The Jeffersonians
The Visionary Presidencies of Jefferson, Madison, and Monroe
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- 16,99 $
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- 16,99 $
Description de l’éditeur
“A long, insightful look at three Founder presidents. … Political histories are rarely page-turners, but Gutzman, clearly a scholar who has read everything on his subjects, writes lively prose and displays a refreshingly opinionated eye for a huge cast of characters and their often unfortunate actions. Outstanding historical writing.” — Kirkus (starred review)
A lively and essential chronicle of the only consecutive trio of two-term presidencies of the same political party in American history, from the bestselling author of Thomas Jefferson - Revolutionary and James Madison.
Before the consecutive two-term administrations of Presidents Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, and Barack Obama, there had only been one other trio of its type: Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, and James Monroe.
Kevin R. C. Gutzman’s The Jeffersonians is a complete chronicle of the men, known as The Virginia Dynasty, who served as president from 1801 to 1825 and implemented the foreign policy, domestic, and constitutional agenda of the radical wing of the American Revolution, setting guideposts for later American liberals to follow.
The three close political allies were tightly related: Jefferson and Madison were the closest of friends, and Monroe was Jefferson’s former law student. Their achievements were many, including the founding of the opposition Republican Party in the 1790s; the Louisiana Purchase; and the call upon Congress in 1806 to use its constitutional power to ban slave imports beginning on January 1, 1808.
Of course, not everything the Virginia Dynasty undertook was a success: Its chief failure might have been the ineptly planned and led War of 1812. In general, however, when Monroe rode off into the sunset in 1825, his passing and the end of The Virginia Dynasty were much lamented. Kevin R. C. Gutzman’s new book details a time in America when three Presidents worked toward common goals to strengthen our Republic in a way we rarely see in American politics today.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Historian Gutzman (Thomas Jefferson—Revolutionary) chronicles the American presidency from 1801 through 1825 in this well-informed if meandering study. Recounting the presidencies of Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, and James Monroe, the so-called "Virginia Dynasty," Gutzman documents the highs and lows of each administration. He covers major historical events including the Whiskey Rebellion, the New England secessionist plot of 1804, the 1819 financial panic, and the Louisiana Purchase, and argues that Britain's attacks on Washington, D.C., and Baltimore in the War of 1812 exposed the fault in Republicans' insistence that "little money or effort needed to be expended in maintaining America's defenses." Gutzman draws sharp profiles of the era's leading politicians and military figures, including Aaron Burr and Andrew Jackson, and stuffs the narrative with informed reflections on the personality traits of his main subjects ("a faulty speaker before a large assemblage, Jefferson shone at the dinner table") and their families (James Madison's wife, Dolley, had a "phantasmagorical wardrobe"). The details intrigue, but Gutzman covers well-trod ground, and his thesis often gets lost amid the anecdotes. This history needs a sharper focus.