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Lilac - The Three Term Precedent (Mk. 2)
The Three Term Precedent (Mk. 2)
1789-1796: George Washington / John Adams† (Federalist)[1]
1789: John Jay, Various
1792: George Clinton, Various
1796-1797: George Washington / Vacant (Federalist)
1797-1801: George Washington / Oliver Ellsworth (Federalist)
1796: Thomas Jefferson / Aaron Burr (Democratic-Republican)[2]
1801-1807: John Marshall / Oliver Ellsworth† (Federalist)[3]
1800: Thomas Jefferson / Aaron Burr (Democratic-Republican)
1804: Thomas Jefferson / John Breckenridge (Democratic-Republican)
1807-1809: John Marshall / Vacant (Federalist)
1809-1813: John Marshall / James Hillhouse (Federalist)
1808: George Clinton / James Monroe (Democratic-Republican)
1813-1817: William Branch Giles / John Langdon (Democratic-Republican)[4]
1812: Rufus King / Fulwar Skipwith (Federalist)
1817-1825: Stephen Van Rensselaer III / Cowles Mead (Federalist)
1816: William H. Crawford / Joseph Desha (Democratic-Republican)
1821-1825: Cowles Mead / Stephen Van Rensselar III (Federalist)[5]
1820:
1825-1825: Daniel D. Tompkins† / Eleazer W. Ripley (‘High’ Federalist)
1824: Stephen Decatur, Jr. / William H. Harrison (‘Low’ Federalist)[6]
1825-1829: Eleazer W. Ripley / Vacant (‘High’ Federalist)
1829-1833: Leonard W. Covington / Zebulon M. Pike, Jr. (‘Low’ Federalist)
1828: Eleazer W. Ripley / Andrew Jackson (‘High’ Federalist)
1833-1836: Leonard W. Covington† / Henry Wheaton (‘Low’ Federalist)
1832: Louis McLane / Joseph Dane (‘High’ Federalist)
1836: Stephen Longfellow / Henry R. Warfield (‘High’ Federalist), Gorham Parks / Silas M. Stilwell (Working-Men’s)[7]
1836-1837: Henry Wheaton / Vacant (Federalist)
1837-1841: Henry Wheaton / James K. Marshall (Federalist)
1841-1845: Edward Coles / Winfield Scott (Federalist)
1840: James Buchanan / Alexander Ming (‘Working’ Federalist)
1845-: George Bancroft / Henry Lee (Anti-Monopoly)[8]
1844: Edward Coles / Winfield Scott (Federalist)
[1] John Adams tragically passed away in the summer of 1796 – and an aggravated George Washington reluctantly ran for a third term – who else could they really nominate, anyway? Washington’s third term would be by far the most partisan, with unresolved war crises with France and growing disillusionment with ‘his Aristocracy’. Washington had firmly decided to step down by 1800, and did so to little fanfare. Today he’s universally ranked among the top 10 presidents.
[2] Thomas Jefferson and the Democratic-Republican party machine was finally bold enough to outright challenge Washington for the Presidency in 1796 – Jefferson got the electors from Kentucky and Georgia and only a handful of faithless ones elsewhere. Lingering bad feelings were one of the several reasons he lost in 1800 to –
[3] John Marshall, the second President of the United States and the man who (narrowly) kept Federalists in charge. Marshall won the Barbary wars, presided over a stable economy – and unilaterally seized New Orleans when Napoleon was threatening emancipation. The stand-off with France kept Marshall popular – and torpedoed his rival Jefferson’s support in the south. Marshall won three elections, the third by a substantial margin over George Clinton – and at the end of his third term finally stepped down, in emulation of his predecessor.
[4] 1812 would mark the first peaceful transition of power between two parties – Jefferson’s protégé William Giles beat Rufus King on the strength of a united South and West – and almost immediately lost all of his goodwill when he returned New Orleans to France to join with them in the ongoing war against Great Britain. ‘Giles’ War’ (or the War of 1813 as more neutral history books call it) was a brief and dismal failure, as unprepared U.S. armies that Giles refused to fund were very quickly pushed back on all fronts. New England didn’t secede, obviously, but unpleasantly large chunks of Maine and Michigan were given up. Giles lost even his re-nomination.
[5] Van Rensselaer was technically unopposed in 1820 - but a screw-up with one faithless elector meant that Cowles Mead became President and an instant lame-duck. That flaw was subsequently very quickly amended out of the Constitution.
[6] Daniel D. Tompkins charged war heroes Stephen Decatur and William Henry Harrison as merely entryists – whereas Decatur very narrowly prevailed in the Caucus, Tompkins swept the Federalist state legislatures across the country, and with it, the election. Tompkins died shortly after the inauguration – but the split would be enduring, as the regular wing of the party swept back into power with popular Maryland Senator Covington.
