Transcripts For CSPAN First Ladies Influence Image 20130312

Talking. This was important to her to make everyone feel welcome. It was considered her classic look. People noticed it. It was a perfect setting for james and Dolley Madison she sat side by side with James Madison helping him. Jim moved back to washington d. C. In her elder years and became very much behind the scene in a political field again. As henry clay famously said, Everybody Loves mrs. Madison. Her equally famous response. Dolley madison came to her service as first lady with experience during Thomas Jeffersons two terms. The president often called her called on her to assist him. This sense of the usefulness of diplomacy allout dali to hit the ball running. She assumed the role in 89 as her husband James Madison became the president. Welcome. We will learn about the intriguing Dolly Madison. We have two guests at our table. Let me introduce you to them. An author and biographer of Dolly Madison Dolley Madison. Thank you for being here. Our other guest was the creator of the first ladys exhibit at the smithsonian. Thank you for being here tonight. It is a pleasure. Any 21st century woman who starts to read about Dolley Madison can see parallels to their own lives. Was she ahead of her time . A modern person in the early 1800ss or not . That is the paradox. She was raised in a certain culture. She starts adapting in a way that paved the way for modernity. She also creates the first lady role that we have come to know. Every modern first lady she opened the door for a lot of women. We are trying to show the parallels among them, how they handle things. I think in our first segment about Martha Washington, you saw martha as the person who protected the aspect of the role, the social partners to the president , and a hope to the nation. When you get to abigail, she becomes a political partner with her husband and pioneers that role. Dolley is the one that brings the two of them together. She becomes the social and political partner for her husband. I think that sets all kinds of precedents for the future first lady. She is still held up as a standard by which other people measure themselves today. We will spend the first 35 minutes on those important white house years. It was such an interesting time for the country and we want to make sure you understand the history of it. We will learn how this young quaker woman became an internationally known first lady and we will end up with her legacy. We welcome your participation. Throughout the program, we will have phone lines open. You can send us a tweet and use the cash tax firstladies. There are people wanting to know about Martha Jefferson. They are thinking, what happened. We talked about Dolly Madisons role. What happened to Martha Jefferson . She and jefferson were married for 10 years. She died in childbirth. She was a little or when she moved into the white house. She needed what someone to oversee these parties when both sexes were pleasant. It was thought to be unseemly. She he would ask Dolley Madison. She did not he did not entertain very much. He entertained in a private way. He did not have large entertainments Like Washington or atoms or the madison spirit the capital was getting used to that. I think there was criticism. Because he did not invite the women as often as he did the man. He preferred to have a lot of mail company and conduct actual political conversations. He also did away with all kinds of rank and protocol. He wanted everyone to be crude to be treated as equal. It was allat was what th about. James madison and Thomas Jefferson were very close political allies. It is natural when jefferson is elected. I want to Say Something about jeffersons social program. It is not an accident. He was interested in securing his own political power. He had dinner parties with men of one party or the other. He would rally the supporters. Then there would be a dinner party with the opposition. That was all about keeping an eye on the enemy. The idea brought up about the lack of women, which was why her role in the Jefferson Administration is not the big story of that time, he had seen when and women at social events. He was horrified and shocked, especially about their political power. It fell outside the official power. He cut off all the events and the white house was open only fourth of july and new years day. That was partly because he wanted to curtail the power of women. There was Something Else going on. That was Dolley Madison setting up the connection of networked she would bring to the white house. During the first year, the center of social and political life was not the white house, but that house. Here are a few bullet points about the country in 1810. The population at that point was 7. 2 million. 36 growth since the census 10 years earlier. Last week, it was a 35 growth. This country is booming. Bursting at the seams. Of those 16 of those, 16 were slaved. Slaves. What was the time like and how important was dolley in helping navigate those times for her husband . The first story of two was the union. The early republic, there was a great anxiety. No one was sure this union would hold. People at the time would refer to the United States in the plural. They would say, the United States of america are. It was not Holding Quite together. There was a fear it was holding a part. DebJames Madisons primary political goal was unity. If you keep that in mind as we go on tonight, Dolly Madisons work will become understandable. The second thing i would like to say is that we know the end of the story. We know this nation will be a strong nation state with a democracy and a twoparty system and a strong presence. That was none of the things the founders had intended. We look back and see that time as a time of growing pains. They did not know how this would end. Madison was the perfect person to help the nation ease into what it would be. Serving as the chief executive of the nation, he brought the real concept of how he wanted the role to be carried out. How did he approach it and how did she help him . He was the idea guy. He was very theoretical. He and other members of the founding generation understood unity as a concept. It was their number 1 job. How do you do it . How do you bring forth unity . What Dolley Madison did is take that concept and translate them into action. She is an acting unity on to the national stage. How . The first thing somebody alluded to in the beginning, she brought people together. Every wednesday night, it does not matter if you are the Vice President , there will be a drawing room. She put people in the room together. That sounds nice. This is about more than just nice. The early republic is a time of survival. The feeling of this union is exacerbated in washington because the all the reason all the regionalisms come together. These are people who did not just disagree with each