Alexander Hamilton Biography Quotes 28 Report mistakes

Early Life and Education
Alexander Hamilton was born in the mid-1750s in the Caribbean, on the island of Nevis in the British West Indies. His exact birth year is disputed, often given as either 1755 or 1757. He was the son of James Hamilton, a Scottish trader, and Rachel Faucette, who had Caribbean and European roots. After his father left and his mother died while he was still a boy, Hamilton supported himself as a clerk in a mercantile house on St. Croix. A vivid letter he wrote describing a devastating hurricane drew local attention and helped raise funds to send him to North America for an education. He arrived in New York in the early 1770s, studied at a preparatory academy in New Jersey, and enrolled at King's College (later Columbia University). Even before the outbreak of war, he published pamphlets that displayed his emerging political talent and defended colonial rights.

Revolutionary War Service
When fighting began, Hamilton joined a New York artillery company and rose to captain. He saw action in the campaigns around New York and New Jersey, including at Trenton and Princeton. His organizational ability and writing skill led to a pivotal appointment as aide-de-camp to General George Washington. As Washington's secretary, he drafted correspondence, coordinated logistics, and gained a close view of national strategy. Eager for combat command, he left Washington's staff and later led a light infantry assault at the Siege of Yorktown in 1781, helping to capture a key British redoubt. He worked alongside figures such as the Marquis de Lafayette, Henry Knox, and his friend John Laurens, absorbing lessons about discipline, finance, and the need for a stronger national authority.

Law, Marriage, and Early Public Life
After the war, Hamilton read law, passed the bar, and quickly established a New York practice. In 1780 he married Elizabeth (Eliza) Schuyler, daughter of General Philip Schuyler, linking him to one of New York's prominent families; Eliza's sister Angelica Schuyler Church remained part of his intimate circle. Hamilton served as a delegate to the Confederation Congress and observed firsthand the weakness of the national government under the Articles of Confederation. He helped found the Bank of New York, advocated strengthening federal powers in a series of essays, and joined efforts to restrict and end slavery in New York through the New York Manumission Society. His legal career and financial work sharpened his practical understanding of credit, commerce, and public administration.

Constitutional Reform and The Federalist Papers
Hamilton was a leading voice calling for a constitutional convention to replace the Articles. As a delegate from New York in 1787, he spoke for a robust national government, though most of his state colleagues opposed him. After the convention produced the United States Constitution, he became one of its foremost defenders. Along with James Madison and John Jay, he authored The Federalist Papers under the shared pseudonym Publius. These essays explained the proposed system, argued for energy in the executive, independence of the judiciary, and an extended republic that could control faction. The essays helped secure ratification in New York against strong opposition led by figures such as Governor George Clinton.

Secretary of the Treasury and the National System
President George Washington appointed Hamilton the first Secretary of the Treasury in 1789. In that role, Hamilton submitted a series of landmark reports: on public credit, on a national bank, and on manufactures. He proposed funding federal debt at face value and assuming state wartime debts, thereby consolidating national credit. To channel capital and stabilize finance, he urged creation of the Bank of the United States. Thomas Jefferson and James Madison objected on constitutional grounds, but Washington, after hearing both sides, signed the bank bill. Hamilton also organized customs houses, established the United States Mint, and proposed revenue cutters to enforce tariffs, steps that laid the foundation for what became the Coast Guard.

His program sparked partisan conflict, with supporters coalescing as Federalists and opponents forming the Democratic-Republican coalition led by Jefferson and Madison. Hamilton defended Washington's 1793 neutrality policy during war in Europe, writing the Pacificus essays and opposing the meddling of French envoy Edmond-Charles Genet. He supported the Jay Treaty negotiated by John Jay to settle lingering issues with Britain, arguing it would protect American commerce and avert war. During the Whiskey Rebellion, he helped oversee the mobilization that affirmed federal authority to enforce excise taxes.

Scandal, Resignation, and Public Debates
Hamilton resigned as Treasury secretary in 1795 and returned to private law practice in New York, but he remained a powerful public voice. In the late 1790s, accusations of financial improprieties tied to the Treasury prompted him to disclose a personal affair with Maria Reynolds to prove that any suspect payments were private blackmail rather than official corruption. The so-called Reynolds Pamphlet damaged his reputation but did not diminish his influence among Federalists. He advised President Washington on the Farewell Address and later clashed with President John Adams over strategy during the Quasi-War with France. When Washington accepted a commission to lead a provisional army, Hamilton became inspector general and effectively second-in-command, a position that intensified Federalist rivalries. His harsh criticism of Adams in 1800 fractured party unity.

Election of 1800 and Growing Rivalry with Burr
In the contested election of 1800, the electoral tie between Thomas Jefferson and Aaron Burr was resolved in the House of Representatives. Though a political opponent of Jefferson, Hamilton urged Federalists to back Jefferson over Burr, whom he considered unreliable. The long-standing antagonism between Hamilton and Burr deepened in New York politics, where they had already competed in law and finance, notably when Burr's Manhattan Company entered banking in a way Hamilton found underhanded. Their dispute escalated after reports circulated that Hamilton had expressed a particularly harsh opinion of Burr's character during the 1804 New York gubernatorial race.

Duel and Death
Burr demanded satisfaction, and the two men agreed to a duel under the code of honor. They met at Weehawken, New Jersey, in July 1804. Hamilton was mortally wounded and died the next day in New York, leaving Eliza and their children bereaved. His death shocked the nation and fueled a public backlash against dueling. Burr, then the sitting vice president, saw his political fortunes collapse.

Family, Character, and Later Stewardship of His Legacy
Hamilton and Eliza raised a large family. Their son Philip died in a duel in 1801, a tragedy that haunted Hamilton's final years. Eliza lived for decades after her husband's death and worked to preserve his papers and reputation, aided by their son John Church Hamilton. She also engaged in charitable works, including support for orphaned children in New York. Hamilton's private correspondence reveals a driven, analytical mind and an often combative temperament, balanced by deep devotion to family and to Washington, whose trust he earned and kept even amid disagreements.

Ideas and Legacy
Hamilton's economic statecraft gave the United States a durable framework for public credit, a national financial infrastructure, and a revenue system capable of supporting growth and defense. His constitutional arguments for implied powers influenced later interpretations of federal authority and shaped debates that continued through the era of Chief Justice John Marshall. He helped define the role of the executive branch, the relationship between public finance and national security, and the link between commerce and American power. A prolific writer and strategist, he left a record that continues to inform scholarship and public life. Remembered as a key founder, the nation's first Treasury secretary, and a principal architect of American finance, Hamilton's life traced a remarkable arc from Caribbean orphan to central figure in the creation of the United States, alongside contemporaries such as George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, John Jay, John Adams, and Aaron Burr.

Our collection contains 28 quotes who is written by Alexander, under the main topics: Witty One-Liners - Wisdom - Truth - Justice - Leadership.

Other people realated to Alexander: James Monroe (President), Friedrich List (Economist), Noah Webster (Writer), Roger Sherman (Politician), Timothy Dexter (Businessman), John Fiske (Philosopher), Ron Chernow (Author), Frederick Scott Oliver (Writer), Benjamin Lincoln (Soldier), Joseph J. Ellis (Writer)

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