James Madison Popular Books
James Madison Biography & Facts
James Madison (March 16, 1751 – June 28, 1836) was an American statesman, diplomat, and Founding Father who served as the fourth president of the United States from 1809 to 1817. Madison was popularly acclaimed the "Father of the Constitution" for his pivotal role in drafting and promoting the Constitution of the United States and the Bill of Rights. Madison was born into a prominent slave-owning planter family in Virginia. He served as a member of the Virginia House of Delegates and the Continental Congress during and after the American Revolutionary War. Dissatisfied with the weak national government established by the Articles of Confederation, he helped organize the Constitutional Convention, which produced a new constitution designed to strengthen republican government against democratic assembly. Madison's Virginia Plan was the basis for the convention's deliberations, and he was an influential voice at the convention. He became one of the leaders in the movement to ratify the Constitution and joined Alexander Hamilton and John Jay in writing The Federalist Papers, a series of pro-ratification essays that remains prominent among works of political science in American history. Madison emerged as an important leader in the House of Representatives and was a close adviser to President George Washington. During the early 1790s, Madison opposed the economic program and the accompanying centralization of power favored by Secretary of the Treasury Hamilton. Alongside Thomas Jefferson, he organized the Democratic–Republican Party in opposition to Hamilton's Federalist Party. After Jefferson was elected president in 1800, Madison served as his Secretary of State from 1801 to 1809 and supported Jefferson in the case of Marbury v. Madison. While Madison was Secretary of State, Jefferson made the Louisiana Purchase, and later, as President, Madison oversaw related disputes in the Northwest Territories. Madison was elected president in 1808. Motivated by desire to acquire land held by Britain, Spain, and Native Americans, and after diplomatic protests with a trade embargo failed to end British seizures of American shipped goods, Madison led the United States into the War of 1812. Although the war ended inconclusively, many Americans viewed the war's outcome as a successful "second war of independence" against Britain. Madison was re-elected in 1812, albeit by a smaller margin. The war convinced Madison of the necessity of a stronger federal government. He presided over the creation of the Second Bank of the United States and the enactment of the protective Tariff of 1816. By treaty or through war, Native American tribes ceded 26,000,000 acres (11,000,000 ha) of land to the United States under Madison's presidency. Retiring from public office at the end of his presidency in 1817, Madison returned to his plantation, Montpelier, and died there in 1836. During his lifetime, Madison was a slave owner. In 1783, to prevent a slave rebellion at Montpelier, Madison freed one of his slaves. He did not free any slaves in his will. Among historians, Madison is considered one of the most important Founding Fathers of the United States. Leading historians have generally ranked him as an above-average president, although they are critical of his endorsement of slavery and his leadership during the War of 1812. Madison's name is commemorated in many landmarks across the nation, both publicly and privately, with prominent examples including Madison Square Garden, James Madison University, the James Madison Memorial Building, and the USS James Madison. Early life and education James Madison Jr. was born on March 16, 1751 (March 5, 1750, Old Style), at Belle Grove Plantation near Port Conway in the Colony of Virginia, to James Madison Sr. and Eleanor Madison. His family had lived in Virginia since the mid-17th century. Madison's maternal grandfather, Francis Conway, was a prominent planter and tobacco merchant. His father was a tobacco planter who grew up on a plantation, then called Mount Pleasant, which he inherited upon reaching adulthood. With an estimated 100 slaves and a 5,000-acre (2,000 ha) plantation, Madison's father was among the largest landowners in Virginia's Piedmont. In the early 1760s, the Madison family moved into a newly built house that they named Montpelier. Madison grew up as the oldest of twelve children, with seven brothers and four sisters, though only six lived to adulthood. Of the surviving three brothers (Francis, Ambrose, and William) and three sisters (Nelly, Sarah, and Frances), it was Ambrose who would eventually help to manage Montpelier for both his father and older brother until his own death in 1793. President Zachary Taylor was a descendant of Elder William Brewster, a Pilgrim leader of the Plymouth Colony, a Mayflower immigrant, and a signer of the Mayflower Compact; and Isaac Allerton Jr., a colonial merchant, colonel, and son of Mayflower Pilgrim Isaac Allerton and Fear Brewster. Taylor's second cousin through that line was Madison. From age 11 to 16, Madison studied under Donald Robertson, a Scottish instructor who served as a tutor for several prominent planter families in the South. Madison learned mathematics, geography, and modern and classical languages, becoming exceptionally proficient in Latin. At age 16, Madison returned to Montpelier, where he studied under the Reverend Thomas Martin to prepare for college. Unlike most college-bound Virginians of his day, Madison did not attend the College of William and Mary, where the lowland Williamsburg climate—thought to be more likely to harbor infectious disease—might have strained his sensibilities concerning his own health. Instead, in 1769, he enrolled at the College of New Jersey (later renamed Princeton University). His college studies included Latin, Greek, theology, and the works of the Enlightenment. Emphasis was placed on both speech and debate; Madison was a leading member of the American Whig–Cliosophic Society, which competed on campus with a political counterpart, the Cliosophic Society. During his time at Princeton, Madison's closest friend was future Attorney General William Bradford. Along with classmate Aaron Burr, Madison undertook an intense program of study and completed the college's three-year Bachelor of Arts degree in two years, graduating in 1771. Madison had contemplated either entering the clergy or practicing law after graduation but instead remained at Princeton to study Hebrew and political philosophy under the college's president, John Witherspoon. He returned home to Montpelier in early 1772. Madison's ideas on philosophy and morality were strongly shaped by Witherspoon, who converted him to the philosophy, values, and modes of thinking of the Age of Enlightenment. Biographer Terence Ball wrote that at Princeton, Madison "was immersed in the liberalism of the Enlightenment, and converted to eighteenth-century political radicalism. From then on James Madison's.... Discover the James Madison popular books. Find the top 100 most popular James Madison books.
