Who was Alexander Hamilton?
Alexander Hamilton was an immigrant from the Caribbean who rose from poverty to become one of the architects of the American state. He served on George Washington's staff in the Revolution, then pushed for a stronger union at the 1787 Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia. With James Madison and John Jay he wrote essays urging New Yorkers to accept the new Constitution. As Washington's Treasury Secretary he set up the country's public finances and led the Federalist Party. Historians disagree on whether he was born in 1755 or 1757. He was fatally shot in 1804 in a duel with Aaron Burr.
Political views
- Wrote in The Federalist that a vigorous, single executive is necessary if a government is to work well.Source: avalon.law.yale.edu
- At the Constitutional Convention he suggested a president and senators who would hold office for life, as long as they behaved well.Source: avalon.law.yale.edu
- Wanted the national government to pay off the war debt in full and to take over the debts of the states.Source: millercenter.org
- Planned the First Bank of the United States and a tax system built on customs duties and excise taxes.Source: home.treasury.gov
- Suggested modest tariffs and cash bounties to help new American factories.Source: en.wikipedia.org
- Favored strong national power, partly because he had seen a weak Congress struggle to supply the army during the war.Source: battlefields.org
Legacy
Supporters say Hamilton gave the young republic a sound financial base, with public credit, a bank and a revenue service, and that he saw early that America could become an industrial power. His writings are still studied, and the hit 2015 musical brought him back into public view. Opponents, led by Jefferson and Madison, said his plans enriched speculators and city merchants while farmers paid, and that they gave the federal government too much power. His life-term idea made some call him a secret monarchist. His record on slavery is debated: he belonged to an anti-slavery society, yet historians have found that he also handled purchases of enslaved people for relatives.
In their own words
“Energy in the Executive is a leading character in the definition of good government.”