Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation

provides us a fresh perspective on the erratic forces that drive history and enriches our knowledge of American politics, both then and today.

A fascinating examination of the interwoven lives of the American republic's founding fathers, including George Washington, Aaron Burr, Benjamin Franklin, Alexander Hamilton, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, and John Adams.

The finest statesmen of their time, if not all of history, came together in the 1790s, a decade that Ellis refers to as the most pivotal in our country's history, to define the new republic and chart its direction for the next generations. Ellis concentrates on six distinct instances that represent the most important problems confronting the unsteady new country: Burr's and Hamilton's fatal duel, and possible outcomes; The events that led up to this include the secret dinner between Hamilton, Jefferson, and Madison where the location of the permanent capital was decided upon in exchange for the approval of Hamilton's financial plan; Franklin's final public act, a petition to abolish the "peculiar institution" of slavery; Washington's historic Farewell Address, in which he announced his retirement from public office and gave his country some parting advice; Adams's challenging tenure as Washington's successor and his purported plan to transfer the presidency to his son; and finally, Adams and Jefferson's final exchange of letters, when they were nearing death, where they discussed their divergent perspectives on the Revolution and its aftermath.

Ellis describes the sometimes cooperative, sometimes sternly adversarial exchanges between these individuals in a vivid and captivating story that reveals the true selves of the famous figures: Adams, the fiercely independent politician whose spouse Abigail was his greatest ally in politics; Burr, cunning, refined, and among the public characters most hated of his day; Hamilton, whose bold demeanor and keen economic sense concealed his lowly beginnings; Madison, small, sickly, and paralyzingly shy, but one of the most skillful debaters of his generation; Jefferson, famous for his eloquence, but so reclusive and taciturn that he rarely spoke more than a few sentences in public; and Washington, stiffly formal, the ultimate realist, larger-than-life, and America's only truly indispensable figure.

Ellis contends that the profoundly personal checks and balances that allowed the fledgling American republic to survive were more important than legal, constitutional, or institutional ones. These checks and balances were based on the dynamic interactions between leaders who had quite different goals and ideals. The Founding Brothers resurrect the antiquated notion that morality counts, which shapes our comprehension of American politics both then and today and opens our eyes to the unpredictability of historical processes.