Best Seller James Madison Books of 2024
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James Madison
John P. KaminskiA Word Portrait of an American Founder.America has had few political thinkers who have rivalled James Madison. The son of a wealthy planter, Madison was an unhealthy child and was ...
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Six Seasons
Joshua McFadden & Martha HolmbergWinner, James Beard Award for Best Book in VegetableFocused Cooking Named a Best Cookbook of the Year by the Wall Street Journal, The Atlantic, Bon Appétit, Food Network Magazine, ...
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The Last Founding Father
Harlow Giles UngerFrom the New York Times bestselling author, the larger than life story of America's fifth president, who transformed a small, fragile nation into a powerful empire In this compelli...
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Secret Lives of the U.S. Presidents
Cormac O'Brien & Monika SuteskiMurder, Adultery, Gambling, UFOs And the White House?!? Your high school history teachers never gave you a book like this one! Secret Lives of the U.S. Presidents features ...
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Founding Partisans
H. W. BrandsFrom bestselling historian and Pulitzer Prize finalist H.W. Brands, a revelatory history of the shocking emergence of vicious political division at the birth of the United States.T...
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Ratification
Pauline MaierThe defining book of the American Revolution era and a winner of the George Washington Book Award, Ratification chronicles the pivotal moments and key figures in transforming the U...
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The Wettest County in the World
Matt BondurantThe inspiration for the major motion picture LawlessBased on the true story of Matt Bondurant’s grandfather and two granduncles, The Wettest County in the World is a gripping and g...
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James Madison and the Making of America
Kevin R. C. GutzmanIn James Madison and the Making of America, historian Kevin Gutzman looks beyond the way James Madison is traditionally seen as "The Father of the Constitution" to find a more co...
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American Creation
Joseph J. EllisFrom the first shots fired at Lexington to the signing of the Declaration of Independence to the negotiations for the Louisiana Purchase, Joseph J. Ellis guides us through the deci...
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James Madison
Sydney Howard GayWith centuries of literature, it's inevitable that some will fall through the cracks. We hunt down public domain works and restore them so they're not lost to the world. Who are w...
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The Guarded Gate
Daniel OkrentNAMED ONE OF THE “100 NOTABLE BOOKS OF THE YEAR” BY THE NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW“An extraordinary book, I can’t recommend it highly enough.” –Whoopi Goldberg, The ViewBy the wide...
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The Summer of 1787
David O. StewartThe Summer of 1787 takes us into the sweltering room in which the founding fathers struggled for four months to produce the Constitution: the flawed but enduring document that woul...
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Freethinkers
Susan JacobyAn authoritative history of the vital role of secularist thinkers and activists in the United States, from a writer of "fierce intelligence and nimble, unfettered imagination" (The...
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Kitchen Creativity
Karen PageUnlock your creative potential with the world's most imaginative chefs. In this groundbreaking exploration of culinary genius, the authors of The Flavor Bible reveal the surprisin...
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The First Congress
Fergus M. BordewichThis “fascinating” (Chicago Tribune), “lively” (The New York Times) history tells how the First Congress and the Washington administration created one of the most productive and fa...
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James Madison
Sydney Howard GayJames Madison was the person who introduced the amendments now known as the Bill of Rights to the U.S. Constitution to the first United States Congress in March of 1789. Read his b...
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Works of James Madison
James Madison21 works of James Madison American statesman, political theorist and the fourth President of the United States (17511836) This ebook presents a collection of 21 works of James Madi...
