Review of
Alexander
Hamilton by Ron Chernow Instaread summary
Five out of five stars
Of the highest
tier of people that created the United States, Alexander Hamilton’s name is
known but his deeds largely are not. He was one of the three primary authors of
The Federalist Papers, the documents that clearly set down the arguments for
the establishment of a central government with real power. Hamilton was also
the force behind the creation of the central bank, a stabilizing force in the
financial health of the country.
One aspect of
that time in history that is mentioned in the book and repeated in this summary
deals with the myth that the founding fathers were a monlith. Nothing could be
further from the truth, after the country was established, John Adams and
Thomas Jefferson became bitter enemies. For his part, Hamilton became an enemy
of both of them, Hamilton ultimately being killed in a duel with Jefferson’s
Vice President Aaron Burr.
In many ways
Alexander Hamilton was the most complex of the founding fathers, he was born on
the island of Nevis in the British West Indies, had an illegitimate birth and
was orphaned at an early age. Yet, his talents became clear when he was young
and he was sent to the United States to be educated. His humble birth and
background was often used against Hamilton as he rose to a position of high
power in the fledgling American government.
Hamilton was
also opposed to slavery, an unusual position for a man of power and influence
to take in those times. He was a lawyer and after the end of the American
Revolutionary War, he defended British Loyalists that were being threatened
with having their property confiscated. Therefore, despite his often
aristocratic leanings, Hamilton was very much a man of principle and rights.
This book is
not only an excellent summary of the book, it is also a sound synopsis of the life
of Alexander Hamilton. He was a man that could have and probably should have
been president, for he clearly had the intellectual talent for the job.
Unfortunately, at that time the country could not accept the idea of a man with
such a birth history filling the presidency. In some ways that concept still
remains and is charged, even when there is no evidence to justify it.
This book was made available for free for review
purposes
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