Edward Larson Examines The 1800 Election: The Election That Changed America
Written: Oct 21 '07
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Great research, revealing details, insights into early American leaders.
Cons: That this great text will get little notice from the public.
The Bottom Line: What happens when two different persons are elected by the Electoral College to be President? It happened in 1800 and Larson has the details in this incredible book.
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| keithpruitt's Full Review: Edward J. Larson - Magnificent Catastrophe: The 18... |
This generation will talk about the 2000 election for many years to come. History books will be written examining its impact; historians will surmise the “what ifs.” The same could be said for the election of 1876 and the tremendous implications it had on the south and reconstruction. Historians are very familiar with the controversial election of 1824 when the House of Representatives chose John Q. Adams over Andrew Jackson even though Jackson had won the popular vote. But before all of these, the election of 1800 actually threatened to tear apart the young nation.
Edward J. Larson’s book, A Magnificent Catastrophe: The Tumultuous Election of 1800, America’s First Presidential Campaign, tells the story of the Presidential election that brought to the national consciousness the power of party politics. Much about this election has escaped the history books, because most historians see no relevance in the election. Yet it was this election more than any other early election that changed much of how Presidents are elected.
Prior to this election, it had been fairly easy to select a President. Washington had been elected twice without objection. But during his second term in office, the sharp and bitter differences that arose between Alexander Hamilton and Thomas Jefferson over the role of the federal system gave birth to the party system. John Adams, who was Washington’s Vice-President, tended to side with Hamilton and the federalists who wanted a federal government with a strong chief executive. This was in juxtaposition to Jefferson and the Republicans (sometimes referred to as anti-federalists, Democratic-Republicans or Democrats) who desired a weak federal government with states exercising veto power over acts of Congress.
The Federalists were accused of coddling the French and hating the British while the Democrats took great pleasure in the revolution in France. The rise of Napoleon to power, however, later caused both sides a great deal of pause as even Jefferson realized that “a little revolution” could ruin a nation. But I advance the story too quickly.
When George Washington decided that two terms was sufficient for him to serve as President, he left open his predecessor, whom most thought would be Adams, because of the rise of political parties. Jefferson allowed his name to be put in contention as did Pinckney of South Carolina. The process was very different then. The electors, who were chosen in many different ways, cast two votes. The person with the most votes became President; the Vice-Presidency went to the person in second place. This allowed Adams to become President in the election of 1796 while Jefferson, his political adversary, became the Vice-President.
During the next four tumultuous years, Adams dealt with a number of serious internal and foreign relations difficulties in such a way as to lead people to the conclusion that Adams was trying to become a monarch. With Hamilton ever scheming in the background, and Congress leading the way with the Alien and Sedition Acts, Jefferson charged back that the country needed new leadership before it became like England. It was agreed that the next election would have each party posit a set of contestants who would run as a team. The Federalists chose Adams for re-election and paired another Pinckney of South Carolina as his VP running mate. The Democrats (as they were to become by the time of Andrew Jackson) naturally chose the statesman Thomas Jefferson and the upstart New Yorker Aaron Burr (grandson of revivalist preacher Jonathan Edwards) as their team. Burr campaigned heavily for the ticket. But somewhere along the line, the scheming got out of hand.
Hamilton, who led the High Federalists (who indeed did desire a monarchy similar to that in England), began to plot against Adams to make Pinckney President. Burr began to realize that if all the electors voted for both he and Jefferson, the race could be thrown into the House of Representatives. There the hatred of the Federalists for Jefferson could actually make Burr President.
Sound intriguing? And that is exactly what happened. A series of events left Adams without the support he needed to be re-elected, but the race was thrown into the House of Representatives, where for several days, Jefferson was just short of the needed votes to win. Burr remained silent. When the stalemate was finally broken, Jefferson became President and Burr Vice-President, but the nation was not quite the same.
Within just a few months, Burr would kill Hamilton in the famous duel; the Democrats would control the Presidency for the next twenty-four years, and never again would the nation be put in a situation where electors would be voting in such a manner to leave doubt as to who would be President and who would be Vice-President.
Now that is the story that Larson tells in this excellent book A Magnificent Catastrophe. The 335 page book is written by the Pulitzer Price winning author of Summer For The Gods. His excellent ability to relate history as a story makes this book very readable. Even though Presidential history is my forte, there were many details about the election of 1800 of which I was unaware. The book provides details based upon primary source materials that give great insights into the character of the principals perhaps forgotten by many history books.
Larson’s ending is befitting of the greatness of the times and of the volume as recounts to fascinating ending of the lives of two of our greatest founding fathers: Thomas Jefferson and John Adams. On July 4, 1826, both of the elderly statesmen, who had become friends after they left public office, left the earthly stage just hours apart. They had changed their worlds as even this election had changed them and the nation.
The author’s extensive notations are taken from primary source materials giving researchers a wealth of connections for further research. For historians, the book is a valuable look at a neglected segment of our history, Presidential elections, which in modern times has been the purview of Theodore White. But much can be gained from looking at some of these early elections and how they impact elections and changed the dynamics of their times.
Addendum to review: I have noted that the title assigned by Epinions is incorrect as are the links for purchase. This book was just recently released. Hopefully, Epinions will correct this in time.
Recommended:
Yes
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Member: Keith Pruitt
Location: Old Hickory, TN
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Lots of Writing going on. Revising book and writing two others. God is Good.
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