Happy birthday to the founding father without a father! On January 11, 1757, Alexander Hamilton was born in uncertain circumstances on the island of Nevis in the West Indies. However, by sheer brilliance, luck, and a relentless drive and ambition, Hamilton became (among many other accomplishments) an influential Revolutionary thinker, invaluable aide-de-camp to General Washington, creator of the Federalist Paper, Secretary of Treasury, and a celebrated lawyer
When Hamilton was 12, he wrote to his friend Edward Stevens who was studying in King’s College and described the extent to which his ambition made him unable to accept the circumstances of his birth as something that could limit him to a menial position for the rest of his life:
“my Ambition is prevalent that I contemn the grov’ling and condition of a Clerk or the like, to which my Fortune &c. condemns me and would willingly risk my life tho’ not my Character to exalt my Station. Im confident, Ned that my Youth excludes me from any hopes of immediate Preferment nor do I desire it, but I mean to prepare the way for futurity. Im no Philosopher you see and may be jusly said to Build Castles in the Air. My Folly makes me ashamd and beg youll Conceal it, yet Neddy we have seen such Schemes successfull when the Projector is Constant I shall Conclude saying I wish there was a War.”
In describing Hamilton’s ambition to John Adams in September of 1798, George Washington stated:
“By some he is considered as an ambitious man, and therefore a dangerous one.—That he is ambitious I shall readily grant, but it is of that laudable kind which prompts a man to excel in whatever he takes in hand.—He is enterprising,—quick in his perceptions,—and his judgment intuitively great:—qualities essential to a great military character, and therefore I repeat, that his loss will be irreparable.”
The AHA Society is putting on a series of events this weekend to commemorate Alexander Hamilton’s birthday on January 11. If you’re in the New York City area this weekend, check out the event description here.
I’ll be giving a talk on the Manhattan Well Murder trial Saturday, January 9 at 12 pm at Hamilton Grange, which has an interesting connection to the case itself. Hope to see some of you there!
Other great events include:
Dr. Tom Oller’s talk on Monday, January 11th at Federal Hall at 11 am entitled “From Colleagues to Rivals: Hamilton and Jefferson in Washington’s Cabinet and Beyond”
Dr. Stephen Knott’s keynote speech at Trinity Church at 1:15 pm on “Washington and Hamilton: The Alliance That Forged America.”
After taking a hiatus from blogging to focus on my law practice and on a non-Hamilton related writing project (will share more about that later), I’m happy to announce that this blog will be back on a regular posting schedule starting next week. New post will be out Mondays and Wednesdays, with occasional Hamil-Swag Friday posts.
Some of the series that I’ve been working on include:
Duels for Days (covering some of Hamilton’s other duels or near-duels)
Hamil-Fam (will be adding to my series of pastposts about Hamilton’s children and family life)
A. Ham, Esq (covering some of Hamilton’s notable legal cases from his career
Also, I’ll be speaking at Hamilton Grange in Harlem on January 9, 2016 at 12 pm about the Manhattan Well Murder trial, in which Alexander Hamilton, Aaron Burr, and Brockholst Livingston co-defended the first recorded murder trial in American history. For more information, and for the full schedule of Celebrate Hamilton events in January 2016, check out the AHA Society’s flyer.
Fisher Ames, an influential Massachusetts Federalist and famed orator, gave a speech about Hamilton’s life and legacy immediately after his death. Ames entered Harvard University at age 12, and graduated by 16. He was well known both for his oratorical skills and his deep resistance to Jeffersonian democracy.
Interestingly, before the election of 1800, Ames sent Hamilton a series of letters urging him not to split the Federalist Party and put Jefferson in power (which is exactly what happened).
“…the only chance to prevent the triumph of the Jacobins is to unite and vote according to the compromise made at Philadelphia for the two candidates. That this gives an equal chance and a better than we would freely give to one of them. But strong as our objections are, and strongly as we could and are willing to urge them to the public we refrain, because the effect of urging them would be to split the Federalists and Absolutely to ensure Mr. Jefferson’s success.”
Hamilton broke with Ames and many of his other fellow Federalists by supporting Jefferson over Burr in the Senate tiebreaker in the election of 1800. Nevertheless, Ames delivered a heartfelt oration after Hamilton’s death, describing his unique role in creating the nation, the universal grief surrounding his death, and the impact of his legacy.
Ames delivered these remarks to a private group of friends immediately after Hamilton’s death. It was later published in July 1804 in the Repertory newspaper, and was included in a compilation of his works. The full text is available here via Google Books, and excerpts are below with my commentary. (If you read the original, you’ll notice that I’ve modernized the spelling and some of the punctuation to make it easier to read.)
