Madison James


Madison

, James 1751-1836. The fourth president of the United States (1809-1817). A member of the Continental Congress (1780-1783) and the Constitutional Convention (1787), he strongly supported ratification of the Constitution and was a contributor to The Federalist Papers (1787-1788), which argued for the effectiveness of the proposed constitution. His presidency was marked by the War of 1812.
Mad′i·so′ni·an (-sō′nē-ən) adj.