Whereas: Stories from the People’s House

Edition for Educators—James Madison of Virginia

Since the First Congress opened in 1789, more than 11,000 people have served in the U.S. House of Representatives. Most served capably for a few terms and returned to their communities. But some lawmakers have left towering legacies and are remembered for their legislative prowess, path-breaking careers, and bold personalities. These Members of Congress, including powerful Speakers of the House, strong-willed legislators, trailblazing Representatives, and policy specialists, qualify as “Giants of the House.”

Few of America’s Founders had a more pronounced influence on the young nation than James Madison of Virginia. Over the course of his life, Madison was a Delegate to the Continental and Confederation Congresses, a U.S. Representative, and the fourth President of the United States. During the late 1780s, Madison helped shape the U.S. Constitution at the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia, where he was instrumental in developing America’s system of direct House elections. Afterward, Madison authored several volumes of the influential Federalist Papers, in which he built popular support for the Constitution and its ratification by the states. As a U.S. Representative, Madison introduced the resolution that became the Bill of Rights—the first 10 amendments to the Constitution. And as President, Madison oversaw the United States’ second conflict with Great Britain during the War of 1812, which helped secure America’s place in world affairs.

This month’s Edition for Educators highlights materials on the History, Art & Archives website about the life, career, and legacy of James Madison.

Madison and the Constitution

People—Signers of the U.S. Constitution
On February 21, 1787, the Confederation Congress resolved that “a convention of delegates . . . appointed by the several states be held at Philadelphia for the sole and express purpose of revising the Articles of Confederation.” When the Constitutional Convention met in the Pennsylvania state house (now Independence Hall) in May 1787, Edmund Randolph of Virginia offered a proposal authored by James Madison that became known as the “Virginia Plan,” which outlined a strong federal system that included a legislative branch, and executive branch, and a judicial branch. Portions of Madison’s plan, combined with proposals from William Paterson’s “New Jersey Plan” formed the basis of the Great Compromise that paved the way for the Constitution and our current government.

Highlight—James Madison of Virginia
On May 4, 1789, Representative James Madison of Virginia announced his intention to introduce a resolution to create a Bill of Rights. The resolutions he proposed enumerated the rights and protections that individuals and states would have from the federal government. State legislatures ratified 10 of the 12 resolutions which had passed Congress and became the Bill of Rights.

Highlight—Twenty-seventh Amendment
On September 25, 1789, the First Congress (1789–1791) submitted the original 12 amendments to the Constitution, crafted by Representative James Madison of Virginia, to the states for ratification. One of the two amendments not initially ratified by the states concerning congressional salaries, was approved 200 years later. With no time limit on ratification, the Twenty-Seventh Amendment was ratified in May 7, 1992, when Michigan approved it.

In the House

Blog—James Madison, the First Congress, and the Roots of America’s Direct Elections: “Essential to Every Plan of Free Government”
James Madison, who is widely credited as the architect of America’s system of direct House elections, openly wondered if the new government would succeed given that the states had seemed to struggle to elect their lawmakers. Although the House’s system of direct elections is long familiar to Americans living in the twenty-first century, the practice was brand new for many eighteenth-century Americans—including Madison.

Highlight—The Permanent Seat of Government Act
July 1790, the House approved the location of a new federal city to serve as the nation’s capital. The legislation was the result of a negotiation between political opponents and members of Washington’s Cabinet, U.S. Secretary of State Thomas Jefferson and U.S. Treasury Secretary Alexander Hamilton, and was supported by Representative James Madison of Virginia.

Highlight—The First Bank of the United States
The First Bank of the United States was the product of legislative compromise during the establishment of the federal government under the Constitution. Southern lawmakers reluctantly agreed to the federal government’s assumption of states’ debts accrued during the Revolutionary War in exchange for the establishment of a national capital city in a southern locale. Representative James Madison, an architect of the Bill of Rights to the Constitution, disagreed with the national bank believing that rights not expressly granted to Congress belonged to the states.