other, but they dueled and fought each other industries and on the floors of congress. That is why bringing people together can treating each other as humans is not just lovely, but crucial. This concept is exactly the kinds of things Martha Washington and Abigail Adams used. It is very different from what they had done. Theirs is extremely formal. Dollys was much more open. You have everybody in dollys drawing room able to have access to the chief executive and his lady. That is very important for forging a unity in the United States. Also, dolly creates, she starts out as the wife of the secretary of state. What she is doing is forging a social network on which politics and diplomacy could be conducted in a civilized manner through the ceremonial forms of dinners, receptions, parties, and so forth. Some of these tensions and animosities that played themselves out in the halls of congress had a way of being resolved at parties. In an amicable way. She is really forging new networks that will work for both politics and society. This concept you write about in several books, the subtitle is, the creation of the american nation. You read about the fact that women of the class understood as their power to be able to use social skills to build the nation. The founders understood the American Revolution was more than a Political Revolution they were going to build the world. That meant everything was under consideration. They were going to score and everything of the old world. Kings and markey and courts. They turn to the women, and this is a political theory. It says that, in a culture, laws can come and go. What they call manners stay. Manners are the way people treat each other and how they regard each other and how they behave. This is very appealing to the new americans. One thing they are inventing, a whole bunch of laws they are not sure people would buy. They needed people to behave. The phrase they used was republican virtue. That meant people would put the interests of the country before themselves. How do you get people to do that . They looked at people they looked to the women of the class to start enforcing national matters. These white women of the cities were very conscious of that. Here are the phone lines. If you live in the eastern or central time zones, our number is 202, 585, 380. Please dial carefully. We will take calls and another 10 minutes. This is a facebook question. I will turn to you has a long time curator of first ladies. The early first ladies for excellence riders. In what conditions are early letters . We saw thousands of letters last week. But what about Dolley Madison . What did she preserved . Did she have a sense of her legacy. . I think she did. She is writing to her sister as the british were coming. She is telling her sister what she is doing. So there will be something to put in the history books. She wants it known she is saving the documents, the important pieces of silver, the portrait of George Washington, but she is writing has everything is being packed to go off to virginia for safety. She is aware of what she is doing. She writes a number of letters to her family members. I want to weigh in. We know as historians, this is the heart of what we do. For a long while, to find the actual letters, it is really hard to do. At the university of virginia, they began collecting her papers and published them in a lovely book. But there is now a web master of because Dolley Madison of Dolley Madison, so these are the papers that are really crucial. Mary writes about her aunt. A lot of those stories, which must have come from dolley herself, later in her life, she is getting a sense of legacy. She cannot intrude upon the Public Notice as a man would, but she gave her these memoirs, which have now been published for the first time. People can read those. We have a video to show you struck the night. The place is important to Dolly Madison Dolley Madison. Lets watch. The portrait of Dolley Madison hangs in the red room. Red fabrics complemented the fabric in her chair. She is an inspiration for that room. The room was in fact yellow under Dolley Madison. The red color was introduced in 1820s and 1830s. The furniture of the time is in that room. It would have been that style in her lifetime. Two of the most interesting in the room are the bust of martin van buren, and the portrait of his daughter in law. And the fat that Dolley Madison is connected to that store years later. When president van buren was inaugurated, president madison had died the year before and she had moved back to washington. President van buren was a widower. Dolley madison basically introduced angelica to her husband to be, the president s eldest son. She became the hostess for the white house. Largely as a result of Dolly Madison doing matchmaking. What condition was the white house . Washington d. C. Was a very muddy place. Abigail had written home it was a very dirty hall of a place she had ever been in her life. The houses were separated far apart. It is not like we think of it today. It is very rudimentary. Part of what she is doing is building a social network amongst the women so that a lot of this is overlooked for politics and diplomacy and fashion. It can carry people over the fact we are not living in a fantastic capital of the world. Questions. Did they get along . Yes. She was there. This is one of the stories her niece said when James Madison was courting dolley, Martha Washington confronted her and asked if it was true what they say. She said, i think it is wonderful. What is interesting about abigail is there is one letter in which she writes asking for a favor of Dolly Madison Dolley Madison and now we know they probably did not meet. To give a job to a relative. Sometimes you study womens history. The big answer for me is we learn things we would not know otherwise. You look at Dolly Madison. It is a huge network. Men will not touch it. It is to royal. It is too corrupt. Their wives and daughters are playing the whole time. We have one moment where we have a former first lady and president s wife asking another for patronage. That was part of what was thought was what was thought of as a first ladys role at the time. Who were some of her biggest congressional allies of the time . Henry is the famous one. The reason we know about him, it gives you a glimpse of behind the curtain and how politics works. Leading up to the war of 1812, James Madison was not sure he wanted to go to work. He was so secretive about it, scholars disagree. He had to walk a fine line. He needed allies. He had dolley do it. He had famous stories. We have to look at these things as a form of political analysis. When the people of the time were looking at that, they were not just saying look at Dolley Madison with henry. They were trying to read the energy. She courted people on both sides of the aisle. That was a good thing about her. People