Ames described how the news of Hamilton’s passing had paralyzed the nation.
“Since the news of his death, the novel and strange events of Europe have succeeded each other unregarded; the nation has been enchained to its subject, and broods over tis grief, which is more deep than eloquent, which though dumb, can make itself felt without utterance, and which does not merely pass, but like an electrical shock, at the same instant smites and astonishes, as it passes from Georgia to New Hampshire.”
….
“Alas! The great man who was, at all times, so much the ornament of our country, and so exclusively fitted, in its extremity, to be its champion, is withdrawn to a purer and more tranquil region. We are left to endless labors and unavailing regrets.”
Throughout the oration, Ames draws on references to ancient Greek and Roman philosophy and mythology. In one section he states:
“It is not as Apollo, enchanting the shepherds with his lyre, that we deplore him; it is as Hercules, treacherously slain in the midst of his unfinished labors, leaving the world overrun with monsters.”
In contrast to other eulogies and orations delivered after Hamilton’s death, Ames directly tackled the Republican rumors surrounding Hamilton’s corruption and the consequences of his “frankness” in writing the Reynolds Pamphlet in 1797. Ames suggested that Hamilton’s talent was so immense that it inspired the suspicion of his enemies and they attributed motions of corruption despite lack of cause.
“No man ever more disdained duplicity, or carried frankness further than he. This gave to his political opponents some temporary advantages, and currency to some popular prejudices, which he would have lived down, if his death had not prematurely dispelled them.”
….
“It was impossible to deny, that he was a patriot, and such a patriot, as, seeking neither popularity nor office, without artifice, without meanness, the best Romans in their best days would have admitted to citizenship and to the consulate. Virtue, so rare, so pure, so bold, by its very purity and excellence, inspired suspicion, as a prodigy. His enemies judged of him by themselves: so splendid and arduous were his services, they could not find it in their hearts to believe, that they were disinterested.”
Ames concluded by imploring his fellow citizens to keep the memory of Hamilton’s legacy alive:
“The most substantial glory of a country, is in its virtuous great men: its prosperity will depend on its docility to learn from their example. That nation is fated to ignominy and servitude, for which such men have lived in vain. … The name of Hamilton would have honored Greece, in the age of Aristides. May heaven, the guardian of our liberty, grant that our country may be fruitful of Hamiltons, and faithful to their glory.”
On Monday, July 13, 2015, I’ll be speaking on the Manhattan Well Murder trial, in which Alexander Hamilton and Aaron Burr successfully defended Levi Weeks from the charge of murdering his alleged lover, Elma Sands. The case is interesting for several reasons: the ongoing mystery surrounding the murder itself, the rare courtroom collaboration between Hamilton and Burr, and the insight it provides into the criminal justice system in New York in 1800. The murder and trial are the subject of two recent historical fiction novels: City of Liars and Thieves by Eve Karlin, and Duel with the Devil by Paul Collins.
The talk will be at 12-1:30 pm at Federal Hall on Monday July 13, 2015 and admission is free.
Federal Hall (where the trial of Levi Weeks as held in 1800) is located at 26 Wall Street. The talk is free, and is part of the series of Celebrate Hamilton events put on by the Alexander Hamilton Awareness Society.
After Hamilton’s death on July 12, 1804, his long-time friend Gouverneur Morris delivered a funeral oration on July 14, 1804, addressed to the people of New York, on a temporary stage erected in the portico of Trinity Church. Morris was accompanied by four of Hamilton’s surviving sons, ranging in age from 6 to 16. The New York Post published the text of Morris’s remarks (full text available here via Founders Online), which are excerpted below. Morris’s oration highlighted Hamilton’s multi-faceted contributions and impact on several different sectors of New York society:
Far from attempting to excite your emotions, I must try to repress my own, and yet I fear that instead of the language of a public speaker, you will hear only the lamentations of a bewailing friend. But I will struggle with my bursting heart, to pourtray that Heroic Spirit, which has flown to the mansions of bliss.
…
At the time when our government was organised, we were without funds, though not without resources. To call them into action, and establish order in the finances, Washington sought for splendid talents, for extensive information, and, above all, he sought for sterling, incorruptible integrity—All these he found in Hamilton. The system then adopted has been the subject of much animadversion. If it be not without a fault, let it be remembered that nothing human is perfect. Recollect the circumstances of the moment—recollect the conflict of opinion—and above all, remember that the minister of a republic must bend to the will of the people. The administration which Washington formed, was one of the most efficient, one of the best that any country was ever blest with. And the result was a rapid advance in power and prosperity, of which there is no example in any other age or nation. The part which Hamilton bore is universally known.
