James Madison: The Father Of The Constitution

524 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: James madison influence on america

James Madison is known for being the “Father of the Constitution” because he drafted U.S. Constitution and sponsored the Bill of Rights. Madison established the Democratic-Republican party with Thomas Jefferson, who was president at the time and joined the Virginia militia.. James then became the president and served two terms with first lady Dolley Madison and was the last founding father to serve as president. James Madison accomplished all of this and more before dying on June 28, 1836 at the Montpelier estate in Orange County, VIrginia.

Madison was born on March 16, 1751, in Port Conway, Virginia and grew up in Orange County, Virginia. James was raised on his family plantation that was more than 3000 acres of land and owned dozens of slaves. Once James turned 18, he attended school at the College of New Jersey, which is now known as Princeton. After attending all four years in Princeton, Madison had gained interest in the relationship between the American Colonies …show more content…

He joined the Virginia Militia as a colonel in 1775. Madison gave up on being a colonel and decided to leave his military life to become a politician. Madison had found out that he was a better writer than a fighter. After finding this out, he used his talents and represented Orange County, at the Virginia Convention, in 1776 to organise a new government.
During this time james met Thomas Jefferson, the author of the Declaration of Independence and our third President. James and Thomas shortly becomes friends and later established the Democratic-Republican party together. As his time as a politician, Madison used his talents to fight for religious freedom because he thought it was a right from the day you were born. Madison became a Virginia delegate to the Continental Congress in Philadelphia in 1780, . He then, left Congress to return to the Virginia Assembly and work on a religious freedom statute in

Show More
Related

  • Sworn On The Altar Of God Summary

    980 Words  | 2 Pages

    For most of Thomas Jefferson’s life, Anglicanism had a firm grip on those around him—Virginia in particular. Jefferson did not necessarily disfavor Anglicanism itself, but he was not fond of the lack of diversity within the surrounding area. Many individuals including John Locke, George Wythe, and James Maury inspired him beyond belief as he grew older. He was introduced to the Enlightenment, the age of reason, the influence of nature, the importance of truth, the presence of morality, etc. Which led to one

    Read More

  • John Adams by David McCullough

    1712 Words  | 4 Pages

    In the battle for independence from Great Britain, the founding forefathers of our country came together, uniting for a common cause they would end up fighting for with their lives. Thomas Jefferson, George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, Samuel Adams, James Madison, Alexander Hamilton, and many others take part of this panoramic chronicle of Adams’ life, all coming together because of their devotion to their country.

    Read More

  • Compare And Contrast Thomas Jefferson's Separation Of Church And State

    1838 Words  | 4 Pages

    From 1786-1800, James Madison and other political theorists, wrote eighty-five federalist papers explaining issues on our country and urging people to reconnect with the new constitution. In Federalist paper 10, Madison illustrates that with government and the way that we think about who we look up to in terms of rights has strengthened a divide in mankind. “A common passion or interest will, in almost every case, be felt by a majority of the whole; a communication and concert result from the form of government itself,” (Madison: The Federalist 10). James Madison ties with Jefferson in his opinion about how religion and government do not mix well. He does not tolerate when an argument between a citizens beliefs and the law becomes a problem because it clearly states in the Constitution that “Congress shall make no law respecting a religious movement” (Americans United) In Federalist paper 51, Madison also expresses on how being under the same ruling and in the same environment we have to learn to listen to both sides of the story. “In a free government the security for civil rights must be the same as that for religious rights. It consists in the one case in the multiplicity of interests, and in the other in the multiplicity of sects,” (Madison: The Federalist 51). The way that Jefferson and Madison compare is through the way that they think things should be perceived, such as,

    Read More

  • James Monroe Research Paper

    1286 Words  | 3 Pages

    James Monroe was born on April 28,1758 in Westmoreland County, Virginia, at this time Virginia was a British colony. He was the oldest son of five children, one sister and three brothers. They were the children of Elizabeth Jones Monroe and Spence Monroe. Spence Monroe was a farmer and a carpenter. When James was eleven he started to attend Campbelltown Academy. In 1774 when James Monroe was sixteen Spence Monroe died and James was left to manage the family property. James Monroe attended the college of William and Mary in Williamsburg the July after his father died.

    Read More

  • James Madison and the Federalist Papers

    739 Words  | 2 Pages

    On September 17, 1787, the Philadelphia Convention sent their new constitution to the states for ratification. The Federalists highly approved of the Constitution because it allowed for a more central and powerful government that was previously undermined under the Articles of Confederation. The Anti-Federalists, however, didn’t want a powerful central government, but, instead, powerful state governments; in response to the Constitution, many Anti-Federalists began writing essays and creating pamphlets as a means of arguing against it. In retaliation to the Anti-Federalists attempt at getting states to not ratify the Constitution, many Federalists developed a group of essays known as the Federalist Papers, which argued for the ratification of the new law system.

    Read More

  • James Madison As A Hero Essay

    552 Words  | 2 Pages

    Like myself, Madison was shy yet persistent when it came to things he felt passionate about. To Madison that was politics. At the start of his political career in 1776 he started working very closely with Thomas Jefferson. As Madison grew in his career he became a very respected leader in congress and eventually was one that helped pushed the idea for national convention to draft the constitution. During Madison’s career, he wrote many political articles and papers. Some of his most well-known writings are the “Virginia Plan” and contribution to the “Federalist Papers”. The “Virginia Plan” ended up being so well done that it was the blueprint for the constitution when it was being

    Read More

  • A Comparison of the Declaration of Independence and King's I Have A Dream

    1263 Words  | 3 Pages

    Thomas Jefferson, an educated, well respected career man, served as governor of Virginia, secretary of state, and president of the United States. The Revolutionary era, during the 1770's, proved to be one of America's most victorious times. Despite the casualties the American colonies suffered, they proved to be stronger than their ruling land, Britain, and won the right to be a free land, becoming the United States of America. Living through this difficult turning point in history inspired Jefferson to write "The Declaration of Independence." Once again, nearly two hundred years later, America faced yet another turning point in history.