knew there was something up in the air. Our website is a very robust site with a lot of videos about each of these women. There will be a special feature each week you can see only on the web. If you go there tonight, you can see how dolly Dolley Madisons snuffbox. She was addicted. This is one of the modern concepts. The women patriots new how to use their own power for the sake of our young country. Wives wishing to please their husbands. I think these women were very aware of their place in history. You know you are centrally positioned to influence aspects of politics. I think they probably would never have used the term feminism or feminist, but i think i knew it i think they exactly what they were doing. The first question comes from scotty in tennessee. Are you there . I am calling in the show for the first time. Welcome to recurrence thank you. Wellcome. Thank you. Welcome. Thank you. Did she know anything about the affair he had . The big story for her is not helping Thomas Jefferson as a hostess. We do not know anything much about Dolley Madison. There is a story i read about paul jennings, James Madisons body servant. The first person to write a white house memoirs. He was a slave. There was a story that Dolly Madison asked henry, name one of her sons after James Madison. She does not get the gift. A related question for michael. What was Dolley Madisons opinion of Thomas Jefferson and did the madisons ever visit monticello . I think they visited back and forth. They were good friends and knew each other for many years. Maybe you have more information on that. Is a little ways. When we talk about retirement years, the few times James Madison leaves his beloved is to visit Thomas Jefferson. I would say we do not know the true opinion of a lot of people because she was very cautious. Thomas jefferson seemed to love her, even though she is conducting a Social Circle under his nose and nobody hated like thomas ever since. The fact that he adored dolly dolley speaks volumes about her. Catherine is up next. Thank you for taking my call. I know that Dolley Madison was raised a quaker and her first husband was a quicker. Quaker. She left it and married James Madison. I read stories about her father freed slaves and testimony to the catalyst of slavery. I was wondering, how do you think her upbringing influenced her as a first lady. I will cut to the chase. We do not know enough about her childhood. My theory on this is one of the central tenets of quakerism is to regard people as and god. That is why they do not use titles. Dolley became famous for being empathetic and warm. I think that comes from her quakerness. She was able to take on and do so well in this role was because quakers believed men and women were equal. You do not get any sense of her being lesser them. She fits right in and does her thing. The First White House allocated a salary. Was it still that much at the time . I do not know. Most presume it was. It was about 1. 10 million today. That is a lot. Who paid for all the social functions . Did they have to pay out of their own salaries for all the events we are talking about . Yes. This was the time that was part of the deal going into public service. This is why rich white men were to take it on. A lot of it came out of pocket. The medicines were not the first president ial couple to leave much poorer than when they came in. There was quite a hefty amount given to her to redo the mansion, which she did very well and spend the money very well. A furnishing budget. The previous occupants had brought their own furniture in many instances. When they left the presidency, they took it home from them. Jefferson is one of those who did that. When washington was in new york and philadelphia. This was the thing dolly wanted to do dolley wanted to do because she thought it needed a stately, elegant look. They took the decorating very seriously and wanted to make it look as if it could be on somewhat equal terms with the power of europe so they could conduct diplomatic negotiations in a proper setting. It sounds to me, there is a constant push and pull between wanting to people wanting to be seen as equal. A real dichotomy. It is one of the reasons we look at women, as well. You have the revolution and the fight against everything it stands for, but now you have the nation. Legitimacy and authority . The only power they have is loyalty. We have strange moments and they go back and forth. The women of these families took it on. Martha washington is lady washington. James madison is mr. President. Dolley is clean dolley beginning queen dolley. That is one of the messages she is sending out the women at that time understood a lot of the beginning of that is predicated on loyalty. A lot of people called her president. Who called her queen dolley . A lot of people. Queen. Just a clea me she looked every inch a queen. She bought a lot of her materials in paris. She is very elegantly dressed. She looks to american eyes as a queen. That is fine. She is not the head of state. She is walking a very fine line where she expresses the finer things to which the nation aspires. She is not royalty. She is always walking a very fine line down the middle. You provided a wonderful segue to our next video. The restored home of the madisons and open for tours. Put it on your list if you ever get to virginia. They have a display that talks about her dresses. We will show you that now. Most of the dresses we have at the Visitors Center are based on descriptions we have of the way she dressed. One dress we own is a real creation of something we still have. This is typical of the style of the day. Classical lines. It was much more simple and elegant than the thatcher beef fashion before or after. This is the style she would have worn while she was first lady. Many of the dresses were more elegant. This represents what she wore at her and not real. This was James Madisons first inaugural. She wore a simple but velvet. She wore pearls. That was something more classically elegant but less ostentatious than the diamonds you would normally find in the courts of europe. She was setting a style unique to american fashion. A lot of people think she set the fashion of the turban. That is not quite true. It began in persia and moved to france and england. But she popularized the style. That was considered her classic look, to wear an extravagant turban with fetters on her head. People notice it. Sometimes, they thought her fashion was a little too regal. There was one instance where she wore something with edging in her turban. People said this was overstepping things. She looked to wriggle into queenly. They were afraid queen dolley was setting the wrong tone. Toward the end of her life, she wore many of the fashions she wore in her earlier day. Some of this may have been to evoke that american founding. She was the last living matriarch of the generation. Some