Born on March 16, 1751, in Port Conway, King George County VA. Graduated from Princeton University
in 1771. Served in the Virginia Constitutional Convention and in 1780 became a delegate to the Second Continental Congress
. He was chief recorder at the Constitutional Convention
in 1787. He expressed his support for ratification through the Federalist Papers
, along with Alexander Hamilton
and John Jay
. In 1789, he was elected to the United States House of Representatives
, where he helped frame the Bill of Rights
. He also opposed the Alien and Sedition Acts
. In 1790's, he helped found the Democratic-Republican Party
, which became the Democratic Party
In 1801, Madison became Thomas Jefferson's secretary of state. In 1808, he was elected President of the United States and re-elected in 1812, the year that the War of 1812 was declared.
In 1817, Madison retire to Montpelier, his estate, where as "the last of the fathers" he played the role of elder statesman. He became rector of the University of Virginia in 1826 and died on June 28, 1836.