The great divergence reconsidered: Hamilton, Madison, and U.S.-British relations, 1783-89.(James Madison and Alexander Hamilton)(Era overview) From: Journal of the Early Republic | Date: September 22, 2007| Author: Schwarz, Michael | COPYRIGHT 2007 University of Pennsylvania Press. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan.  All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group.Copyright information

In 1834, James Madison learned through his young friend and protege, Nicholas Trist, that a soon-to-be-published biography of Alexander Hamilton would criticize Madison's conduct during the crucial years of the founding era. According to Trist, the eighty-three-year-old former president "was to be represented as having deserted Colonel Hamilton" in the years immediately following ratification of the Constitution. Though the events in question had taken place nearly a half-century e...