of it was because of the growing she did not have the money to where the latest fashions. She had to where many of her own clothes old clothes. She had several paintings made of her final days. She is often wearing the same thing. One other thing we should mention is for her time, she was quite tall. She was. She was 57 5 foot 7 inches. I have an image of the two of them standing next to each other. Dolley in her turbans and James Madison in the style of the revolution. It does not work. It became politicized a lot of the criticism toward the madisons focused on James Madison. This was a time where Political Authority was mailed. Thomas jefferson, big and tall. Washington was described as a halt. And then this little tiny guy. He probably had his press secretary coming out, saying he is 5 foot 6 inches. He is not. Size mattered. Her heights and good health led to rumors of her sexuality. The reasons she never had children was she was literally burning up. You realize things were quite serious. She was also during the campaign accused of having an affair with jefferson because she had been his hostess on various occasions. They extrapolated into a personal affair. Were able to put that to rest . I think they were. He would not have been able to be elected. A question about her approach to this. The way that she dressed. Was this a constant conscious decision to stand apart as opposed to personal taste or vanity . She was creating a brand. Yes. You have to look at the context. This is a new nation. We know it is very fragile. There is not a lot of bureaucracy or structure. That was delivered. There was not a lot of structure. People focus on personalities and on the figure of the person. We have all the descriptions of George Washington. They talk about his grandeur and all this stuff. It seems like George Washington is posing for statues. In the republic, it became descriptions of her on the move. It was a form of political analysis. She deliberately created this. She is not wearing what an actual queen would wear, but would wear an adaptation. She put that on her turban to make for even taller. How would americans react to this . The newspapers had reports with descriptions of what she was wearing . And how did it was. Were they proud . I think they were mostly proud. The federalists were a little put off by this. They thought it was a little too regal and court like. But there was a lot of discussion about creating a republican court. That is a group of people who headed up government but with the idea of having a republic instead of a monarchy. That is part of what she was doing. One of the things that is ingenious about dolley is she takes european influences and filters them through a democratic lands. They give you something to aspire to as a new nation and how elliot and wonderful it can be. But you do not offend people who dislike the courts and the royalty of europe. She had a parrot . Yes. Apparently it was a terror and would attack people. She played her own part in this last moment when everybody throughout the white house, there is a white french servant, and he takes the bird over to the house where she lived long enough to make it where somebody is the victim of a nighthawk. Maybe some people in washington secretly cheered. [laughter] it is time to talk about the important decision to go to war with Great Britain. And the eventual seizure of the capital city, which happened in 1814. There is a dramatic story about Dolley Madison being in the white house alone and the approaching british troops. We will start with you about telling us that story. The background of all of this is they had been gone for a couple of years. There were rumors around the city that the capitals were the target. The Washington City had an inferiority complex. The man in charge would say, they are never coming to washington. Baltimore is the place. Some of the british did march on Washington City. That is not prepared. She is alone in the white house. The day before the last day of the white house, august 24, 1814. She is waiting for her husband to come home while she is preparing for the worst. She is writing this letter for her sister and running up to the roof looking for a husband. She is observing how badly the battle is going. She is also packing things, silver, which she considers the peoples possessions, and she sends them away in carts. Finally, the work comes and it is time to go. The british were coming. How endangered was she . If she waited any longer, she might have been captured. That would have been a huge prize of war. She knew she had to leave. She wanted to wait for her husband to come home, and then they reunited a couple of days later. She had the tables set for dinner and the british came in and thought that was wonderful. But she saved the portrait of washington, which was one of the things that endeared her to the entire nation, a portrait. She knew exactly what she was doing. Writing about it, she knew what her place in history was going to be. Are you worried about the fact that this is symbolic because it was a copy of a painting . She understood the british could not be seen burning. A historian is trying to decide whether she was symbolic as they say. The admiral framed all of his threats towards washington. He was going to come and dine at madisons table. He was going to parade her to the streets. He was not attacking James Madison with rhetoric, but her. When he got to the white house and she was not there, he took things of hers because he said he wanted to recall her seat. The dinner party was interesting, too. It seems odd to have a dinner party one washington was an exodus. She was trying to hold the capital together even as it was falling apart. She intended to have a dinner party that day. She wrote this. I must leave this house. There was a great deal of conversation about should the capital still remain in washington, which was now destroyed . Or should they move the capital back to philadelphia . The Octagon House was only a few blocks away. They immediately began to entertain. In a grand style. This really sent a signal to diplomats in washington and congress and the people, that they were not going to turn tail and run, but stay in the capital. Next, we will visit that house. This is very important for Dolly Madisons political career as first lady. The octagon is two two blocks from the white house. It was a natural fit as they tried to resume government as quickly as possible. The majestic, elegant, spacious house was the perfect setting for the events that dolly needed to orchestrate and manage in the life of the president. This is why the house is known as the octagon. It was a round room very popular in those days. This was an important room to welcome guests. It is a round room. When you are in this room, no matter where you stand, you are equal. This was very important for dolly to make everybody