History of the United States of America During the Administrations of James Madison (Library of America)

Rating:
Summary: A classic, lovingly researched and written
Review: This book is a dignified piece of historical writing. Although it is long, it manages to be significant throughout. The personality profiles are interesting, the battle descriptions are gripping, and the political analysis is acute. Before reading this volume (and its companion), I did not realize how pivotal the events of this era were in shaping the rest of 19th century US. Recommended to those with time to ponder, especially if they are fond of Adams' writing style.

Rating:
Summary: A classic, lovingly researched and written
Review: This book is a dignified piece of historical writing. Although it is long, it manages to be significant throughout. The personality profiles are interesting, the battle descriptions are gripping, and the political analysis is acute. Before reading this volume (and its companion), I did not realize how pivotal the events of this era were in shaping the rest of 19th century US. Recommended to those with time to ponder, especially if they are fond of Adams' writing style.

Rating:
Summary: A Pivotal Age in American Politics
Review: Unlike the first volume where Jefferson dominated every page, Madison is virtually invisible in the first 400 pages. During his administration, his principles and acts were either thwarted by a bungling 13th Congress, or superseded by an energetic 14th Congress. As well (according to Adams) this was the last age in which ambassadors and envoys carried so much weight in the administration. Afterwards the Congress became the premier power in the United States, with ambassadors playing important but less conspicuous roles, and the President becoming less of a political force. In the first 400 pages, Adams painstakingly describes the diplomatic engagements that embroiled us into a war with England and France, and then brilliantly describes the naval and land battles that occurred during the War of 1812. After Washington was burned (for which Madison was jeered and vilified when passing from village to village), the United States broke into an economic vitality not known before (which tended to make the public forget the burning of Washington). Massachusetts, which had threatened secession with Connecticut and Rhode Island, was humbled by the new Republican Treasurer, whose autocratic policies helped to reduce one state's superiority over another. An interesting and energetic portrayal of life in early America, and the sudden maturation process of our diplomatic and economic infancy.