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Gumption
Nick OffermanThe star of Parks and Recreation and author of the New York Times bestseller Paddle Your Own Canoe returns with a second book that humorously highlights twentyone figures from our ...
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Thomas Jefferson and the Tripoli Pirates
Brian Kilmeade & Don Yaeger“Another blockbuster! Thomas Jefferson and the Tripoli Pirates reads like an edgeofyourseat, pageturning thriller. You will love this book and also wonder why so few people know th...
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James Madison
Jay CostAn intellectual biography of James Madison, arguing that he invented American politics as we know it How do you solve a problem like James Madison? The fourth president is one of t...
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Blood in the Garden
Chris HerringINSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER A SELECTION ON BARACK OBAMA’S SUMMER READING LISTThe definitive history of the 1990s New York Knicks, illustrating how Pat Riley, Patrick Ewing, J...
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The Three Lives of James Madison
Noah FeldmanA sweeping reexamination of the Founding Father who transformed the United States in each of his political “lives”as a revolutionary thinker, partisan political strategist, and pre...
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James Madison
Lynne CheneyA major new biography of the fourth president of the United States by New York Times bestselling author Lynne Cheney LinManuel Miranda's play "Hamilton" has reignited intere...
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James Madison
Richard BrookhiserJames Madison led one of the most influential and prolific lives in American history, and his story although all too often overshadowed by his more celebrated contemporaries is i...
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American Dialogue
Joseph J. EllisThe awardwinning author of Founding Brothers and The Quartet now gives us a deeply insightful examination of the relevance of the views of George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Jame...
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My Name Is James Madison Hemings
Jonah Winter & Terry WidenerA New York Times Notable Book A powerful historical picture book about the child of founding father Thomas Jefferson and the enslaved Sally Hemings.In an evocative firstperson...
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The Civil War of 1812
Alan TaylorIn the early nineteenth century, Britons and Americans renewed their struggle over the legacy of the American Revolution, leading to a second confrontation that redefined North Ame...
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The Virginia Dynasty
Lynne CheneyA vivid account of leadership focusing on the first four Virginia presidentsGeorge Washington, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, and James Monroefrom the bestselling historian and a...
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James Madison
Barbara SomervillCitizens of the United States can thank James Madison, a man who lived 200 years ago, for some of the important rights they enjoy, including the right to speak their mind, criticiz...
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James Madison
Sydney Howard GayAfter further study with a private tutor at Montpelier, Madison enrolled in college at the College of New Jersey (today known as Princeton University), earning a bachelor’s degree ...
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James Madison
Garry WillsA bestselling historian examines the life of a Founding Father.Renowned historian and social commentator Garry Wills takes a fresh look at the life of James Madison, from his rise ...
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The Intimate Life of Alexander Hamilton
Allan Mclane Hamilton & Willard Sterne RandallThe life of Alexander Hamilton is certainly one of great complexity and controversy and, as a result, has been of great interest to the general public for centuries. In the past tw...
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A Slave in the White House
Elizabeth Dowling TaylorPaul Jennings was born into slavery on the plantation of James and Dolley Madison in Virginia, later becoming part of the Madison household staff at the White House. Once finally e...
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Louisa
Louisa ThomasFrom the author of Mind and Matter, an intimate portrait of Louisa Catherine Adams, the wife of John Quincy Adams, who witnessed firsthand the greatest transformations of her time&...
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The Pursuit of Happiness
Jeffrey RosenA fascinating examination of what “the pursuit of happiness” meant to our nation’s Founders and how that famous phrase defined their lives and became the foundation of our democrac...
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Debates in the Federal Convention of 1787 by James Madison, a Member
Gordon LloydJames Madison, best known as the father of the Constitution, was also the most thorough and thoughtful scribe of what one person called in 1839 the "political bible" of the America...
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James Madison
Sydney Howard GayThe life of the "Father of the Constitution" is chronicled beginning with his family in Virginia and his early beginnings in public service as a Committee of Safety member ...
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Lawless
Matt BondurantWith a Foreword by Director John HillcoatBased on the true story of Matt Bondurant’s grandfather and two granduncles, Lawless is a gripping tale of brotherhood, greed, and murder. ...
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James Madison
Jill K. MulhallJames Madison was an important Founding Father. This appealing biography allows readers to explore the inspiring life he led as a member of the Continental Congress and as Presiden...
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The Ultimate James Madison Collection
Charles River Editors, James Madison & Alexander HamiltonIncludes: Charles River Editors’ original biography of James Madison The complete Federalist Papers and The Constitution All eight of Madison’s State of the Union Addresses, and hi...
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James Madison
Samuel KernellIn recent years, the study of James Madison and his contributions to early American politics has enjoyed a growing audience among scholars and students of modern American politics....