—
Brethren of the Cincinnati—There lies our chief! Let him still be our model. Like him, after a long and faithful public service, let us cheerfully perform the social duties of private life. Oh! he was mild and gentle. In him there was no offence; no guile. His generous hand and heart were open to all.
Gentlemen of the Bar—You have lost your brightest ornament. Cherish and imitate his example. While, like him, with justifiable, with laudable zeal, you pursue the interests of your clients, remember, like him, the eternal principles of justice.
Fellow Citizens—You have long witnessed his professional conduct, and felt his unrivalled eloquence. You know how well he performed the duties of a Citizen—you know that he never courted your favour by adulation, or the sacrifice of his own judgment. You have seen him contending against you, and saving your dearest interests, as it were, in spite of yourselves. And you now feel and enjoy the benefits resulting from the firm energy of his conduct. Bear this testimony to the memory of my departed friend. I charge you to protect his fame—It is all he has left—all that these poor orphan children will inherit from their father. But, my countrymen, that Fame may be a rich treasure to you also. Let it be the test by which to examine those who solicit your favour. Disregarding professions, view their conduct and on a doubtful occasion, ask, Would Hamilton have done this thing?
On July 11, 1804, Alexander Hamilton and Aaron Burr began their fatal duel in Weehawken. After Hamilton was mortally wounded, he was taken by boat back to New York City, where he passed away the following day. In a letter to William Coleman (Hamilton’s friend and the editor of the New York Post), Dr. David Hosack, Hamilton’s attending physician, described Hamilton’s moments after the duel. Dr. Hosack’s full account is available from Founders Online.
Dr. Hosack first described calling out to Hamilton and finding him after he had been shot. Dr. Hosack determined that the only chance that Hamilton had to survive would be to get onto a boat and go to New York City immediately for treatment.
When called to him, upon his receiving the fatal wound, I found him half sitting on the ground, supported in the arms of Mr. Pendleton. His countenance of death I shall never forget. He had at that instant just strength to say, “This is a mortal wound, Doctor;” when he sunk away, and became to all appearance lifeless. I immediately stripped up his clothes, and soon, alas! ascertained that the direction of the ball must have been through some vital part.* His pulses were not to be felt; his respiration was entirely suspended; and upon laying my hand on his heart, and perceiving no motion there, I considered him as irrecoverably gone. I however observed to Mr. Pendleton, that the only chance for his reviving was immediately to get him upon the water. We therefore lifted him up, and carried him out of the wood, to the margin of the bank, where the bargemen aided us in conveying him into the boat, which immediately put off.
As the party approached the shore, Hamilton gave Dr. Hosack instructions as to how to break the news to his wife, Eliza.
Perceiving that we approached the shore, he said, “Let Mrs. Hamilton be immediately sent for—let the event be gradually broken to her; but give her hopes.” Looking up we saw his friend Mr. Bayard standing on the wharf in great agitation. He had been told by his servant that Gen. Hamilton, Mr. Pendleton, and myself, had crossed the river in a boat together, and too well he conjectured the fatal errand, and foreboded the dreadful result. Perceiving, as we came nearer, that Mr. Pendleton and myself only sat up in the stern sheets, he clasped his hands together in the most violent apprehension; but when I called to him to have a cot prepared, and he at the same moment saw his poor friend lying in the bottom of the boat, he threw up his eyes and burst into a flood of tears and lamentation. Hamilton alone appeared tranquil and composed. We then conveyed him as tenderly as possible up to the house. The distresses of this amiable family were such that till the first shock was abated, they were scarcely able to summon fortitude enough to yield sufficient assistance to their dying friend.
In his last hours, Hamilton spent time with his wife and children, and expressed his anxiety for their future and their grief.
During the night, he had some imperfect sleep; but the succeeding morning his symptoms were aggravated, attended however with a diminution of pain. His mind retained all its usual strength and composure. The great source of his anxiety seemed to be in his sympathy with his half distracted wife and children. He spoke to me frequently of them—“My beloved wife and children,” were always his expressions. But his fortitude triumphed over his situation, dreadful as it was; once, indeed, at the sight of his children brought to the bed-side together, seven in number, his utterance forsook him; he opened his eyes, gave them one look, and closed them again, till they were taken away. As a proof of his extraordinary composure of mind, let me add, that he alone could calm the frantic grief of their mother. “Remember, my Eliza, you are a Christian,” were the expressions with which he frequently, with a firm voice, but in pathetic and impressive manner, addressed her. His words, and the tone in which they were uttered, will never be effaced from my memory. At about two o’clock, as the public well knows, he expired.
