 | BIOGRAPHY
James Madison
Secretary of State,
Term of Appointment:
05/02/1801 to
03/03/1809
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- Born at Port Conway, Virginia on March 16, 1751;
- Graduated from the College of New Jersey in 1771;
- Studied law and was admitted to the bar;
- Elected to the Virginia Constitutional Convention and was a member of the State Assembly in 1776;
- Member of the State Executive Council, 1778-1779;
- Member of the Continental Congress, 1780-1783 and 1786-1788;
- Served in the Virginia House of Delegates, 1784-1786;
- Delegate to the Annapolis Convention of 1786 and to the Federal Convention of 1787, where he played a major part in the framing of the Constitution;
- Cooperated with Hamilton and Jay on a series of essays later published as The Federalist;
- Member of the Virginia Convention of 1788 that ratified the U.S. Constitution;
- Representative from Virginia, 1789-1797;
- Married Dolly Payne Todd in 1794;
- Again a member of the House of Delegates in 1799;
- Served as presidential elector in 1800;
- Secretary of State in President Jefferson's Cabinet from May 2, 1801 until March 3, 1809;
- During his tenure of office France offered and the United States accepted the Louisiana Purchase;
- President of the United States 1809-1817;
- Retired to Montpellier (now "Montpelier"), his estate in Virginia;
- Became rector of the University of Virginia in 1826;
- Member of the Virginia Constitutional Convention of 1829;
- Died at Montpellier, Orange County, Virginia, June 28, 1836,
Released on July 15, 2003
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