James Madison (mar 4, 1809 – mar 4, 1817)
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(1751-1836)
VP: George Clinton (1809–12)
None (1812–1813)
Elbridge Gerry (1813–14)
None (1814–1817)
Madison is widely regarded as one of the most important Founding Fathers of the United States. Historian J.C.A. Stagg writes that "in some ways—because he was on the winning side of every important issue facing the young nation from 1776 to 1816—Madison was the most successful and possibly the most influential of all the Founding Fathers." Though he helped found a major political party and served as the fourth president of the United States, his legacy has largely been defined by his contributions to the Constitution; even in his own life he was hailed as the "Father of the Constitution." Law professor Noah Feldman writes that Madison "invented and theorized the modern ideal of an expanded, federal constitution that combines local self-government with an overarching national order." Feldman adds that Madison's "model of liberty-protecting constitutional government" is "the most influential American idea in global political history."
Polls of historians and political scientists tend to rank Madison as an above-average president. A 2018 poll of the American Political Science Association's Presidents and Executive Politics section ranked Madison as the twelfth best president. Wood commends Madison for his steady leadership during the war and resolve to avoid expanding the president's power, noting one contemporary's observation that the war was conducted "without one trial for treason, or even one prosecution for libel." Nonetheless, many historians have criticized Madison's tenure as president. Henry Steele Commager and Richard B. Morris in 1968 said the conventional view of Madison was as an "incapable President" who "mismanaged an unnecessary war." A 2006 poll of historians ranked Madison's failure to prevent the War of 1812 as the sixth-worst mistake made by a sitting president.
The historian Garry Wills wrote, "Madison's claim on our admiration does not rest on a perfect consistency, any more than it rests on his presidency. He has other virtues. ... As a framer and defender of the Constitution he had no peer. ... The finest part of Madison's performance as president was his concern for the preserving of the Constitution. ... No man could do everything for the country—not even Washington. Madison did more than most, and did some things better than any. That was quite enough."
Added to timeline:
History of Leadership In The States
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