America Afire: Jefferson, Adams, and the First Contested Election
Author(s):
Bernard A. Weisberger
Label: Harper Paperbacks
Publisher(s):
Harper Paperbacks
Studio: Harper Paperbacks
Manufacturer: Harper Paperbacks
Binding: Paperback
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Editorial Reviews
Product Description
America Afire is the powerful story of the election of 1800, arguably the most important election in America's history and certainly one of the most hotly disputed. Former allies Adams and Jefferson, president versus vice president, Federalist versus Republican, squared off in a vicious contest that resulted in broken friendships, scandals, riots, slander, and jailings in the fourth presidential election under the Constitution.
Customer Reviews
Good but not Great
Bernard Weisberger's "America Afire: Jefferson, Adams and the First Contested Election" is a curious book. Weisberger wishes to focus on the Election of 1800 but spends a GREAT DEAL of time laying the foundation - going as far back as the Constitutional Convention. The pivotal Election of 1800 takes up only 2 chapters. In telling the story of the Election of 1800, Weisberger is also required to spend some time laying the groundwork for the Alexander Hamilton/Aaron Burr rivalry.
Even more curious is the label "First Contested Election." If by "contested" Weisberger means an election where there was more than one candidate for President, then the Election of 1796 would be the first "contested" election. If by "contested" Weisberger means contentious, then the title makes more sense.
The first half of "America Afire" moves slowly as the reader slogs through Weisberger's "background." I found the first half of the book tedious to the point of doldrums. Weisberger does a whole lot of recounting but little analysis. One would be better reading Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation by Joseph J. Ellis.
The second half of the book takes off especially with Weisberger's treatment of the Alien and Sedition Act.
At the time he wrote it, there had only been three elections which were not decided in the ballot box - the Election of 1800, the Election of 1824 and the Election of 1876. If he had only waited until after the Election of 2000, I wonder how different the book would have been. There are significant parallels between the Election of 1800 and the Election of 2000.
One final note, the text of the paperback edition is small and light and, as a consequence, difficult to read.
18th century America - surprising parallels to 20th century...
The book America Afire bills itself as a story of the first contested American Election, which was supposed to be a race between the sitting President, John Adams, and the leading Republican of the day, Thomas Jefferson. In reality, much of the book addresses the issues of the day that led up to the election and precious little time is spent on the election wranglings and political mechanics themselves.
It is obviously necessary to present background information in a narrative such as this, but I believe that Weisberger went overboard with the background and did not delve deeply enough into the primary topic at hand - the race between Adams & Jefferson. Instead, we see a different rivalry taking shape that felt as though it was the primary topic for discussion in the book; the rivalary between two New Yorkers - Alexander Hamilton and Aaron Burr. It was certainly enjoyable to read the study about this rivalry, but it was hardly what I expected when I picked up this book.
However, my overall take is that I was disappointed in the titling of the book - it would have been much fairer to say that this was the story of American politics leading up to the election of 1800, with a brief afterword explaining the legacies of the election, but it is a useful read. If the reader is searching for an enhanced understanding of the devleopment of the two-party system leading up to the election of 1800, this is a great read. If the reader is searching for a good explanation of political history in the early republic years, this is a good (although somewhat superficial) book. If the reader is looking exclusively for a narrative about the election itself, either read chapters 12-13 of this book, or search out a different book that addresses the political maneuvering in greater detail.
More Than Just the Election
America Afire does not only tell the story of the election of 1800 but also the story of how the United States became a bipartisan political society that in turn led to the tension of the "Revolution of 1800"; the peaceful transfer of power between political parties for the first time. Weisberger covers from the Constitutional Convention through Jefferson's presidency and has solid, unbiased insight that brings to life of the main political players of the young nation.
Prelude to the Golden Age of America: 1787-1800
This book was exactly what I wanted. I thought I was buying an account of the 1800 election but the coverage is much broader. Repeat: this book is not just about the election but is a political history of the US from the Constitution (1787) through the election of 1800, with a chapter devoted to Jefferson's suceeding first term (1801-1804). Discussion of the actual campaigning and election of 1800 don't start being discussed until part V, pg 227. That is because this election was so hot and so important because of the seeds of political conflict and discord that had been sown in the previous 15 or so years, from the signing of the Constitution in 1787, through the administrations of George Washington and John Adams.
This is the story of the emergence of competing political parties, Federalists and Republicans, with competing ideas about how to interpret the Constitution and how to govern the young nation. Essentially, Federalists like Hamilton and Washington believed in a strong central government, possibly with a standing army and navy, a central bank, national debt to obtain a class of creditors interested in the well being of the US government, etc... Republicans, like Jefferson and Madision, believed in a weaker central government. Jefferson said it best in his March 4, 1801 inaugural address, "... a wise and frugal government, which shall restrain men from injuring one another, shall leave them otherwise free to regulate their own pursuits.... and shall not take from the mouth of labor the bread it has earned. This is the sum of good government" (pg 283). So, when elected, Jefferson slashed the army and navy, cut back on embassies in less significant countries and tried to pay down the national debt (pgs 287-88). The election of Jefferson in 1800 marked a turning point, a transition of power from Federalists to Republicans. Jefferson was then re-elected, followed by two terms for fellow Republican Madison and two for fellow republican James Monroe after that: "Among them, Jefferson and his two chief Virginia lieutenants (Madison and Monroe) held the presidency for almost the whole first quarter of the nineteenth century" (pg 308). To me, this was the GOLDEN AGE OF AMERICA.
This book has great coverage: the debates of the Constitutional Convention, the war between Britain and France that America was inevitably drawn into through it's trade with the two countries, Citizen Genet, the Jay Treaty with Britain, the Alien and Sedition Acts, etc... I found this book very worthwhile, informative, and easy reading...
An Exciting Period in American History Spun Well
Bernard A. Weisberger's America Afire (Jefferson, Adams, and the First Contested Election) is a both a marvelous tale and a wonderful slice of history. It covers similar ground (and the 1790's in America is probably one of the richest historical hunting ground around) as Joseph Ellis' Founding Brothers but in a more narrative fashion that will keep the reader gripped from beginning to end. One of the great joys of this books is that it is not strictly about the election of 1800 but, rather, about the decade that preceded it and resulted in the nail biter showdown between Jefferson and Adams (and then in bizarre twist betweem Jefferson and Burr). The book gets the story just right and manages to tell the sometimes complex tale in a comprehensible and straight forward manner to delight any reader. A nice introduction to this fascinating period of American history.
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