feel welcome. Enemies or allies. The room is a good example of why this house was so good for dolly. But dolley. She was known for her wednesday drawing room event. They had 300 people before the were coming. During the war, up to 500 people coming. The room could only said about 5200 people. Its still serve the the very important purpose. The country was still at war when the medicines were here. Dolly was playing an important role. She often had different people here, and poured members of congress would be seated at the table. Many discussions took place in this room while she was the hostess. It was important to maintain a sense of decorum for the president and first lady. The business was going to go on and the United States would survive and continue continue. We have on facebook a question about whether or not she liked to mix people of various social classis at these events. That was part of what in deer herd to people, that she had access to just about anyone who was welldressed were properly addressed, in other words, you do not have to be elegant or rich. If you are properly dressed, you could have access to the family. There was discussion about boots. For some people, she is way too regal and too much. Four other people, they look at this democratic reaching out and they are suspicious of it. They expressed their reservations are around the issue of boots. A gentleman would never come on a carpet with boots on. Washington was a different place at the time. She welcome congressman from different areas. They pointed to that as a sign of her dangerous tendencies. This is a specific question of local history. Is it true she escaped the war on what is now madison boulevard . I do not know. He goes to bellevue, now the house you can go and visit. Then they do go across the room and she spends the time at the plantation. She ends at the house Still Standing now. I think the road probably reflects that. Was sheesh was she say when she crossed the river . She was. I was lucky enough to go there. She could see washington burn. Barbara in new york city is up next. Independent. Could either of your guests speak to a story i read about that she stopped at a store in baltimore owned by a black woman and that it was there that she first tasted ice cream and she loved it and she served in very frequently at her social gatherings after that. Do either of your guests know anything about that . Ice cream and Dolley Madison became synonymous later on in 20thcentury america. I do not know the accuracy of that particular story. I think jefferson was the president bringing icecream bract back from france. Ghali served in the white house. Where she found it, i do not know. Is a serious import. The story is not true probably. It is the Association People tell me, she invented ice cream. She did not. What happens is, almost immediately after her death, she became closely associated as a symbol of american womanhood. Her name and image get coopted by everything to ice cream hairpins, a sexy brand of cigars. She becomes a brand so quickly that the association becomes one of those things that people think she invented it. It goes to how important she was and how people wanted to attach whatever their product was to her name and that would recommend it. She foreshadows what francis does in the late 19th century, where franciss face and name are plastered on all kinds of products for sale. Today, the white house has how has the white house approach that . Louis and washington d. C. , welcome. A fascinating program. I have enjoyed being on with you before myself. No question she was extraordinarily courageous. Here she is, not just worried about getting out herself, but do we know did she ride when she took those valuables . One of the drawings shows her and walking. How did she get away and where did she crossed to get into virginia . Why do i get the geography questions . I will say this. She said all these papers, including James Madisons notes. She takes them previous to that. At the last minute, she decided on a paint creek painting. There is evidence on a painting. There is evidence she got her servant to wrestle it offthe wall and she gave it to two gentlemen from the york who put it in a car and took it away. Something would survive and she herself is taken away by carriage. I do not know where she crossed. John is in new york. Thank you for taking my call i understand Dolley Madison died in poverty. I was wondering if that is true and how that happened. I know elisa had lived from the corner. I was wondering if they had ever enacted. Thank you very much. How far into American History was it . A while. What they had was what they lived on when they retired. If you are wealthy enough to get into politics in the first place, you would be able to support yourself afterwards. Dolly had a son from her first marriage. He ran through their estate. He ran up enormous debts and ended up in prison twice. Each time james and dolley would bail him out. She put him in charge and that was a disaster. She ended up losing and living in poverty. Was she not a good judge of character . One of the great political guess she brought to a very contentious time in politics, it was a refusal to contend. She did not fight. It is not great when you have a son being spoiled. This was her blind spot. All of that would not work with him. I want to answer the question about elisa. They did know each other. In 1848, when they laid the cornerstone for the washington monument, the sponsors decided to bring the relics of the republic. Widows were called relics. They invited by Dolley Madison and hamilton. These women were representatives of the time. We have about 35 minutes left in our portrait. It is time to answer the question, who was this woman who became internationally famous and what were roots . We visited her house in philadelphia where she lived as a quaker. We will show you that now. This is her house in philadelphia. Here, she becomes wife, mother, and a widow. This room was a kitchen of the house. You would probably find her with her two sisters. She would often have her younger sister living here with her. As quakers, they did not believe in slavery. Her husband gave free legal advice to the abolitionists society here. This is a dining room. This room was a multiuse room. The family dined here but they also use it for educational purposes. They believe both men and women should be educated. On the table, there are books here for educating sisters and her son. In august of 1793, a french ship arrived in philadelphia it was carrying passengers suffering from yellow fever. Anyone who had money sent their family outside the city and the success for successful lawyer did that. He will die of yellow fever on october 24, 1793. The same day john dies of yellow baby will die, as well. Not only did she lost her husband and protector, but also, she has the Community Watching