The Father of the Constitution: James Madison - Essay Example

James Madison Introduction James Madison is famous in the American History as the “Father of the Constitution”. It was due to his efforts that individual rights were given. He was a political philosopher and distinctively believed that the New Republic needed adequate balances and checks so that the individual rights are protected from the majority’s tyranny. The first ten amendments of the Constitution were drafted by James. This earned him the name the “Father of the Bill of Rights”. A student of history and government, well read in law, he participated in the framing of the Virginia Constitution in 1776, served in the Continental Congress, and was a leader in the Virginia Assembly. Madison firmly believed in the strong unification of the country. Origin The fourth President of United States, James Madison (16th March, 1751- 28th June, 1886) made a massive contribution towards building the foundation of the nation. This great leader was born at Belle Grove Plantation situated near Port Conway, Virginia. His father, James Madison Senior was the largest landowner (with 5000 acres of land) and a leading citizen of the Orange Country. His mother, Nelly Conway Madison was the daughter of a prominent planter 2 and tobacco merchant. Thus, Madison was born in quite a prosperous family and as the oldest of 12 children was given suitable education at each step of his life. Both his parents had a considerable influence on him and his career. James Madison attended Princeton College (previously named College of New Jersey) and graduated in 1771. On 15th September, 1794, James married a widow, Dolley Payne Todd (20th May, 1768) and adopted her son, John Payne Todd. Dolley was the sister of Lucy Payne who married one of President Washington’s nephews, George Steptoe Washington. Dolley was expelled from the Society of Friends for marrying a non-Quaker. Ratification of Constitution Madison greatly contributed towards the ratification of Constitution by writing several Federal essays along with John Jay and Alexander Hamilton. Madison had extensively studied the ancient and modern confederacies and he understood that the republic would perish if it did not have a strong central government. He contributed twenty nine out of eighty five articles that were published in various newspapers. At 1787 Constitutional Convention, Madison’s draft of Virginia Plan and his revolutionary three-branch federal system became the basis for the American Constitution of Today. Afterwards when addressed as the “Father of the 3 Constitution”, Madison deliberately played it down by saying that the document was not “the off-spring of a single brain”, but “the work of many heads and many hands.” Political Views James was very much a liberal politically. He believed that as the governments were formed after a formal election and by popular choice of people, hence if that government failed and became oppressive then people should have the full right to cause a revolt and overthrow that government. James respected privatization in the form of properties and religious liberties. James Madison had helped to write the Federalists Papers. According to him, the national government should be empowered to act directly on persons while safeguarding the integrity of the State Sovereignty. Hence, this also makes him Federalist in a political way. James was a republic too. His life was devoted to the cause of self government. Dislike of Slavery James Madison regarded slavery as a form of cruelty where one person was treated as a property of another individual and traded in the same way as human does. In a letter to Robert J. Evans, Madison writes, “[I]f slavery, as a national evil, is to be abolished, and it be just that it be done at the national expense, the amount of the expense is not a paramount consideration.” 4 James Madison appealed to the public to abolish slavery and to treat the slaves as human beings and not merely as property. Favored Congress Over State Legislature James Madison favored the Congress over the State Legislature and thought that the former should be given more legislative authority than the State Legislature as the State was responsible for the unrest and rebellion amongst the farmers and the recent Trade War. Bill of Rights As a member of Congress, Madison helped in the framing of the Bill of Rights and enacting the first revenue legislation. He felt that the financial proposals given by Hamilton would make the northern financiers unduly powerful and wealthy and therefore opposed it. This brought into effect the development of Jeffersonian Party or the Republicans. Kasper says that Madison's evolution from skeptic about the Bill of Rights to its primary author resulted in the creation of a document that went beyond the contemporary strands of individual liberty that existed in the various colonial constitutions. Instead, Madison structured the Bill of Rights as an 5 integrated system that protected individual liberty both for its own sake and for its ability to constrain governmental power.  While working as the Secretary of State under the regime of President Jefferson, Madison protested to the warring Britain and France that they were breaking international law by seizing American ships. He wanted to end all trade relations with these countries until they agreed to a peace settlement. The protest backfired and according to the acidic comment of Randolph, “a shilling pamphlet hurled against eight hundred ships of war.” According to E. C. Sands, The choices made by congressional leaders to pursue compromise or conflict, partisanship or pluralism, are influenced by Madisonian design and do not represent a defect of politics that requires remedy.  Presidential Power Though the 1807 Embargo Act proved to be a failure, yet Madison was chosen as the United States President in 1808. However, before accepting his chair, Madison repealed the unpopular Embargo Act. The first part of Madison’s terms saw lots of unrest and even witnessed a war with the British troop. This war saw the US President actually taking part in the battlefield. Madison was 6 in fact the only American President to do so, but he proved to be a weak commander in chief. He also made poor choices in his majors and tolerated their incompetence. America suffered huge losses in the war and on 24th August, 1814, the British troops burnt down the capitol along with the White House. Afterwards the British launched a naval bombardment of Fort McHenry in Baltimore. After four months on 24th December, 1814 the warring parties settled down on terms of peace. The War of 1812 came out to be a significant one as it solidified the place of America in the international circle. James was initially criticized by his opponents for jumping into the war with poor preparations but ultimately as the country triumphed, people felt victorious. However, the War made James reassess most of his previous notions and he advocated strong military to protect the country from outside enemies. Madison’s Views on Current Political Situation Had Madison been alive, he would be pleasantly happy with the current political system that runs of the line of federalism. The country is now witnessing a Unitary State that gives complete power to a single government. Slavery has been abolished and a Black is now the president of the most important country. The government under the leadership of Barak Obama is witnessing a strong leadership that units the entire country. 7 James would also approve of the US Military which is now one of the most powerful in the world. America has much ammunitions and man force to defeat any country of the world. Hence, he would realize that the country is running into the right hands and approve. Work Cited: Phelan, Carolyn. "James Madison." Booklist 15 Sept. 1997: 232. Academic OneFile. Web. 19 Apr. 2011. Sands, E.C. "Connelly, William F., Jr. James Madison rules America: the constitutional origins of congressional partisanship." CHOICE: Current Reviews for Academic Libraries 48.6 (2011): 1168. Academic OneFile. Web. 19 Apr. 2011. Lichtman, S.B. "Kasper, Eric T. To secure the liberty of the people: James Madison's Bill of Rights and the Supreme Court's interpretation." CHOICE: Current Reviews for Academic Libraries 48.6 (2011): 1170+. Academic OneFile. Web. 19 Apr. 2011. The White House. James Madison. 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