James Madison - Short Biography of an American Founder

Madison's notes of the Constitutional Convention of 1787 and his role as one of the authors of the Federalist Papers earned him the title "Father of the Constitution." He was born in 1751 in Virginia and belonged to an elite group of Virginia attorneys that included Thomas Jefferson, James Monroe, George Wythe, Patrick Henry, John Blair, Jr., and Edmund Randolph. Despite his status as a federalist, Madison showed adroit political skill during the adoption of the Constitution. He made numerous concessions to the anti-federalist camp to win its ratification.

To gain the initial winning vote at the 1787 Constitutional Convention, Madison promised the anti-federalists that he would introduce a Bill of Rights in the first Congress. Without a Bill of Rights to explicitly protect individual freedoms, the anti-federalists argued, the Constitution would allow the government to destroy liberties such as freedom of speech, freedom of religion, the right to bear arms, due process of law, and freedom from unreasonable searches and seizures. It was only because of Madison's promise that the anti-federalists compromised, and nine states voted for the Constitution.

Not until 1791, after four years of contentious debate in the state conventions, did Virginia ratify and add the first ten amendments to the Constitution, the Bill of Rights.

Madison's education reflects his federalist/anti-federalist role. He studied at the College of New Jersey (now Princeton) and graduated in 1771. He studied law with Jefferson and served with a committee that controlled a local militia in Virginia. He joined the Virginia House of Delegates in 1776, and in 1779, he was elected to the Continental Congress. He signed the Constitution in 1787.

In 1794, he married Dolly Payne Todd.

One of Madison's most often quoted sayings aptly summarizes men and government: "If men were angels, no government would be necessary." He understood the dangers of a standing army: "The means of defense against foreign danger historically have become the instruments of tyranny at home." On other issues of the executive, he warned, "If Tyranny and Oppression come to this land, it will be in the guise of fighting a foreign enemy."

Elected to the presidency in 1808, he served for two terms. He died in 1836, one of the last of the founding generation, leaving no provision in his will for the release of his slaves.

Sources:

Constitution Society

Encyclopedia Britannica