Hamilton's Historic Transgressions: Breaking Laws, Shaping History

Alexander Hamilton is best known for his role as the first secretary of the U.S. Treasury, but he was also a lawyer and a lawmaker. In 1803, while acting as a defence lawyer in a New York trial, Hamilton expanded the idea of freedom of the press by arguing that truth could be used as a defence in criminal libel cases. Although he lost the case, New York subsequently changed its libel laws to accept his argument.

Hamilton's defence of federal fiscal powers

Alexander Hamilton's defence of federal fiscal powers was based on his belief in a strong central government, led by an energetic executive. He envisioned a diversified economy that significantly expanded industry, with the federal government at its centre.

Hamilton believed that by assuming state debts, the federal government would strengthen itself and tie the interests of wealthy Americans to its fortunes. Wealthy bondholders, who had lent money to the states, would now depend on the national government for repayment, incentivising them to actively support it. This integration of private and public financial interests helped ensure the government's solvency and encouraged investment and economic growth.

Hamilton also proposed the establishment of a National Bank, modelled after the Bank of England. He envisioned this institution as a cornerstone for stabilising and growing the American economy. The bank would act as a depository for federal funds, facilitate the issuance of a uniform national currency, and provide loans to spur economic development. Hamilton argued that a national bank was a "necessary and proper" means for the federal government to manage the economy, collect taxes, and pay debts.

Hamilton's involvement in the Reynolds Pamphlet scandal

James Reynolds, who was well aware of the affair, blackmailed Hamilton for money. After an initial payment of $1,000, Reynolds invited Hamilton to continue visiting his wife, ostensibly as a friend, but then extorted further "loans" after each visit. In the end, the blackmail payments totaled over $1,300.

In November 1792, James Reynolds was jailed for his involvement in a scheme involving unpaid back wages intended for Revolutionary War veterans. He used his knowledge of Hamilton's affair with Maria to bargain his way out of trouble.

In December 1792, three members of Congress, James Monroe, Abraham Venable, and Frederick Muhlenberg, confronted Hamilton with the information they had received from Reynolds. Hamilton denied any financial impropriety and revealed the true nature of his relationship with the Reynoldses. He turned over letters from both Maria and James Reynolds, which proved that his payments to James were related to blackmail over his adultery, not to treasury misconduct. Monroe, Venable, and Muhlenberg agreed to keep the information confidential.

However, in 1797, journalist James Thomson Callender published a series of pamphlets containing accusations against Hamilton based on the 1792 documents. In response, Hamilton published his own 95-page pamphlet, later known as the "Reynolds Pamphlet," in which he denied all charges of corruption but admitted to the affair with Maria Reynolds.

While Hamilton's candor was admired, the affair severely damaged his reputation. It confirmed Jefferson's conviction that Hamilton was untrustworthy and led to a duel between Hamilton and Monroe, which was averted by the intervention of Aaron Burr.

Hamilton's role in the Quasi-War

Alexander Hamilton played a significant role in the Quasi-War, an undeclared conflict between the United States and the French First Republic from 1798 to 1800. During this period, Hamilton served as a backdoor advisor to the Adams cabinet, particularly through the Secretary of War, James McHenry, to whom he offered policy advice.

Hamilton was a vocal proponent of mobilisation against France, and President John Adams appointed him major general. Hamilton was made Inspector General of the United States Army, and, as the conflict was fought almost entirely at sea, he focused on fortifying the country's borders. However, the Adams administration was reluctant to commit too many resources to the army, and Hamilton struggled to raise sufficient troops.

Hamilton's involvement in the Quasi-War also extended to his defence of the freedom of the press in the People vs Croswell case, and his opposition to the Alien and Sedition Acts passed by the Federalist congress.

Hamilton's views on slavery

Alexander Hamilton's views on slavery were complex and often contradictory. While he opposed slavery, his social and political ambitions, as well as his belief in property rights, frequently led him to compromise his anti-slavery stance.

Hamilton's life was entwined with slavery from the very beginning. Born out of wedlock near a Caribbean waterfront, he grew up on the island of Nevis, where he witnessed slave auction blocks and the whipping of enslaved people in the public square. His family then moved to St. Croix, where the majority of the island's residents were held in captivity and forced to work on sugar plantations. Hamilton's mother herself owned five enslaved people, who she hired out to supplement her income, as well as four boys who served as house servants.

As a teenager, Hamilton worked as a clerk for Beekman and Cruger, a firm that traded enslaved people and other commodities. He would have helped inspect and price those who were to be auctioned, and a letter in his handwriting from 1772 sought the acquisition of "two or three poor boys" for plantation work.

Hamilton's opposition to slavery was evident during the American Revolutionary War, when he tried to raise black troops for the army, promising freedom in return for their service. In 1779, he supported a plan proposed by his friend John Laurens to arm and enlist enslaved people in the Continental Army. In an appeal to the Continental Congress, he wrote:

> "I have not the least doubt, that the negroes will make very excellent soldiers, with proper management...Their natural faculties are probably as good as ours."

However, Hamilton's anti-slavery stance was often compromised by his desire to advance his social position and his political ambitions. He pushed for acceptance into America's colonial elite, most of whom were slave owners, and he married into the wealthy, slaveholding Schuyler family. As a New York delegate to the 1787 Constitutional Convention, he supported the "three-fifths" clause, which counted each enslaved worker as three-fifths of a person for the purposes of determining state population.

Hamilton was a founding member of the New York Manumission Society, which sought the gradual emancipation of enslaved people in the state. However, his involvement in the society did not prevent him from buying and selling enslaved people for his in-laws and possibly even his own household. Historians differ on whether Hamilton's financial records refer to enslaved people owned by his in-laws or by himself and his wife.

In summary, while Hamilton opposed slavery and took some actions to limit it, his views and actions on the issue were complicated and often contradictory. His social and political ambitions, as well as his belief in property rights, frequently led him to compromise his anti-slavery stance.

Hamilton's role in the ratification of the US Constitution

Alexander Hamilton played a crucial role in the ratification of the US Constitution. As a delegate to the Constitutional Convention, Hamilton proposed a government modelled on the British system, with senators and a national "governor" chosen by special electors and serving for life. However, his proposal was rejected by the other delegates, who saw it as too extreme a concentration of power at the federal level.

Hamilton then became the chief advocate for the approval of the Constitution by the states. He collaborated with John Jay and James Madison to write a series of 85 essays, known as "The Federalist", published under the pen name Publius. Hamilton wrote more than two-thirds of them. These essays proved critical in achieving ratification of the Constitution, particularly in New York, where Anti-Federalists such as Governor George Clinton held power.

At the New York ratifying convention in Albany in June 1788, Hamilton faced 47 Anti-Federalists. Over the next month, he presented his case for ratification, speaking eloquently and persuasively, and ultimately succeeding in getting the Constitution approved.

Hamilton's role in the ratification of the Constitution was not limited to advocacy. He also played a part in drafting the document itself, serving on committees that outlined convention rules and writing style. Although he disagreed with many aspects of the final draft, he signed it anyway, recognising the need for a stronger form of government to unite the states and stabilise the nation's finances.

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