paris, Livingston met Robert Fulton, who is considered to be the inventor of the steamboat. He probably could not have done it without Livingston. The two worked together in France to develop a boat that would travel at least three to four miles per hour. They made a few trial runs on the Seine River, but did not build a steamship that was capable of reaching a high speed until they got back to New York. Finally, in 1807, they built the
Clermont
, named after Living-ston's estate. The boat attained the blazing speed of seven miles per hour.

Livingston also became involved in scientific and farming interests after he returned to the United States. He spent a good part of his free time experimenting with agricultural methods, raising merino sheep, and serving on the boards of the American Academy of Fine Arts and the New York Society Library.

The comic book–like hero turned his last page in 1813 and steamed into history, leaving behind a significant list of accomplishments.

Port Conway, Virginia
March 16, 1751–June 28, 1836
Putting Theory Into Practice

While most wealthy young Virginians who attended college in the mid-1700s attended the College of William & Mary, James Madison opted for Princeton College in New Jersey. His undergraduate and graduate course load at Princeton included Latin, Greek, Hebrew, science, geography, mathematics, rhetoric, philosophy, speech and debate, and political philosophy. He studied law after he graduated, but had no intention of becoming a practicing attorney. Madison believed wholeheartedly in the connection between the value of a good education and an enlightened society. It certainly paid off for him.

Despite his desire to pursue a profession other than the law after returning to Virginia, Madison got involved in legal matters, especially those that involved religion.

At the time, non-Anglican ministers had to obtain licenses from the state church (the Church of England) to preach. Those who did not were subject to arrest.

Madison adopted religious freedom as a cause and worked closely with local preachers for the passage of laws regarding religious freedom. In 1774, he became a member of the Committee of Safety, whose purpose was to oversee the militia. Then he served in the Virginia House of Burgesses from 1776–1779 and 1784–86, where he and Thomas Jefferson became friends. That helped his career.

Madison was appointed in 1778 to the Virginia Council of State, which directed the state's affairs during the Revolutionary War. And he was a delegate to the Confederation Congress from Virginia from March 1781 to November 1783.

Although Madison did not serve in the Revolutionary War, he worked diligently behind the scenes for the cause of independence. One of his main concerns was finding the funds to finance the Revolutionary War. Once the war ended, Madison's political career took off.

Madison bounced back and forth from state to local politics in the 1780s.

While in the Virginia legislature, Madison helped write a religious freedom statute that mitigated the state's ability to regulate religious matters. He argued against a plan espoused by Patrick Henry to force Virginians to “donate” money to a church of their choice to support the poor. He and Jefferson called Henry's suggested donation a tax. Their argument prevailed.

When the states were trying to write and ratify a national constitution, Madison took a leading role.

Madison was a significant contributor in the writing of the U.S. Constitution and the Bill of Rights. He also wrote a large number of the “Federalist Papers” in support of their passage, in conjunction with Alexander Hamilton and John Jay. The Constitution and Bill of Rights were ultimately ratified.

After George Washington became president, he adopted the Federalists' philosophy of a strong central government that favored commercial and financial interests over agrarian interests. Madison and Jefferson separated themselves from Washington's party and formed their own, the Democratic-Republicans, to oppose him. Their chief fear was that the Federalists' financial proposals created by Alexander Hamilton and backed by Washington would make northern financiers wealthy and do little economically for southern agrarian-based interests.

Thomas Jefferson appointed Madison as his secretary of state in 1801. He remained in that post for eight years, weathering some serious storms. The period was a difficult time for the United States, as the country tried to stay neutral in the ongoing wars between Britain and France and was engaged in a war with several North African countries (the Barbary States) over piracy and extortion. At the same time, British and French naval commanders made a habit of seizing American merchant ships and their cargoes at sea and impressing crew members into their services. The acts were a public relations nightmare for Madison, who could do little to stop the indignities due to the lack of a powerful U.S. navy. Americans were unhappy with Jefferson and Madison as a result. Ultimately, their unhappiness worked to Madison's advantage.

Madison succeeded Jefferson as president in 1809. Within three years, the United States was in a war with Britain that neither country wanted. The chief causes were an 1810 ban on trade with Britain imposed by Madison and Britain's refusal to stop impounding American merchant ships, cargoes, and crew members. American “war hawks” in Congress, specifically Henry Clay and John C. Calhoun, pressed Madison to declare war on Britain. He acceded to their demands; Congress declared war on Britain on June 1, 1812. The two countries fought to a stalemate in what became known derisively in some regions, particularly New England, as “Mr. Madison's War.”

Many Americans blamed Madison for the war, citing his inability or unwillingness to solve the issues between the two countries diplomatically. For the most part, American military forces had not performed well against the overwhelming might of the British army and navy. The nation had even suffered a major indignity in 1814 when British troops entered Washington, D.C., and set fire to the White House and the Capitol building. But American forces did earn a few significant military milestones against the British, such as Commodore Oliver Hazard Perry's September 10, 1813, naval victory on Lake Erie and General Andrew Jackson's January 8, 1815, triumph at New Orleans. These events instilled a renewed sense of nationalism and patriotic fervor in Americans, which led to a second term for Madison. Despite the charges that he had led the country into a needless conflict for which its military was not ready, Madison won reelection and had a less contentious second term.

Once the war ended, Madison returned to his Virginia plantation and a life of leisure. He succeeded Thomas Jefferson as head of the University of Virginia in 1826 and served as a delegate to the Virginia Constitutional Convention in 1829.

Mostly, though, he spent time with his popular wife, Dolley, whom he had married on September 15, 1794.

James Madison passed away peacefully at breakfast one summer morning after a six-month bout of bad health.

He left behind a legacy as one of the most influential Founding Fathers, and gratitude galore from the country for which he had done so much.