How Well Do You Know James Madison

Meet the man behind the name

James Madison: father of the U.S. Constitution, the smallest president in history, one of this country’s greatest statesmen, teller of racy jokes and the namesake of this university — an important man that, with a few exceptions, most on this campus know little about. So here’s what all JMU students should know about James Madison, even if only to avoid the awkward silence that occurs when someone asks a question about the name emblazoned on shirts and hats across campus.

"Madison was essential to writing the constitution and the type of government we have," history professor Chris Arndt said.

Kevin Hardwick, also a history professor said, "He’s remembered as one of the central statesmen who created our country."

Jack N. Rakove, author of "James Madison and the Creation of the American Republic," writes that Madison, born March 16, 1751, was the son of the wealthiest landowner in Orange County, located in southeast Virginia. After spending his childhood there, he attended Princeton, then named the College of New Jersey. He wed Dolley Payne Todd, one of the most colorful and welcoming first ladies in history, in 1794.

After college, Madison returned to his family’s Virginia estate, Montpelier, without a career plan of any sort. Rakove writes that Madison, a sickly child, alluded to his death in correspondence from Montpelier with a college friend while dealing with health problems. Madison may have been a bit of a hypochondriac, according to Arndt. As Rakove writes, "His life was probably far less in danger than he believed."

The American Revolution called Madison to politics, which resulted in a career that included election to many political offices and the chance to help shape his country at the Constitutional Convention of 1787.

"None of the 55 members of the Federal Convention contributed more to the framing of the Constitution than James Madison," Rakove writes.

Madison’s political career culminated in Washington, D.C., when he became the nation’s fourth president.

"Madison was not a great president," Hardwick said. He had difficulty dealing with foreign policy and, at times, mishandled the War of 1812, but his popularity remained high enough for him to win reelection by a huge margin. After his presidency, Madison retired to Montpelier.

So, Madison was a great statesman and one of the country’s founding fathers, but what was he like as a person? It’s difficult to tell.

"It’s hard to breathe life into the man," Hardwick said. "He asked his wife to destroy his personal papers [upon his death] and — to our knowledge — she did."

Hardwick said Madison had his personal papers destroyed because he knew he was going to be studied and wished for scholars to concentrate on his political life as opposed to his personal life. But there still are a few stories on Madison’s personal life.

Scholars may not know very much about Madison’s private life, but they do know that before Dolley there was Kitty Floyd.

"In the winter of 1782-’83, Madison falls in love with the beautiful daughter of William Floyd, 15-year-old Kitty. Madison makes plans to marry her and she accepts an engagement, but she breaks it off," Arndt said. "Publicly, he makes no mention of it, but privately he’s heartbroken."

Arndt said one Jeffersonian scholar notes that Madison told great jokes. According to Lee Langston-Harrison, Curator at Montpelier, in 1829 George Tucker had this to say about Madison’s lighter side: "…his cheerfulness and amenity and abundant stock of racy anecdotes were the delight of every social board."

With light shed on the political and personal life of the university’s namesake, students at JMU can rest assured they’ll be able to inform anyone of the importance of the man The National Intelligencer called "The last of the great lights of the Revolution…" — James Madison.

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