her. She has a gentleman who are interested for months. Even as she walked down the street, all the men were stopping to stare at her. The quakers watched her closely. Her friends warned her she needs to be aware they are watching her and she needs to be right by her son. This property is partly his property, too, even though hes only a few years old at the time. Dolly has to contend with the scrutiny of the community and have to go to court to petition them to be the guardian of her own son because that was the situation. Even though her husband had made her the executor widow, her brotherinlaw has kept the property so she has to hire a lawyer to protect her interests and her own brotherinlaw. This is on the second floor of the house. This is where you would entertain your friends. One of the men interested in meeting her was James Madison. He was a congressman here in capital city. Philadelphia was the contemporary capital of the United States at the time. Was an exciting place to be. Aaron had been living in her mothers boarding house. It is aaron burr who lets turn now James Madison which is to meet her. James madison would meet dolly in this parlor for the first meeting. They expected at least a year of morning before they get married again. It really raised eyebrows in the community that she was married within less than a year. She was very scrutinized by the quakers for that. The fact that he is not a quaker is she would be put out of the community, as well. That video gave us a broad overview of the biography. Lets fill in a few of the blanks. Thats a little bit of a family scanledle. She want to be virginia born panned bread. Her mothers folks are from virginia and probably her fathers as well. John querts to quakerism and they go off and live in North Carolina in a quaker communalt. As far as we know dolly was born there so she is North Carolinas only first lady. What is sad about that she spends most of her life denying it. We think it has to do with her fathers shadey Business Practices and they move back to virginia. So shes raced in the world of chattle slave holding. Her father released his slaves as a quaker. Is that the cause of his inability to continue his business sm i think he had other problems besides that. He couldnt farm so they moved to that chilly Northern City of philadelphia. Im not sure if you know so much about her thoughts of slavery. How is it that she reconciled herself to actually having slaves in the white house . I think thats a good question. Im not sure i know the answer to that. But she did not free any of her slaves as her father had. And she didnt speak out against slavery so the quaker background there did not effect her slave holding. This is why his toirns have a hard job. Its a real dichotomy. Her father freesslaves and go to philadelphia. For ten years things are terrible for the pains in philadelphia. Children die. Her mother has to open up a boarding house. Shes pushed into mayoring john todd. She has two children, one of them dies. Then shes this beautiful 25yearold widow. And you could argue she could have had her pick of any man but she picks James Madison. Turns out to be a great pick. But why does she do that . Its one of those moments she said i could go back to the world i lived in but we dont have anything from her at the. What we do know is by the time shes a woman in middle age and old she has exactly the same kind of attitude toward enslaved americans that southerners had which is the inability to understand them as hunalschfment James Madison dies and doesnt freeway slaves, everyone begins to blame dolly. Part of that is fine because she starts selling slaves as soon as she can. What about her quaker roots affected the kind of woman she became if this aspect did not i think were back to the empathy thing. The peacemaking. The idea you dont make war. Do we know if she counseled her husband against going to war since quakers dont believe in fighting wars. We dont know. If you read her letters shes as partisan as anybody. She has the white house defensiveness. I think she probably supported him 100 in what he decided to do but her own nature was always to conciliate. How did doll li feel about womens education . What we know about her was she was a very well educated woman for her day, any class. Were not sure how she got there because she was a southerner and southerners did not educate their girls. We know from her handwriting that she was very well educated. She never had a daughter so we dont know what she would have done but im sure she would have given her daughter a good education. The quakers tpwhreaved educating women as well as men so she benefited from that. She takes that background with her into the first ladies role. What qualities did she see in James Madison when he was so much her opposite . Well, i think on sits attract many times. I think she was very impressed with his intellect understand private he was thought to be very amusing and very entertaining. And so i think thats the side of him that she saw while they were courting. And its interesting that aaron burr provided the link between the two. You get the sense of these people who were part of the american cannon were a small community. Its a small world. And James Madison fell in love with her and was very romantic. He was in his mid 40s and had never married which was odd. Marriage is a very pragmatic business in this age and love isnt necessarily part of it. So dollys approach to the marriage was pragmatic. He would be a protector of her son. As the marriage went on she fell deeply in love with james. Marriage was a pragmatic business and she had a son to protect and property to be managed. And someone who would do that honestly and well. And had a reputation for running his own Family Plantation in virginia. Rick is up next in kansas. Hello. Good evening. You ladies are good. Thanks, rick. Two questions if you would. First, did ms. Madison travel abroad, if , so when and who did she visit . And among modern time first ladies who might she compare with . Did Dolley Madison travel abroad . I dont think she ever travel add broad. Diplomats were amazed by that because she was so converse nt and she was a diplomatic wife so they did marvel that she had that quality. And how did she get her knowledge of french fashions for example . If you were Dolley Madison, you could not go anywhere whether it was a city in america or france without having to shop for her. Also very early on she became the patriot jay of the french ministers wife and she schooled her as well. She hired a master of ceremonies in the white house who was french and familiar with all of the diplomatic nice tiss shall we say so that he would explain to her what kind of food was served and what the frefrpbl taste was and what french qui sin was about so she had a number of people who helped school her in this type of thing. The white house staff