Alexander Hamilton

1. This Artist Was Called "Mr. Westmore" Before. He Was Born And Raised In Mighty Los Angeles California. 2. Alexander Hamilton January 11 1755 Or 1757 – July 12 1804 Was The First United States Secretary Of The Treasury A Founding Father Economist And Political Philosopher. Aide-De-Camp To General George Washington During The American Revolutionary War He Was A Leader Of Nationalist Forces Calling For A New Constitution He Was One Of America's First Constitutional Lawyers And Wrote Most Of The Federalist Papers A Primary Source For Constitutional Interpretation. He Was The Financial Expert Of Washington's Administration The Federalist Party Formed To Support His Policies.
Born And Raised In The Caribbean Hamilton Attended King's College Now Columbia University In New York. At The Start Of The American Revolutionary War He Organized An Artillery Company And Was Chosen As Its Captain. Hamilton Became The Senior Aide-De-Camp And Confidant To General George Washington The American Commander-In-Chief. After The War Hamilton Was Elected To The Continental Congress From New York But He Resigned To Practice Law And Found The Bank Of New York. He Served In The New York Legislature And He Was The Only New Yorker Who Signed The U.S. Constitution. He Wrote About Half The Federalist Papers Which Secured Its Ratification By New York They Are Still The Most Important Unofficial Interpretation Of The Constitution. In The New Government Under President Washington He Became Secretary Of The Treasury. An Admirer Of British Political Systems Hamilton Was A Nationalist Who Emphasized Strong Central Government And Successfully Argued That The Implied Powers Of The Constitution Could Be Used To Fund The National Debt Assume State Debts And Create The Government-Owned Bank Of The United States. These Programs Were Funded Primarily By A Tariff On Imports And A Highly Controversial Whiskey Tax.
By 1792 The Coalition Led By Hamilton Was Opposed By A Coalition Led By Thomas Jefferson And James Madison. Hamilton's Federalist Party Now Had To Compete With Jefferson's Democratic-Republican Party. The Parties Fought Over Hamilton's Fiscal Goals And National Bank As Well As His Foreign Policy Of Extensive Trade And Friendly Relations With Britain Especially The Jay Treaty Which Was Ratified By A Single Vote After A Lengthy Struggle Between The Two Coalitions. Embarrassed By A Blackmail Affair That Became Public Hamilton Resigned As The Secretary Of The Treasury In 1795 And Returned To The Practice Of Law In New York. In 1798 The Quasi-War With France Led Hamilton To Be Awarded The Rank Of Senior Officer Of The United States Army And To Argue For And Attempt To Raise And Organize An Army To Fight The French By Invading The Colonies Of Spain Then A French Ally .
Hamilton's Opposition To His Fellow Federalist John Adams Hurt The Party In The 1800 Elections. When Thomas Jefferson And Aaron Burr Tied In The Electoral College Hamilton Helped Defeat His Bitter Personal Enemy Burr And Elect Jefferson As President. With His Party's Defeat Hamilton's Nationalist And Industrialization Ideas Lost Their Former National Prominence. Hamilton's Intense Rivalry With Burr Resulted In A Duel In Which Hamilton Was Mortally Wounded.
Hamilton Was Always Denounced By The Jeffersonians And Later The Jacksonians But His Economic Ideas Especially Support For A Protective Tariff And A National Bank Were Promoted By The Whig Party And After The 1850s By The Newly Created Republican Party Which Hailed Him As The Nation's Greatest Secretary Of The Treasury. read less