Incorrupta fides—nudaque veritas
Quando ullum invenient parem?
Multis ille quidem flebilis occidit.
The powerful Latin phrase Dr. Hosack quoted in the letter is translated below:
The below excerpt from The Beauties of the Hon. Daniel Webster, published in 1839, captures some of Daniel Webster’s legendary respect for Alexander Hamilton and his sense
“How can I stand here to speak of the Constitution of the United States, of the wisdom of its provisions, of the difficulties attending its adoption, of the evils from which it rescued the country, and of the prosperity and power to which it has raised it, and yet pay no tribute to those who were highly instrumental in accomplishing the work? While we are here to rejoice, that it yet stands firm and strong; while we congratulate one another that we live under its benign influence, and cherish hopes of its long duration; we cannot forget who they were, that in the day of our national infancy, in the times of despondency and despair, mainly assisted to work out our deliverance. I should feel that I disregarded the strong recollections which the occasion presses upon us, that I was not true to gratitude, nor true to patriotism, nor true to the living or the dead, not true to your feelings or my own, if I should forbear to make mention of ALEXANDER HAMILTON.”
In 1831, Webster gave a speech in New York, later quoted in Bartleby’s regarding Hamilton’s contributions to the financial system.
He smote the rock of the national resources, and abundant streams of revenue gushed forth. He touched the dead corpse of the Public Credit, and it sprung upon its feet. The fabled birth of Minerva, from the brain of Jove, was hardly more sudden or more perfect than the financial system of the United States, as it burst forth from the conceptions of Alexander Hamilton.
After the announcement on Wednesday about the Treasury Department’s decision to replace Alexander Hamilton with a woman as the face of the $10 bill, while leaving Andrew Jackson on the $20, I thought it would be appropriate to briefly compare these men’s respective legacies in terms of the financial system.
As the first Secretary of Treasury, Hamilton was the architect of creating a national financial system and establishing the constitutionality of a national bank. Hamilton faced an uphill battle, with ardent opposition from Jefferson and Madison, and a lukewarm reaction from President Washington. However, he cajoled, persuaded, and politicked in order to birth the new financial system.
Elizabeth Hamilton described Hamilton’s commitment to the Bank in a quote to a journalist years after Hamilton’s death, as quoted by Michael Newton:
“He made your Government! He made your Bank. I sat up all night with him to help him do it. Jefferson thought we ought not to have a Bank, and President Washington thought so. But my husband said, ‘We must have a Bank.’ I sat up all night, copied out his writing, and the next morning he carried it to President Washington, and we had a Bank.
Hamilton believed that a national bank would help establish public credit and place the new nation on the solid footing that would be necessary to secure its future.
In a 1781 letter to Robert Morris, Hamilton wrote:
The tendency of a national bank is to increase public and private credit. The former gives power to the state for the protection of its rights and interests, and the latter facilitates and extends the operations of commerce among individuals. Industry is increased, commodities are multiplied, agriculture and manufactures flourish, and herein consist the true wealth and prosperity of a state.
He clung to this opinion despite significant opposition, and established the federal debt and the national bank through sheer force of will. The financial system that Hamilton set up during his tenure as Secretary of Treasury outlasted him and left a legacy that shaped institutions for years to come.
As Albert Gallatin, Jefferson’s Secretary of Treasury noted in a letter to Hamilton’s son:
“I have found the most perfect system ever formed. Any change that should be made in it would injure it. Hamilton made no blunders, committed no frauds. He did nothing wrong.”
In contrast, Jackson despised the idea of a central bank, and believed the very existence of a National Bank was contrary to his narrow interpretation of constitutional powers. Jackson relished the idea of being able to destroy the bank by vetoing its charter, and engaged in the famous “Bank Wars,” taking on Henry Clay and Nicholas Biddle (then-president of the National Bank)
In November 1829, Jackson wrote to Nicholas Biddle:
“I find it right to be perfectly frank with you. I do not think that the power of Congress extends to charter a bank out of the ten-mile square. I do not dislike your bank any more than all banks. But ever since I read the history of the “South Sea Bubble” I have been afraid of banks.”