is large d all of this come from the money that they were paid or from their personal wealth, all these extra staff and advisors that you talk about . Probably most of them did. For instance, one of the things she hired as they called him french john away from the minister from Great Britain which was a huge slap tofment hire somebody away from somebody elses household particularly when that person was in the Diplomatic Community was an insult on the one hand or a great coo on the other. And she was able to do that. A lot of resources went to creating the out fits. She got the bills and she was like dont tell my husband. Between buying the stuff and paying the duties on it, it was quite a lot. I wanted to ask you about the maryland component of this fleing of the white house during the war. My understanding is that there is a house in brookville maryland that is dalled white house for a day and my understanding is that madison arrived at that house and conducted business from there and i wondered whether Dolley Madison was part of that or whether there was some kind of a transition from virginia to maryland . I do not know the answer to that question. That gives us another stop in this. Stump the panel. Another place to check out, the white house for a day you tell us about. I was going to go back and answer or give my opinion about the second part of the question was who would she compare to in the present. And i would say Jacqueline Kennedy. I think she looked at imagining her Husbands Administration and recreating the white house for the stage for diplomacy through her renovation of the white house in the same way dolly looked at the white house as a stage and imagined her husbands presidency. So i see a lot of comparable activity and things that she was trying to achieve as was Jacqueline Kennedy. And Jacqueline Kennedy referenced dolly. She was a fan and definitely referenced her in the re dog of the white house. And she had to love the french furniture. With regard to the renovation of the white house, if you go to the white house today, can you see evidence of the torching by the british . There are places in the basement where you can see burned tim bers. I know when they did the restoration of the white house, they found a lot of charred wood and charred bricks and so forth that were taken out and saved as memnants from the fire. Were showing some pictures of some of the charring right now. You can see it on the trim of the balcony too. Laura bush told me president bush showed the prime minister. How complete it was destruction . Pretty complete inside. How long did it take to rebuild it . The mad sons didnt move back in. It wasnt until the monroes administration that they were able to move back in the white house so i would say a couple of years. About 18 minutes and its time to move. A complex part of our history and long life to the retirement after the madison administration. James and dolly return to their beloved mont pillier in virginia and were going to visit that place next. If you were a visitor you would enter here and be shown into the madisons great drawing room. Mrs. Madison had many lady friends she would invite here. The daughters of Thomas Jefferson were also frequent visitors. Her most intimate circle included her families, her sisters especially were always welcome guests as well as many nieces she had who often stayed for extended visits here. The drawing room combined many different themes into one. You see many of the faces of the Great American statesman, but you see figures of classical antiquity. You have a reproduction of the deck lation of independence. Have you a minute chure of homer, the writer of the great epics of grease. Then you have a painting of pan and youths. This was 200 years old when they purchased it. In the way of blending the classical and american they were trying to place the events in world history. This is a room where all the guests would assemble before dinner and have a chance to meet one another and converse socially and kassly and then they might be invited to dipe in the dining room. After supper the ladies would ajourn back into the drawing room and maybe play a game and be served coffee and tea. This was a social center of the house. If you were a part of the intimate circle of friend you would be invited into the dining room from the drawing room. Here Dolley Madison in an unusual setting for the period would is it at the head of the table and her husband would is it at the middle of the table. Dolly would direct the conversation and james could engage in conversation with the people to his right or left. This table today is set for eight people but there could be as many people as 20 served in the dining room. That would not be unusual. She considered dining here to be more relaxing than entertaining in washington. She was less worried serving 100 people here than 20 in washington. Many important figures would be seated with them. Thomas jefferson was frequently here. James monroe was here. Henry clay. Margaret smith. Once while mrs. Madison was serving at the head of the table the Vice President aoffered to do the honors for her and she responded oh no, watch with what ease i do it. And he had to admit she did it with unparalleled ease. And looking at their life when they returned there, how was it compared to when they lived in the white house . I think they were besieged by people who wanted to associate themselves with the mad sons. Many visitors in addition to political visitors in addition to family and friend. Sort of like the washingtons and the eversons. Everybody wanted to meet the great percentages. So they had people in the house with them. Not only relatives but Many Political visitors as well. She was devoted to him and getting his papers together in that role. Was she happy doing that . Yes, that the point she loved her husband very much. That is where he wanted to stay and so she stayed as well. The descriptions of her at this time trnt same. Shes described as content, adam and eve in paradise. She definitely missed washington. She would write and say tell me all the news and she would complain a little bit i havent been out. Keep me up to date and let me know what is happening. For her own selfshe probably would have wanted to go back to washington for a visit but James Madison was going to stay put. She was 49 years old when she left the white house. He was 17 years her senior. She worked to involve him when he was in the last days of his final illness. Before we talk about her years back in washington because she lived until the age of 81 and was very much involved in the august. I have a couple of comments about Dolley Madisons clothing and fashion and then i have a question. I used to be a dosen at the North Carolina Historical Museum and we happen to have some of her belongings which includes the original of that red velvet dress we saw. Also we