Facts about James Madison

This is a list of basic facts about James Madison. Madison was one of the primary creators of the United States Constitution and the Bill of Rights. He was also the Fourth President of the United States and was president during the War of 1812. This list of facts contains basic things such as birth and death dates, marriage dates, number of children and offices he held. It also contains some interesting and less well known facts about James Madison.

James Madison

Facts about James Madison
Birthdate	March 16, 1751
Birthplace	Port Conway, Virginia
Parents' names	Father - Colonel James Madison, Sr., born March 27, 1723, died February 27, 1801 Mother - Eleanor Rose "Nellie" Conway, born January 9, 1731, died February 11, 1829 They married in 1743
Parents' occupations	Father was owner of a tobacco plantation called "Montpelier" in Orange County, Virginia
Number of siblings	11
Birth order	1st of 12 children, five died in infancy or childhood Francis Madison (1753 - 1800) - became a planter in Orange County, Virginia Ambrose Madison (1755 - 1793) - became a planter and captain in the Virginia militia Catlett Madison (1758 - 1758) - died in infancy Nelly Madison Hite (1760 - 1802) William Madison (1762 - 1843) - served in the American Revolution and a lawyer, also served in the Virginia legislature Sarah Catlett Madison Macon (1764 - 1843) unnamed infant (1766 - 1766) Elizabeth Madison (1768 - 1775) unnamed infant (1770 - 1770) Reuben Madison (1771 - 1775) Frances "Fanny" Madison Rose (1774 - 1823)
Nicknames	Father of the Constitution Father of the Bill of Rights America's First Graduate Student Father of the University of Virginia Friends called him "Jemmie"
Schools attended	In 1762, at age 11 began attending first school in King and Queen County, Virginia, under the instruction of Donald Robertson at the Innes Plantation In 1767, at age 16, Madison returned home to Montpelier to study with a private tutor From August, 1769 - 1771 - attended the College of New Jersey (now Princeton), finished four year course in two years Continued to study with College of New Jersey President, John Witherspoon, for an additional year after graduating, consequently James Madison is known as "America's First Graduate Student"
Religious Views	Madison was a devout Episcopalian who held very strong personal religious beliefs, in earlier years he advocated personal salvation and government promotion of Christianity, personal statements of faith by public officials, paid Congressional chaplains, and the use of federal funds for the printing and distribution of the Bible, in later years however, he may have backed down from this position of allowing the government to promote Christianity. He authored "Memorial and Remonstrance Against Religious Assessments," which discouraged the use of religious tests for people holding public office. This doesn't mean he was against Christianity, but against defining what religious views public officials must hold. There is also some dispute about Madison's views in later years because of a document, known as the "Detached Memoranda," which was allegedly "found" in 1946, in which some believe that Madison recanted his religious views. The authenticity of the document is in question though because of its apparent contradictions to Madison's personal behavior.
First Occupation	Lawyer
Physical Appearance	The smallest President, weighing only 100 pounds and standing 5 feet, 4 inches tall
Facts about James Madison - James Madison Family
Date of marriage, wife's name Dolley Madison	Married Dorothea Dandling Payne Todd, otherwise known as Dolley (1768-1849), on September 15, 1794, Dolley was a widower with a Quaker background, her husband, John Todd Jr. and second son, William Temple, died in the Philadelphia Yellow Fever epidemic of 1793, she was also expelled from the Quaker church for marrying Madison who was an Episcopalian
Children	James and Dolley had no children of their own, they did however raise Dolley's first son, John Payne, who was two years old when they married
Famous relatives	Madison was a half first cousin, twice removed, of President George Washington Madison was a second cousin of the Twelfth President of the United States - Zachary Taylor Madison's wife Dolley had a sister named Lucy who married George Steptoe Washington, George Washington's nephew
Facts about James Madison - The Revolutionary War
How he got involved in the independence effort?	Madison hated the British treatment of its American colonies, he was appointed to the Orange County Committee of Safety in 1774 to help coordinate anti-British efforts, in 1776 he was elected to the Virginia Convention which voted to declare independence from Great Britain and which wrote a constititution for the new state, he served on the Council of State under governor's Patrick Henry and Thomas Jefferson in 1778 and 1779, in 1779, Madison was elected to the Continental Congress where he served until 1783
Did he see military action during the war?	Not during the Revolution, but he was forced to flee Washington DC during the War of 1812 when the British invaded the city and set fire to many public buildings, including the White House
Facts about James Madison - Offices
Which party was he in?	Democrat-Republican (today's Democrat party)
Which government offices did he hold?	Member of Virginia Constitutional Convention, 1776 Member of Continental Congress, 1780-83 Member of Virginia Legislature, 1784-86 Member of Constitutional Convention, 1787 Member of U.S. House of Representatives, 1789-97 Secretary of State, 1801-09 (under Thomas Jefferson) 4th President of the United States - served two terms from 1808-1816
Did he hold any office under the Royal government?	No
