First published 2014
Lynne Cheney presents James Madison as a study in contradictions. The fourth president appeared modest and reserved, yet he rewrote the rules of government and nationhood. Cheney traces how this quiet intellectual became the driving force behind the Constitution and fought tirelessly for its ratification. She shows Madison crafting the political philosophy that would unite the states, arguments he made brilliantly in The Federalist papers. The biography follows Madison as he partners with Thomas Jefferson to create America's first political party, the Democratic Republicans. As Jefferson's secretary of state, Madison orchestrates the Louisiana Purchase and doubles the nation's territory. When he becomes president, Madison faces the ultimate test during the War of 1812, America's first conflict under the Constitution. Cheney reveals how Madison proved that a republic could fight for its honor and survive as a democracy. This portrait captures a Founding Father whose genius lay not in charisma but in ideas that shaped the country Americans know today.
Genres: biography, history, 20th-century, american, 19th-century, american-history
Vibes: intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: historical-fiction
Period: 19th-Century, 20th-Century
576 pages · Hardcover · Viking