In his Bank Veto Message of 1832, Jackson stated:
The present corporate body, denominated the president, directors, and company of the Bank of the United States, will have existed at the time this act is intended to take effect twenty years. It enjoys an exclusive privilege of banking under the authority of the General Government, a monopoly of its favor and support, and, as a necessary consequence, almost a monopoly of the foreign and domestic exchange. The powers, privileges, and favors bestowed upon it in the original charter, by increasing the value of the stock far above its par value, operated as a gratuity of many millions to the stockholders….
This pro-Jackson cartoon about Jackson’s destruction of the central bank is actually entitled “the Downfall of Mother Bank.”
In light of Hamilton and Jackson’s respective impact and beliefs on the financial system, replacing Hamilton while leaving Jackson on currency is highly problematic. Removing the spiritual father of the Treasury Department while continuing to allow one of its sworn enemies to retain a place of honor shows a blatant disregard for history.
On July 9, 1804, a few days before his fateful duel with Aaron Burr, Alexander Hamilton signed his last will of testament.
In the Name of God Amen! I Alexander Hamilton of the City of New York Counsellor at Law do make this my last Will and Testament as follows. First I appoint John B Church Nicholas Fish and Nathaniel Pendleton of the City aforesaid Esquires to be Executors and Trustees of this my Will and I devise to them their heirs and Assigns, as joint Tenants and not as Tenants in common, All my Estate real and personal whatsoever and wheresoever upon Trust at their discretion to sell and dispose of the same, at such time and times in such manner and upon such terms as they the Survivors and Survivor shall think fit and out of the proceeds to pay all the Debts which I shall owe at the time of my decease, in whole, if the fund shall be sufficient, proportionally, if it shall be insufficient, and the residue, if any there shall be to pay and deliver to my excellent and dear Wife Elizabeth Hamilton.
Hamilton had a long history with each of the individuals he chose as his executors: John Church, Nathaniel Pendleton, and Nicholas Fish. John Church was the husband of Angelica Schuyler and Hamilton’s brother-in-law. Nicholas Fish had been Hamilton’s friend since they were teenagers involved in the early part of the Revolution. Fish even named his son after Hamilton (Hamilton Fish would go on to become Governor of New York and Secretary of State under President Grant). Virginian Nathaniel Pendleton was a close friend and colleague of Hamilton’s at the New York Bar. In the 1790s, Pendleton had been named a potential candidate for the position of Secretary of State, but Hamilton feared that he had “been somewhat tainted by the prejudices of Mr. Jefferson and Mr. Madison.” When Hamilton and Pendleton were both practicing in New York, they became close friends. Pendleton also served as Hamilton’s second in his duel with Burr, and he helped Hamilton put his affairs in order before the duel.
The second part of Hamilton’s will expressed his concern for the financial situation of his family. Hamilton was aware that because he had focused his career in the public service, he would not be leaving his wife and children in the best financial footing.
Though if it shall please God to spare my life I may look for a considerable surplus out of my present property—Yet if he should speedily call me to the eternal wor[l]d, a forced sale as is usual may possibly render it insufficient to satisfy my Debts. I pray God that something may remain for the maintenance and education of my dear Wife and Children. But should it on the contrary happen that there is not enough for the payment of my Debts, I entreat my Dear Children, if they or any of them shall ever be able, to make up the Deficiency. I without hesitation commit to their delicacy a wish which is dictated by my own. Though conscious that I have too far sacrificed the interests of my family to public avocations & on this account have the less claim to burthen my Children, yet I trust in their magnanimity to appreciate as they ought this my request. In so unfavourable an event of things, the support of their dear Mother with the most respectful and tender attention is a duty all the sacredness of which they will feel. Probably her own patrimonial resources will preserve her from Indigence. But in all situations they are charged to bear in mind that she has been to them the most devoted and best of mothers. In Testimony whereof I have hereunto subscribed my hand the Ninth day of July in the year of our lord One thousand Eight hundred & four.
Hamilton’s will was part of a series of documents that Hamilton delivered to Nathaniel Pendleton prior to the duel and opened after Hamilton’s death. In a letter dated July 4, 1804, the same day that Hamilton and Burr sat at the same table for dinner with other former Continental Army officers at Fraunces Tavern, Hamilton thanked Pendleton for helping him finalize his affair before the duel.
I thank you My Dear Sir for your friendly offices in this last critical scene, if such it shall be. Excuse me for having inserted your name as Executor. I fear it may not be in your favor to do much good to my family. But I am sure you will do all the good you can.
It's Hamiltime! 