This book is just packed with information, amazing things, that I did not know previously. It’s information that ties everything else I knew together very nicely. For me, I guess Monroe was my missing link.
It answers questions about what happened to Alexander Hamilton and Jefferson, why they resigned from Washington’s admistration. I had my hunches, but this book spells it all out.
I never knew that Hamilton was involved in a sex scandal or that there were allegations of misappropriation of funds against him. Many historians are so willing to paint him in the best possible light, they gloss right over what killed his political career. When I read about it, a light came on about why the Federalists might have crashed and burned, and it made them seem so life-like.
The book also goes into a bit of detail of all the trouble Thomas Paine got into regarding “The Rights of Man”. I’ve just started on the chapter that covers the French Revolution, and the Moroes helping the LaFayettes escape the Jacobians.
This book has me on the edge of my seat and I’m loving reading it.
Make sure to pay close attention to the period in Monroe’s governorship during the disputed Presidential election of 1800. During the period that Jefferson and Burr were tied, with more votes than Adams, Hamilton was maneuvering to give Adams votes to Jefferson. To overawe Congress, Monroe mobilized the state militia, and stationed that army adjoining the Virginia part of DC. We came a short distance from a military coup. The main cause of the end of the Federalists was their disloyalty in the War of 1812.