James Madison (1751-1836), 4th President of the United States
The source to which I look for the aids which alone can supply my deficiencies is the well-tried intelligence and virtue of my fellow citizens, and in the counsels of those representing them in the other departments associated in the care of the national interests. In these my confidence will under every difficulty be best placed, next to that which we have all been encouraged to feel in the guardianship and guidance of that Almighty Being whose power regulates the destiny of nations, whose blessings have been so conspicuously dispersed to this rising Republic, and to whom we are bound to address our devout gratitude for the past, as well as our fervent supplications and best hope for the future.
- Composed for his inaugural ceremonies, March 4, 1809
James Madison
James Madison, Jr. was born in March 1751 at Belle Grove Plantation near Port Conway, Virginia. He grew up as the eldest of twelve children. The family were tobacco planters. He received his early education at the nearby Innes plantation, learning mathematics, geography and modern as well as ancient languages. He became especially proficient in Latin. At age 16, he began a two-year course of study in private tutoring preparing him for college. He enrolled at the College of New Jersey (now Princeton), and after graduating there he remained on to study Hebrew, political philosophy and law. He gained admission to the bar.
As a young lawyer, Madison defended Baptist preachers arrested for preaching without a license from the established Anglican Church. He persuaded Virginia to give up claims to northwestern territories, including modern-day Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Wisconsin, Michigan and part of Minnesota, to the Continental Congress which then created the Northwest Territory.
Madison was elected to the Virginia House of Delegates and then was a delegate to the Continental Congress. Together with Alexander Hamilton and John Jay he wrote the Federalist Papers. Madison is often acknowledged to be the “Architect of the Constitution.” He and Patrick Henry are often credited for a large part of the Bill of Rights amendments to the U.S. Constitution.
During the Jefferson Administration, Madison was the U.S. Secretary of State. In 1808, he was elected the 4th President of the United States. The War of 1812 and the Second Barbary War both occurred during his presidency. Both Louisiana and Indiana were added as States during his terms in office.
When Madison left office, he retired to Montpelier, his tobacco plantation in Virginia, not far from Jefferson’s Monticello. He died there a few years later, the last remaining Founding Father, and is buried in the Madison Family Cemetery at Montpelier.
Madison was married to Dolley Todd who had one son, John, from a prior marriage. James Madison was known to regularly lead his household in the observance of family devotions. He was an adamant defender of religious liberty. He was most probably a Presbyterian.