James and Dolley Madison by Bruce Chadwick

Author:Bruce Chadwick
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Publisher: Prometheus Books
Published: 2013-12-23T05:00:00+00:00

The commander in chief hung maps of Canada, the Great Lakes, New England, and the Atlantic seaboard up on the walls of his office in the White House; wrote letters; signed orders; kept files; met with political figures; brought in newspaper editors; and held meetings. The War of 1812 was the very first conflict in United States history in which the civilian president donned the robes of the military leader, the commander in chief of all armed forces.

Everything that Madison did as commander in chief set precedent. As military leader in wartime, he had to raise a large army, recruit militia units, expand the navy, get ammunition, name generals, and create a battle plan for the war. He had to assemble a war council in the White House, deal with a belligerent Federalist Party and equally disdainful Federalist newspaper editors, maintain the support of his Republican Party, gain support from the nation's clergymen, and, at the same time, pass bills, collect taxes, and run the nonmilitary side of the country. It was a daunting task.

At the start of the war, Napoleon Bonaparte did not let up in his own campaign to search American merchant vessels and impress sailors, as he had been doing for months. Madison could not fight one war with the British and another with the French. He also could not give in and join forces with the French against the British. He wrote a fiery letter, aimed at Napoleon, and had it printed in the National Intelligencer. In it, he said that “our government will not, under any circumstances that may occur, form a political connection with France…. It is not desirable to enter the lists with the two great belligerents at once, but if England acts with wisdom, and France perseveres in her career of injustice and folly, we should not be surprised to see the attitude of the United States change toward those powers.” He sent copies of the letter to his minister in France, Joel Barlow, and told him to be ready for an American war with France if England ended its war and the French continued their hostilities toward the United States.1

The president quickly found himself the well of all responsibility for the war. It was not a good place to be in, but Madison did not flinch. He plunged into the work of the conflict each morning and kept at it all day. Attorney General Richard Rush was surprised and impressed that Madison worked so hard. He was also pleased that Madison never gave in to British demands. He was, Rush said, “obstinate” against the British. Rush also wrote that “we have great good in him.”2

The president also had to deal with the leaders of the Native American tribes in the Northwest Territories. They all complained bitterly about mistreatment by the American government and the local settlers in the Ohio region. Madison knew that they were right, and he also knew that if he did not resolve their problems they would side with the British in the war.

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