James Madison served his country in many public offices in a career that spanned 40 years. Called "the Father of the Constitution," Madison planned the system of checks and balances that regulate the legislative, executive, and judicial branches of the federal government. As a member of the U.S. House of Representatives, he proposed resolutions for organizing the Departments of State, Treasury, and War, drafted much of the first tariff act, and was largely responsible for drafting the Bill of Rights. While serving as Thomas Jefferson's Secretary of State, the United States purchased the vast Louisiana Territory from France.

Chronology of His Life and Career

	March 16, 1751	Born at Port Conway, Virginia.
	1771	Graduated from the College of New Jersey (now Princeton University).
	1774	Elected to the Orange County, Virginia, Committee of Safety.
	1776	Served on a committee that drafted a new Virginia Constitution and the Virginia Declaration of Rights.
	1776	Served in Virginia's first Legislative Assembly.
	1778	Elected to the Governor's Council.
	1779	Elected to the Continental Congress.
	1783	Elected to the Virginia State Assembly.
	1787	Served at the Constitutional Convention.
	1787	With Alexander Hamilton and John Jay, wrote a series of letters to newspapers favoring ratification of the Constitution that were published as The Federalist.
	1789	Elected to the U.S. House of Representatives.
	September 15, 1794	Married Dolley Payne Todd.
	1798	Drafted the Virginia Resolutions of 1798, proposing joint action by the states in declaring the Alien and Sedition Acts unconstitutional.
	1799	Elected to the Virginia State Assembly.
	1801	Appointed Secretary of State.
	1808	Elected President of the United States.
	1812	Re-elected President.
	1817	Retired to Montpelier, his estate in Orange County, Virginia.
	1826	Became rector of the University of Virginia.
	1829	Served at the Virginia Constitutional Convention.
	June 28, 1836	Died at Montpelier.

See Also

Constitutional Convention
The Federalist
Dolley Payne Todd Madison
Secretary of State

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This page was last updated on August 30, 2018.