James Madison: Small Man, Large Accomplishments

Everyone has dreams in their younger years; sometimes practical, logical ones and sometimes, they seem unattainable and completely out of reach. James Madison was no exception to this, although, his dream- seemingly practical to most ordinary people, was, literally, just out of reach for him. The dream of James Madison was to serve in the Revolutionary War, yet, at only 5 feet 4 inches tall, he was considered to small to serve his country. Luckily, after being rejected to serve in the Revolutionary War, James settled into politics and eventually became one of the first presidents of the United States of America. Besides his fascinating political life, James Madison also had an engaging personal life- all of which contributed to turning him into the commendable man that he was. As a founding father, James Madison had a very powerful impact on the political history of the United States of America. One can only wonder what would have became of America if only James Madison’s dreams were within his reach.

On March 16th, 1751 James Madison’s distinguished life began. James was the firstborn son of his parents, Cornel James Madison Sr. and Eleanor Rose Conway of Port Conway, Virginia. Eleven more children were born to the couple, in the years following the birth of James- sadly, only seven of James Madison’s siblings reached full adulthood. When James (or Jemmy, as he was otherwise know by) himself reached full adulthood, he only matured to a height of 5 feet and 4 inches and weighed slightly less than one hundred pounds, which even then, was considerably undersized for a full grown man. This factor is, eventually, what kept him from serving in the Revolutionary War, which at the time, was a major goal for him to accomplish. James Madison attended Princeton and was a 1st graduate student, he completed an entire four year course in only two years. Later, he decided to pursue a career in politics, seeing as serving in the Revolutionary War was no longer an option for him. James Madison’s political profession led him to become the 4th president of the United States of America. He married at age 43; his wife Dolley Payne Todd Madison, is best known for stealing government documents and a portrait of George Washington, while the governments capital was raided by the British in the war of 1812. The couple never had children together, yet still had a very involved, fulfilling life- until the year 1836, when James Madison’s life came to an end at age 85.

As a founding father, James Madison along with the other founding fathers, shaped and created the government that would be known to Americans of the future. President Madison was elected president in the year 1808 and from then on he greatly impacted the politics of the United States. James Madison was known as the Father of the Constitution and also the Father of the Bill Of Rights. Clearly, he was involved deeply with both of these documents and all of the matters that concerned them. Madison was very influenced by Thomas Jefferson, who was considered one of the most brilliant minds of America. James served as Secretary of the State to Jefferson and even developed the Republican party, which he called “the Jeffersonian Party”. To this day, James Madison is still considered the protege of Thomas Jefferson. With all of these accomplishments, James still had the time and desire to serve as a Leader in the House of Representatives. Also, he took frequent parts in debates at the Constitution Convention which was an important part of his career because he organized a lot of important political matters and even took notes during debates, which other men did not make an attempt to do. James also made a major contribution to the ratification of the constitution. James Madison retired to his estate in Virginia after serving his second term as president of the USA, he continued to be a very popular president among United States citizens until his death.

In my opinion, James Madison was a very intelligent, respected man and a very productive president. President Madison was deeply involved in important matters, such as the Constitution and the Bill Of Rights. James Madison seemed as if he took care and worked very hard at every task he took on. During James Madison’s life he was very well received by the citizens of the United States of America. Even after he retired to his home in Virginia he was considered, by the people, as one of the hardest working and most respected men of his day. Now, in recent times, he is still considered by historians to be a man who greatly impacted political history. I believe that James Madison is a man that people should know of today because of the effect he had on American history and he should remembered as a very hardworking, intelligent man who, although, was not able to fulfill his original dream, created new dreams for himself and succeeded further in life than most people would have expected him to- which for a lot of people, is considered to be nothing short of a miracle.

In life, many unexpected things may come your way. However, if you keep a positive outlook, in your life and in your career, like that of James Madison, you may exceed your dreams and accomplish more than you ever could have possibly dreamed. James Madison was considered a small man, but the things he worked hard for and established are large pieces of American political history.