James Madison Jr. (March 16 [O.S. March 5] 1751 – June 28, 1836) was an American statesman and Founding Father who served as the fourth President of the United States 1809 to 1817. He is hailed as the "Father of the Constitution" for his pivotal role in drafting and promoting the United States Constitution and the Bill of Rights. Born into a prominent Virginia planter family, Madison served as a member of the Virginia House of Delegates and the Continental Congress during and after the American Revolutionary War. In the late 1780s, he helped organize the Constitutional Convention, which produced a new constitution to supplant the ineffective Articles of Confederation. Say no to plagiarism. Get a custom essay on "Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned"? Get the original essay After the Convention, Madison became one of the leaders of the movement to ratify the Constitution, and his collaboration with Alexander Hamilton led produced The Federalist Papers, among the most important treatises in favor of the Constitution. After the Constitution was ratified in 1788, Madison won election to the United States House of Representatives. While simultaneously serving as a close advisor to President George Washington, Madison became one of the most prominent members of the 1st Congress, helping pass several bills establishing the new government. For his role in drafting the first ten amendments to the Constitution during the 1st Congress, Madison is known as the "Father of the Bill of Rights." Although he played a major role in promulgating a new constitution creating a stronger federal government, Madison opposed the centralization of power sought by Treasury Secretary Alexander Hamilton during Washington's presidency. To oppose Hamilton, Thomas Jefferson and Madison organized the Democratic-Republican Party, which became one of the nation's first two major political parties alongside Hamilton's Federalist Party. After Jefferson won the presidential election of 1800, Madison served as Jefferson's secretary of state from 1801 to 1809. In this role, Madison oversaw the Louisiana Purchase, which doubled the size of the nation. Madison succeeded Jefferson with a victory in the 1808 presidential election, and he was re-elected in 1812. After diplomatic protests and a trade embargo against the United Kingdom failed, he led the United States into the American War. 1812. The war was an administrative quagmire, as the United States had neither a strong army nor financial means. system. As a result, Madison came to support a stronger national government and military, as well as a national bank, which he had long opposed. Historians generally consider Madison an above-average president..