麦迪逊(1751～1836年)

Madison, James

美国第四任总统（1809～1817）。1776～1780和1784～1786年间任职於美国国会。1787年在美国制宪会议上他积极参与，并对争论的议题详细记录，为他赢得「宪法之父」的美名。为了促使法案通过，他与汉弥尔顿和杰伊合作编写了《联邦党人》论文。1789～1797年在美国众议院任职期间，他支持「人权法案」，成为杰佛逊共和党党员的领袖，并因筹募战时公债问题而与汉弥尔顿意见不和。为了抗议「客籍法和镇压叛乱法」，他在1798年起草了「维吉尼亚和肯塔基决议」之一。1801～1809年被杰佛逊指派为国务卿，两人合作拓展了美国的外交政策。1808年当选总统以後，忙於处理与英、法之间因贸易和船运通商问题，後来还是引爆了1812年战争。他在1812年连任，第二个任期以战争为主，在此期间他重建了美国军队，也赞成核准美国银行第二次的营业执照，并颁布美国第一个保护关税措施。退休後与颇具政治智慧的妻子朵利（Dolley, 1768～1849）回到维吉尼亚州蒙皮立的庄园，继续撰写文章和信件，并担任维吉尼亚大学的校长（1826～1836）。

English version：

1751～1836年

Madison, James

Fourth president of the U.S. (1809-17). Born in Port Conway, Va., he served in the state legislature (1776-80, 1784-86). At the Constitutional Convention (1787), his active participation and his careful notes on the debates earned him the title “father of the Constitution.” To promote ratification, he collaborated with Alexander Hamilton and John Jay on The Federalist. In the U.S. House of Representatives (1789-97), he sponsored the Bill of Rights, was a leading Jeffersonian Republican, and split with Hamilton over funding state war debts. In reaction to the Alien and Sedition Acts, he drafted one of the Virginia and Kentucky Resolutions (1798). He was appointed secretary of state (1801-9) by Thomas Jefferson, with whom he developed U.S. foreign policy. Elected president in 1808, he was occupied by the trade and shipping embargo problems caused by France and Britain that led to the War of 1812. He was reelected in 1812; his second term was marked principally by the war, during which he reinvigorated the U.S. Army, and also saw approval of the charter of the Second Bank of the U.S. and the first U.S. protective tariff. He retired to his Virginia estate, Montpelier, with his wife, Dolley (1768-1849), whose political acumen he had long prized. He continued to write articles and letters and served as rector of the University of Virginia (1826-36).