The seventh volume of the Secretary of State Series covers Madison's tenure in that office from 2 April to 31 August 1804, a period in which the bulk of his correspondence dealt with U.S. relations with Great Britain, France, and Spain and the constant struggle to maintain U.S. neutrality in a world at war. Nearly every foreign policy issue with which Madison wrestles in this volume is rooted in European conflict. The large and ever-growing American mercantile fleet, whose ships could be found in all parts of the globe, was required to sail through a minefield of French, British, and Spanish maritime regulations designed to destroy each other's economies. Thus Madison fields complaints about British blockades and impressment in correspondence with James Monroe, George W. Erving, and a host of consuls; the armed trade with Saint-Domingue and French privateering in correspondence with Robert R. Livingston and the French charge d'affaires Louis-Andre Pichon; and the failure of the Spanish to ratify the claims convention of 1802, which provided for compensation for U.S. claims against Spain, in correspondence with Charles Pinckney and Spanish minister Carlos Fernando Martinez de Yrujo. The volume also includes correspondence with William C. C. Claiborne, the governor of Orleans territory, which covers in great detail events in Louisiana as the newly purchased territory begins to be integrated into the United States. Readers interested in the U.S. naval war with Tripoli and Barbary affairs in general will find a wealth of material in the consular correspondence from the Mediterranean basin during this time, including the fallout over the burning of the Philadelphia and Edward Preble's attack on Tripoli. Among a variety of domestic affairs that Madison handled and that are fully represented in this volume, the ratification of the Twelfth Amendment was most important. In addition to his official correspondence, there are a number of Madison's personal letters in this volume. As in all volumes in this series, thorough annotation and a detailed index provide access to people, places, and events.

The Papers of James Madison project, housed at the University of Virginia, was established in 1956 to publish annotated volumes of the correspondence and writings of James Madison, the Virginia statesman most often remembered for his public service as "Father of the Constitution" and as fourth president of the United States.

The published volumes provide accurate texts of Madison's incoming and outgoing correspondence, informative notes on textual and subject matters, and comprehensive indexes. They are incomparably rich sources for students of Madison's life and valuable research tools for those interested in the general history of the period in which Madison lived (1751-1836).

The project has collected more than 27,000 copies of documents related to Madison's life, including letters, essays, notes, diaries, account books, ledgers, wills, legal papers, and inventories. The project serves the public by translating into print these decaying and often nearly illegible manuscripts, thereby preserving them for future generations and making them easier to use. The published volumes also make the contents of Madison-related documents--the originals of which are housed in some 250 archives worldwide--easily accessible to libraries and interested individuals anywhere books travel.

The "Secretary of State Series" documents Madison's diplomatic and political career in the two administrations of Thomas Jefferson, 1801-9, during which he oversaw the negotiations for the Louisiana Purchase and the integration of those territories into the United States and attempted to maintain a viable neutrality for the United States vis-a-vis warring France and Great Britain. As secretary of state, Madison presided over one of the busiest offices in Washington. He was responsible for the Patent Office, issued all federal commissions, saw that the public laws were put into print, and served as the official liaison between the president and the governors of states and territories. Most important for these volumes, Madison was the addressee of diplomatic pouches and letters from five ministers and over fifty consuls worldwide, as well as about a dozen commissioners.

This fourth volume of the Presidential Series of The Papers of James Madison covers events in James Madison's first administration between 5 November 1811 and 9 July 1812, corresponding almost exactly with the duration of the first session of the Twelfth Congress. Madison's two most important presidential decisions buttress this volume: his advocacy of preparedness in November 1811 and his request in June 1812 that Congress consider his case for war against Great Britain.

The documents from the intervening months chart the difficulties of the path to war. On the diplomatic front Madison worked to clarify French policy toward neutrals, while also disavowing George Mathews's activities in East Florida to prevent an alliance between Great Britain and Spain.

On the domestic front divided opinions over war are revealed in addresses from citizens and state legislatures. Madison planned offensive operations against Canada with his generals but experienced difficulties with army recruitment and staff appointments. He also imposed an embargo on shipping and endured threats to his renomination for a second term. Finally Madison delivered his "war message" to Congress in June 1812, accusing Great Britain of an accumulation of grievances that stretched back to 1803.

The volume also includes a supplement of forty-five items of newly discovered material from March 1809 to October 1811.

The Papers of James Madison project, housed at the University of Virginia, was established in 1956 to publish annotated volumes of the correspondence and writings of James Madison, the Virginia statesman most often remembered for his public service as "Father of the Constitution" and as fourth president of the United States.

The published volumes provide accurate texts of Madison's incoming and outgoing correspondence, informative notes on textual and subject matters, and comprehensive indexes. They are incomparably rich sources for students of Madison's life and valuable research tools for those interested in the general history of the period in which Madison lived (1751-1836).

The project has collected more than 27,000 copies of documents related to Madison's life, including letters, essays, notes, diaries, account books, ledgers, wills, legal papers, and inventories. The project serves the public by translating into print these decaying and often nearly illegible manuscripts, thereby preserving them for future generations and making them easier to use. The published volumes also make the contents of Madison-related documents--the originals of which are housed in some 250 archives worldwide--easily accessible to libraries and interested individuals anywhere books travel.

The "Secretary of State Series" documents Madison's diplomatic and political career in the two administrations of Thomas Jefferson, 1801-9, during which he oversaw the negotiations for the Louisiana Purchase and the integration of those territories into the United States and attempted to maintain a viable neutrality for the United States vis-a-vis warring France and Great Britain. As secretary of state, Madison presided over one of the busiest offices in Washington. He was responsible for the Patent Office, issued all federal commissions, saw that the public laws were put into print, and served as the official liaison between the president and the governors of states and territories. Most important for these volumes, Madison was the addressee of diplomatic pouches and letters from five ministers and over fifty consuls worldwide, as well as about a dozen commissioners.