Born in 1751, Madison was raised in Orange County, Virginia, and attended Princeton (then called the College of New Jersey). A dedicated student of history and government, well-versed in law, he played a key role in the framing of the Virginia Constitution in 1776, served in the Continental Congress, and was a leader in the Virginia Assembly.
At 36 years old, Madison took an active and influential part in the debates during the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia. His major contribution to the ratification of the Constitution came through his collaboration with Alexander Hamilton and John Jay on the Federalist essays. Despite being referred to later as the "Father of the Constitution," Madison humbly insisted that it was the collective work of many minds and hands.
In Congress, Madison was instrumental in the creation of the Bill of Rights and the enactment of the first revenue legislation. His leadership in opposing Hamilton's financial proposals, which he believed would disproportionately benefit northern financiers, led to the development of the Republican, or Jeffersonian, Party.
As President Jefferson's Secretary of State, Madison strongly objected to France and Britain seizing American ships, a violation of international law. However, as John Randolph pointedly remarked, these protests had the effect of "a shilling pamphlet hurled against eight hundred ships of war."
Despite the unpopular Embargo Act of 1807, which failed to change the behavior of the warring nations and caused a depression in the United States, Madison was elected President in 1808. Before he took office, the Embargo Act was repealed.
In the early years of his Administration, the United States prohibited trade with both Britain and France. In May 1810, Congress authorized trade with both, with a directive that the President should forbid trade with any nation that did not respect American neutral rights. Napoleon pretended to comply, leading Madison to proclaim non-intercourse with Great Britain. Meanwhile, in Congress, a group of young leaders, including Henry Clay and John C. Calhoun—the "War Hawks"—pressed for a more aggressive policy.
The continued British impressment of American seamen and seizure of cargoes led Madison to ask Congress to declare war on June 1, 1812.
However, the young nation was not prepared for war; its forces suffered greatly. The British entered Washington and set fire to the White House and the Capitol. Yet, a few notable naval and military victories, including General Andrew Jackson's triumph at New Orleans, convinced Americans that the War of 1812 had been a glorious success, resulting in a surge of nationalism. The New England Federalists, who had opposed the war and even talked of secession, were thoroughly repudiated, leading to the decline of Federalism as a national party.
In retirement at Montpelier, his estate in Orange County, Virginia, Madison voiced strong opposition to the divisive states' rights influences that, by the 1830s, threatened to tear apart the Federal Union. In a note opened after his death in 1836, he wrote:
"The advice nearest to my heart and deepest in my convictions is that the Union of the States be cherished and perpetuated."