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(#3) Jefferson Trashed Hamilton To The President, Making The Feud Deeply Personal
Early in Washington's presidency, the General seemed to side with Hamilton more than with Jefferson. This enraged the Secretary of State, who began to see Hamilton in darker terms.
Jefferson was convinced that Hamilton was a corrupt, self-interested monarchist. Jefferson complained to Washington in 1792 that Hamilton had “a squadron devoted to the nod of the treasury.” These men wanted to “form the most corrupt government on earth.”
Washington tried to cool the friction between the two men. In a letter to Jefferson in August 1792, Washington wrote “How unfortunate, and how much is it to be regretted then, that whilst we are encompassed on all sides with avowed enemies and insidious friends, that internal dissensions should be harrowing and tearing our vitals.”
Jefferson didn’t get the hint. Instead, he wrote back to throw Hamilton under the bus––or carriage, since it was 1792. Hamilton’s ideas, Jefferson declared, “flowed from principles adverse to liberty, and [were] calculated to undermine and demolish the republic.”
In short, Jefferson accused Hamilton of being a traitor.
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(#1) Hamilton And Jefferson Were At War With Each Other Over Washington’s Heart
The feud between Hamilton and Jefferson began as a battle for the approval of George Washington. When Washington became America’s first president in 1789, he appointed both men to serve in his cabinet, Hamilton as Secretary of the Treasury and Jefferson as Secretary of State.
Both Hamilton and Jefferson had a close relationship with George Washington. Hamilton was only 22 years old when he served as Washington’s secretary during the Revolutionary War, and the two remained close for years after the war. In fact, Hamilton encouraged a reluctant Washington to run for president, calling Washington “indispensable” to the new nation.
On his end, Jefferson shared a similar background to Washington: Both were Virginia planters, both married widows named Martha, and both distinguished themselves during the Revolution—Jefferson by penning the Declaration of Independence; Washington by winning the war.
Unsurprisingly, both men saw themselves as Washington’s closest advisor, which only fueled the rivalry.
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(#6) Hamilton Had An Affair, Giving Jefferson The Ammo He Needed To Destroy Him
In 1791, Hamilton met a woman named Maria Reynolds who begged him for help. Hamilton saw Maria as a “beauty in distress” and a “pretty woman.” Their adulterous affair quickly turned to blackmail when Maria’s estranged husband, James Reynolds, demanded one thousand dollars—about $25,000 today—to keep the relationship secret.
Worried that Reynolds would tell his own wife, Hamilton paid the money. He also continued the affair.
When James Reynolds was arrested in November 1792 for forgery, he wrote to Hamilton’s rivals, promising information that would destroy Hamilton’s reputation. James Monroe, who heard Reynolds’s tale, went to Hamilton to hear his side of the story. Hamilton privately confessed the affair, and Monroe agreed to let the matter drop.
But Monroe also made a copy of the letters from Maria Reynolds and gave them to Thomas Jefferson.
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(#2) The Two Men Had Very Different Visions For America
Hamilton was from the Caribbean, born the illegitimate son of a Scottish peddler. His adopted home, New York City, shaped Hamilton into a proponent of urban commerce. To Hamilton, America’s cities and its merchant economy would drive progress. He believed a strong central government was necessary for the country’s survival.
In Jefferson’s eyes, Hamilton was advocating a return to European-style monarchy, undoing the progress made during their War for Independence. His own agrarian perspective favored a decentralized government, which he believed would allow for the greatest degree of personal liberty and virtue.
Both men believed they could sway Washington toward their vision for America.
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(#7) Jefferson Waited Five Years To Spill Hamilton’s Secret Affair
As the rivalry between Hamilton and Jefferson boiled, it grew more and more personal. In 1796, while Jefferson was running for President, Hamilton accused the Virginian of hypocrisy. Jefferson might seem like a simple, humble farmer, Hamilton declared, but the Virginian's reputation was “a flimsy veil to the internal evidences of aristocratic splendor, sensuality, and epicureanism.”
Was Hamilton referencing rumors about Jefferson’s affair with his slave—and his dead wife’s half-sister—Sally Hemings?
Jefferson decided it was time to open the floodgates. He turned to his “attack dog,” muckraking journalist James Callender, to finally reveal the salacious tale of Hamilton's affair.
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(#9) Hamilton Was So Distraught That He Challenged Monroe To A Duel—And Aaron Burr Stopped It
Once news of Hamilton’s affair became public, his reputation was destroyed. Hamilton blamed Monroe, whose name was attached to the documents published by Callender.
In a fury, Hamilton stormed to Monroe’s house, where he implied that the future President was a liar. “Do you say I represented falsely, you are a Scoundrel,” Monroe raged.
“I will meet you like a Gentleman,” Hamilton shot back.
“I am ready, get your pistols,” Monroe replied.
Monroe called on Aaron Burr to serve as his 'second' at the duel. After acting as an intermediary for months, Burr convinced the men not to duel.
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About This Tool
With the 1800 presidential election approaching, Americans are more divided than ever. The struggle between the Hamiltonians and the Jeffersonians was a major event after the establishment of the U.S. federal government. Alexander Hamilton and Thomas Jefferson are leaders of the "Federalists" and "Republicans". The feuds between the two most influential politicians greatly promoted the political stability of the United States and the development of capitalism.
Different growth backgrounds and class interests make them have differences in the understanding of democratic political principles. The controversy between them is a controversy between two parties, and even between two political thoughts, which has a profound impact on the American political system. The random tool explained 11 details about their relationship.
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