own a pink silk dress she wore while she was first lady. And what was interesting about that piece of clothing was when we had it conserved by the people of williamsburg virginia. They found that the tiny but tons on the front of the dress were filled with dried peas. So thats what her dress maker did for her with french fashion also as she grew older and her hair became very very thin, she did have some real human hair curls sewed into her turbins and put that on in the morning with her curls showing and she looked younger she thought. The way the greensboro Historical Museum came into possession of these wonderful items including beautiful silk shoes and carved ivory calling cases is they received it from some folks who brought a trunk at auction that was sort of a hidden treasure. And i want to know what these ladies know about the finding of that trunk that was hidden behind a wall. And i want to say it was in philadelphia. But i want to know how the person that had that hidden behind the wall got those very important things and had them . Ill answer quickly because i want to say this is happening in the 1950s and 1960s so not that long ago. The story of Ladies Historical Society found and financesed this deserves a Television Program of its own. They raised money one Chicken Dinner at a time paid the sum of 25,000 to get this stuff. Is that close to where she was born s. That where the connection was . The ladies felt like she was North Carolinas only born first lady. You can go there now and see part of that. Dolley madison returns to washington after the death of her beloved james. How does she spend her years here . She become it is grand am of Washington Society once again. Because people know about her poverty but dont want to confront her with it, people in the white house, the tilers invite her to come to dinner on many occasions. The younger first ladies always ask her advice on entertaining and handling large crowd of people. So she becomes sort of an exfirst lady advisor. And thats how she happened to do the match making between angel casingle on the and van buren the son. Shes in the mix again and very much a behind the scenes player again. This is not a tragic ending. She manages to live a well known involved life. I think it was lonely without james. Eventually she sold. You remember this is her town. She worked for 16 years to build this town and the president s mansion as a symbol. It was under her tenure that the president s mansion got a nickname the white house. She can be credited with the nationalism around the end of the war of 1812. When she comes back to washington it is like the past came to light. She wore many of the same clothes. She was poor. But of coursed the this expect of making her seem like a relic from an rare was that her real name . It was indeed. Though again her niece tried to perp pate this idea that she was named dorothy. But she was dolly and trying to figure out why her family tried back to the scandalous rumors about her sex al fair with Thomas Jefferson and they thought that was too common a name for her but she was dolly and her birth is recorded that way. With or without the e. You see it spelled sometimes without. Thats advertising. Now the icon. John is in pennsylvania. Yes i was wondering if Dolley Madisons first husband john todd was related to abraham lincolns wife mayor todd. I have no idea. Im going to say what is important about that is marry todd brooded that about. When mary todd comes to down decade later and Dolley Madison set the example. Mary todd tries to ride on her coat tails. But she does not have dollys sense of tone. Shes tone death when it comes to that. Is it true dollys son from her first marriage gambled away much of her money . That and drippinging. That will do it. Yes. Did he continue his relationship with his mother in later years . No she did not. Your question about Dolley Madison . Im questioning whats the relationship between ms. Madison and ms. Polk and harrison. And harrison. I think the polks became friend. People wanted to associate themselves with dolly after she came back to the capitol city and it was cash shea by association so the polks often invited her to dine with them and take part in parties and so forth in the we should tell people about congress awarding her a seat. I call this her iconic phase when she becomes a symbol. Shes awarded a seat on the floor of congress with escorts. Shes the only woman to do it and for a woman to do it. There is a lot of attention being paid to her and she starts to become a symbol even as shes living. Did she avail herself in the debates 234 congress . One of the things she did for other women is that she would go to the debates and go and watch the Supreme Court argue and that allowed other twoim do that as well. That was a way of bringing the women into a knowledge of what was going on politically so while they were part of this social network that she was setting up in washington, they could also be part of the Political Networks as well. She would get the women together and they would go up to capitol hill. She called them dove parties. Debbie on facebook didnt paul generalings give her money at the end of her life when she was so poor . Money and groceries, yes. You spoke about how she was writing a letter to her sister in the midst of evacuating the white house. How did it get posted or did she hold on to it . We only have this letter in her fair hand. So in 1830s when shes thinking about her legacy. She wants stuff from Dolley Madison. Shes caution. And she mentioned this letter, we dont have the original. We have a caller which marggret smith reproduces. There is an art cal that suggest that dolly may have at heard the for his sake. Thats a good pr move. Pam, youre our last caller. I wanted to ask whether Dolley Madison had any kind of relationship with James Monroes wife who i know travelled in europe and i believe was born in england and whether she had any grandchildren through her son . Thank you very much. That helps us set the stage for a future conversation d. They have a relationship . Not terribly much new york city. They knew each other as plantation owners in the same area but they were not friendly and there were no children. We would say no legitimate issue as they would say. As we close here, here is a quote from Dolley Madison, we all have a hand in the formation of our own destiny. We must press on that int cat path leading to perfection and happiness by doing all that is good and hand some before we can be taken under the silver wing of that angel. Shes important for several reasons which she does set the role of first lady. For his torns we look at her and she lets us know the role of ar stock crasi in this great dem sifment why does this matter . And i think for Dolley Madison what shes offered suss a model of governance that stresses civilty and empathy. Shes modeling this for us