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 from 1809 to 1817. He is acclaimed as the "Father of the Constitution" for his integral 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 tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay After the Convention, Madison became one of the leaders of the movement to ratify the Constitution, and his collaboration with Alexander Hamilton produced The Federalist Papers, among the most important tracts supporting the Constitution. After ratifying the Constitution in 1788, Madison won election to the U.S. House of Representatives. Concurrently serving as a close advisor to President George Washington, Madison emerged as one of the most important members of the 1st Congress, helping to 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 an important role in promulgating a new constitution that created 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 along with Hamilton's Federalist Party. After Jefferson won the 1800 presidential election, 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 won reelection in 1812. After the failure of diplomatic protests and a trade embargo against the United Kingdom, he led the United States into the War of 1812. The war was a administrative quagmire, as the United States had neither a strong army nor financial resources. system. As a result, Madison came to support a stronger national government and military, as well as the national bank, which he had long opposed. Historians have generally classified Madison as an above-average president.