Significant accomplishments while in office?	Madison was one of the primary forces behind the creation of the United States Constitution. He created the primary framework on which the Constitution was built, was the principal author of it, promoted the need for it and was the primary speaker and director of the Constitutional Convention. Madison signed the US Constitution in 1787, one of only two signers who would later become President, the other was George Washington As Thomas Jefferson's Secretary of State, Madison oversaw the Louisiana Purchase which doubled the size of the United States Madison was President when Congress declared war on Great Britain igniting the War of 1812 - his critics called this "Mr. Madison's War," the war unpopular in many quarters, but General Andrew Jackson's brilliant victory at New Orleans led to a huge upsurge in nationalism and destroyed the opposing party, the Federalists Madison signed the Treaty of Ghent, the document that officially ended the War of 1812
Facts about James Madison - Other Personal info
Selected James Madison writings and their dates	Madison wrote the Virginia Plan as he waited for the Continental Congress to assemble in 1787, it became the basis for the United States Constitution Madison was the principal author of the United States Constitution - 1787 Madison was the principal author of the Bill of Rights - 1791 Madison wrote over a third of "The Federalist Papers," between 1787 and 1788, along with Alexander Hamilton and John Jay. Their purpose was to encourage the American population to accept the newly written United States Constitution. James Madison speech to Congress - June 8 1789 - Madison presents his proposal for twenty amendments to the United States Congress, these proposals were examined and amended by Congress to become the Bill of Rights Virginia Resolutions (or Resolves) - December 21, 1789 - written to refute the Alien and Sedition Acts First Inaugural Address - March 4, 1809 Second Inaugural Address - March 4, 1813
James Madison Quotes	"A watchful eye must be kept on ourselves lest, while we are building ideal monuments of renown and bliss here, we neglect to have our names enrolled in the Annals of Heaven." - Letter to William Bradford, November 9, 1772 "All men having power ought to be distrusted to a certain degree." - Speech at the Constitutional Convention, July 11, 1787 "The conduct of every popular assembly... shews that individuals join without remorse in acts against which their consciences would revolt, if proposed to them, separately, in their closets." - Letter to Thomas Jefferson, October 24, 1787 "Each State, in ratifying the Constitution, is considered as a sovereign body, independent of all others, and only to be bound by its own voluntary act. In this relation, then, the new Constitution will, if established, be a FEDERAL, and not a NATIONAL constitution." - Federalist Papers, No. 39, January, 1788 More James Madison Quotes here.
Facts about James Madison - The end of his life
Date and age of retirement	After leaving the presidency in 1816, Madison retired to Montpelier, but stayed involved in politics, he represented his county at the Virginia Constitutional Convention of 1829, he also helped found the American Colonization Society to help resettle American blacks in Africa
Date of death	Died June 28, 1836 at Montpelier
Famous words on his deathbed	"I always talk better lying down."
Location of grave	Montpelier, Madison's lifelong home near Orange, Virginia
Epitaph on gravestone	MADISON BORN MARCH 16TH, 1751 DIED JUNE 28TH, 1836
Other interesting Facts about James Madison
Quotes about James Madison by others	"James Madison, one of the pillars and ornaments of his country and of his age. His time on earth was short, yet he died full of years and of glory... he fulfilled, nobly fulfilled, his destinies as a man and a Christian. He has improved his own condition by improving that of his country and his kind." - An Eulogy on the Life and Character of James Madison" - John Quincy Adams, Boston, September 28, 1836
Landmarks for James Madison	Madison's birthplace, Conway House, stood in Port Royal, Virginia until the 1930's when it fell into the Rappahannock River, a birth site marker now stands on the spot on the south side of the river, 4 miles north of Port Royal on US Route 301 Montpelier - home of three generations of Madison's, located near Orange, Virginia, you can visit Montpelier today, for more information, go to www.montpelier.org Octagon House - this private home in Washington DC was occupied by the Madison's after the White House was burned in the War of 1812, Madison signed the Treaty of Ghent, which ended the War of 1812 here. Today Octagon House is owned by the American Architectural Association and can be visited and toured, click here for more information about the Octagon House The James Madison Museum is located in Orange, Virginia, only a few miles from Montpelier and has the largest collection of James Madison memorabilia and artifacts
Other interesting Facts about James Madison	At age 29, Madison was the youngest member of the Continental Congress Madison was one of only two Presidents to sign the US Constitution (the other was George Washington) James Madison and Dolley Payne Todd were introduced to one another by the infamous Aaron Burr, at James Madison's request Madison was seventeen years older than Dolley when they married Madison was the first former US Congressman to be elected President of the United States Madison had a pet macaw During Madison's presidency, New England States met at the Hartford Convention in 1814 to discuss seceding from the union over the War of 1812 Madison was younger than both of his vice-presidents Madison was the first President to wear trousers instead of knee breaches Madison's inaugural jacket was woven from wool from sheep that were raised at his home in Virginia, Montpelier Louisiana and Indiana were admitted to the union during Madison's presidency Madison was a diagnosed epileptic and had chronic arthritis James Madison's salary was $25,000 a year when he was President Madison retreated from Washington DC with the US Army in August 1814 when the city was invaded by the British, many public buildings were burned, including the White House James Madison's head appeared on the US $5,000 bill, which was in circulation prior to 1946 Both of James Madison's vice-presidents died while in office - George Clinton and Elbridge Gerry