Highlight—The House Appropriated Funds for Jay’s Treaty
In April 1796, the House narrowly approved funds for the implementation of Jay’s Treaty with Great Britain to resolve growing antagonism between the two nations. Before the vote, Representative James Madison of Virginia had rallied opponents of the treaty claiming the House had an implicit right to review pacts with foreign nations that required enabling legislation.

Highlight—Sedition Act of 1798
In one of the first tests of the constitution right to freedom of speech, the House passed the Sedition Act, permitting the deportation, fine, or imprisonment of anyone deemed a threat or who published “false, scandalous, or malicious writing” against the government of the United States. The bill had the support of Federalists in Congress and the John Adams administration, but Democratic Republican James Madison of Virginia vehemently opposed the legislation as a threat to free speech established by the First Amendment.

President

Blog—The Presidency and the House
On March 4, 1809, James Madison was sworn in as the fourth President of the United States, taking over the White House from his friend, the outgoing President Thomas Jefferson. The two Founders had much in common: both had served in the Continental Congress from Virginia and both had, at one time or another, served as U.S. Secretary of State. But unlike Jefferson, Madison had an additional, perhaps even more important line on his resume: he was the first President to have served in the U.S. House of Representatives.

Records—War of 1812 Declaration
The House passed a war resolution—the first in its history—against Great Britain on June 4, 1812. This record, received and agreed to by the House on June 18, reflects the Senate’s minor changes to the original declaration of war. President James Madison signed the bill later that day, formally acknowledging that a state of war existed between United States and Great Britain.

Records—Julien de Lallande Poydras Credentials
These credentials certify the February 1, 1809, election of Julien de Lallande Poydras as the Orleans Territory’s second Delegate. France had sold the territory to the United States in 1803 for $15 million. Almost a decade after the acquisition, on March 20, 1812, the House passed legislation granting statehood to Louisiana. President James Madison signed the bill on April 8, 1812, and the state was formally admitted on April 30 to mark the anniversary of the Louisiana Purchase.

Legacy

Highlight—The House Purchased James Madison’s Papers
In May 1848, the U.S. House of Representatives passed a resolution to purchase the personal papers of President James Madison from his widow, Dolley Madison, for the sum of $25,000. About a decade earlier, Congress had acquired Madison’s papers on the Constitutional Convention, but the large collection of correspondence and journals available in 1848 provided invaluable insight into the thoughts of one of the most prominent Founders.

Blog—Hamilton and the House
In honor of the television debut of one of history’s favorite Broadway stars, this Edition for Educators explores how the life of Alexander Hamilton, a Member of the Continental Congress, intersected with the early history of the House of Representatives. Hamilton and James Madison variously collaborated and clashed with each other during the establishment of the new government. They both authored essays advocating for the ratification of the Constitution in the Federalist Papers but were occasionally at odds on several issues when Hamilton was Treasury Secretary and Madison was a Representative.

Blog—The House’s Plot to Steal a Library
In June 1974, as the U.S. House of Representatives opened an impeachment investigation into President Richard M. Nixon amid the Watergate scandal, a construction crew was hard at work on a massive new building for the Library of Congress in the 100 block of Independence Avenue in Southeast, Washington, DC. Architects designed the state-of-the-art facility—which was named for James Madison—to protect the library’s precious historical documents. As House office buildings became more crowded with staff and personnel to meet the legislative work of the day, some Representatives attempted to take the Madison building from the library for their own use.

Additional Resources

Learn more about James Madison’s life and impact through the following institutions:

• Founders Online, National Archives
• The Papers of James Madison, University of Virginia
• James Madison’s Montpelier
• James Madison Papers, Library of Congress

This is part of a series of blog posts for educators highlighting the resources available on History, Art & Archives of the U.S. House of Representatives. For lesson plans, fact sheets, glossaries, and other materials for the classroom, see the website's Education section.