    Read More

  • Thomas Jefferson Hypocrite

    1208 Words  | 3 Pages

    Thomas Jefferson has been a household name and has been greatly known by everyone in the United States since the late 1700’s. Not only was he present and play a crucial role in the American Revolution, but he also wrote the Declaration of independence and was also the third President of the United States. During his time as president his views and beliefs really countered the views of famous federalists of that time. (George Washington and John Adams) Jefferson had very passionate beliefs that favored the rights of the people and really gave the people and the states a lot more power than the Federalist Party believed they should have. “Jefferson’s political platform called for shrinking the infant

    Read More

  • James Madison on the Constitution and the Bill of Rights

    1007 Words  | 3 Pages

    James Madison, an American statesman and political theorist that was present at the constitutional convention. Many of the ideas proposed by Madison are part of the reason that the Constitution has withstood the test of time. Madison was ultimately prepared to deal with one of the biggest problems this new government would face in his eyes, factions. Factions, which as defined by Madison are “a number of citizens, whether amounting to a majority or minority of the whole, who are united and actuated by some common impulse of passion, or of interest, adverse to the rights of other citizens, or to the permanent and aggregate interests of the community” (Madison 156). Madison addresses various ways that he sees factions can be cured of its mischiefs such as removing a faction’s causes and also controlling their effects. Madison points out that this is would potentially create an even bigger problem than the factions themselves by stating, “Liberty is to faction, what air is to fire, an ailment, without which it instantly expires” (Madison 156) Madison also stated that the way for a government to remove the cause of faction was either to destroy the liberty that causes factions to exist in the first place or to give every citizen the same beliefs and opinions. Madison deemed this impractical, because it is nearly impossible to give everyone in a given place the same opinions and destroying the liberty would take away the very thing that the colonies fought for 4 years earlier. The fact is Madison knew that the country wouldn’t be able to count on a well-educated statesman to be there any time a faction gets out of hand. Madison knew the only viable way to keep factions under control is not to get rid of factions entirely but to set a r...

    Read More

  • Federalist Essay No 10 Analysis

    1747 Words  | 4 Pages

    James Madison was no stranger to opposition. In publishing an essay referred to today as Federalist Essay No. 10, Madison participated in a persuasive attempt to ratify the Constitution, a document he drafted and for which he is credited as its “Father”. Along with John Jay, who became the United States’ first Supreme Court Chief Justice, and Alexander Hamilton, who became the first Secretary of the Treasury, Madison articulates in his writing the necessity of the Constitution as a remedy for the extant ills of an infant nation recently freed from the grasp of distant monarchical rule. This young nation faltered under the first endeavor of organized government, the Articles of Confederation. The Articles were designed during a period of emerging

    Read More

  • Forging a Nation: The Visionaries of the Constitution

    899 Words  | 2 Pages

    The delegates chosen to represent their states on May 25, 1787 at the Constitutional Convention could never have imagined the lasting impact they would have on the nation for over 200 years. These men from diverse upbringings and unique educational backgrounds came together to forge a nation. From the chaos and change of the old world, they were able to bring forth a new nation founded on liberty. It is hard to overrate the amount of foresight and knowledge needed by the Framers of the Constitution in constructing a document that would guide a new nation through times of peace and upheaval.

    Read More

  • James Buchanan

    621 Words  | 2 Pages

    Buchanan graduated in 1809, was admitted to the bar in 1812, and then moved to Lancaster to set up his law practice. His political career was initiated in 1814 with his election to the Pennsylvania House of Representatives; in 1821 he began his first five elective terms in the House of Representatives. President Andrew Jackson appointed James Minister to Russia, upon his return in 1834. Buchanan was in the service of the United States Senate for a decade, and then became a secretary under James K. Polk, and as President Pierce’ s minister to Great Britain.

    Read More

  • James Madison's Failures

    958 Words  | 2 Pages

    He specifically recommended enlarging the army, preparing the militia, finishing the military academy, stockpiling munitions, and expanding the navy (Ketcham, 509). Still, the precipitance led to poor preparation. By that time, there were serious threats of disunion from New England, which engaged in extensive smuggling with Canada and refused to provide financial support or soldiers (Stagg). Because of certain faults above, Madison then could not finance the quick hiring of mercenaries so his military force consisted mostly of poorly trained militia members at the time war

    Read More

  • A Summary Of The Exchange Between Thomas Jefferson And James Madison

    1133 Words  | 3 Pages

    After reading the exchange between Thomas Jefferson and James Madison on the question of central importance to American constitutionalism—whether any Constitution, including the United States Constitution, needs to be positively reauthorized or not by every succeeding generation for it to remain legitimate, I believe that what Jefferson demands in his letter as in all too much else, is ignorance, even rage against the past. His principle on expiring the constitution and laws every 19 years would only result in weak government that offers no social continuity and stability.

    Read More

  • James Madison

    1355 Words  | 3 Pages

    Only part of James Madison's early education is known. "His early schooling amounted only to reading, writing, and arithmetic" (...

    Read More

More about James Madison: The Father Of The Constitution

Open Document