[7] The ‘High’ Federalists languished in the wilderness as suffrage requirements were gradually lifted – aristocrats from Charleston to Boston could barely command a following anymore. In 1836 they were joined by a new no-hoper party – Senator Gorham Parks had split with the President on everything from trade unions to bank charters to foreign policy – and many in the lower class flocked to his banner. But without a pre-existing party organization, the Working Men’s Party failed miserably at winning over state legislatures. Both parties distrusted the yeomen farmers, the middle class, the Nouveau Riche that were seizing the reins of power. Both parties put two and two together. And now things got exciting.
[8] The New Englander shivered in the inauguration day cold, pulled his crumpled speech out of a coat-pocket, and began to speak. “The era of small government, of rule by bank, of bowing to the Bourbon powers - is over!” And at this last point the Vice President smiled.
1789-1796: George Washington / John Adams† (Federalist)[1]
1789: John Jay, Various
1792: George Clinton, Various
1796-1797: George Washington / Vacant (Federalist)
1797-1801: George Washington / Oliver Ellsworth (Federalist)
1796: Thomas Jefferson / Aaron Burr (Democratic-Republican)[2]
1801-1807: John Marshall / Oliver Ellsworth† (Federalist)[3]
1800: Thomas Jefferson / Aaron Burr (Democratic-Republican)
1804: Thomas Jefferson / John Breckenridge (Democratic-Republican)
1807-1809: John Marshall / Vacant (Federalist)
1809-1813: John Marshall / James Hillhouse (Federalist)
1808: George Clinton / James Monroe (Democratic-Republican)
1813-1817: William Branch Giles / John Langdon (Democratic-Republican)[4]
1812: Rufus King / Fulwar Skipwith (Federalist)
1817-1825: Stephen Van Rensselaer III / Cowles Mead (Federalist)
1816: William H. Crawford / Joseph Desha (Democratic-Republican)
1821-1825: Cowles Mead / Stephen Van Rensselar III (Federalist)[5]
1820:
1825-1825: Daniel D. Tompkins† / Eleazer W. Ripley (‘High’ Federalist)
1824: Stephen Decatur, Jr. / William H. Harrison (‘Low’ Federalist)[6]
1825-1829: Eleazer W. Ripley / Vacant (‘High’ Federalist)
1829-1833: Leonard W. Covington / Zebulon M. Pike, Jr. (‘Low’ Federalist)
1828: Eleazer W. Ripley / Andrew Jackson (‘High’ Federalist)
1833-1836: Leonard W. Covington† / Henry Wheaton (‘Low’ Federalist)
1832: Louis McLane / Joseph Dane (‘High’ Federalist)
1836: Stephen Longfellow / Henry R. Warfield (‘High’ Federalist), Gorham Parks / Silas M. Stilwell (Working-Men’s)[7]
1836-1837: Henry Wheaton / Vacant (Federalist)
1837-1841: Henry Wheaton / James K. Marshall (Federalist)
1841-1845: Edward Coles / Winfield Scott (Federalist)
1840: James Buchanan / Alexander Ming (‘Working’ Federalist)
1845-: George Bancroft / Henry Lee (Anti-Monopoly)[8]
1844: Edward Coles / Winfield Scott (Federalist)
[1] John Adams tragically passed away in the summer of 1796 – and an aggravated George Washington reluctantly ran for a third term – who else could they really nominate, anyway? Washington’s third term would be by far the most partisan, with unresolved war crises with France and growing disillusionment with ‘his Aristocracy’. Washington had firmly decided to step down by 1800, and did so to little fanfare. Today he’s universally ranked among the top 10 presidents.
[2] Thomas Jefferson and the Democratic-Republican party machine was finally bold enough to outright challenge Washington for the Presidency in 1796 – Jefferson got the electors from Kentucky and Georgia and only a handful of faithless ones elsewhere. Lingering bad feelings were one of the several reasons he lost in 1800 to –
[3] John Marshall, the second President of the United States and the man who (narrowly) kept Federalists in charge. Marshall won the Barbary wars, presided over a stable economy – and unilaterally seized New Orleans when Napoleon was threatening emancipation. The stand-off with France kept Marshall popular – and torpedoed his rival Jefferson’s support in the south. Marshall won three elections, the third by a substantial margin over George Clinton – and at the end of his third term finally stepped down, in emulation of his predecessor.
[4] 1812 would mark the first peaceful transition of power between two parties – Jefferson’s protégé William Giles beat Rufus King on the strength of a united South and West – and almost immediately lost all of his goodwill when he returned New Orleans to France to join with them in the ongoing war against Great Britain. ‘Giles’ War’ (or the War of 1813 as more neutral history books call it) was a brief and dismal failure, as unprepared U.S. armies that Giles refused to fund were very quickly pushed back on all fronts. New England didn’t secede, obviously, but unpleasantly large chunks of Maine and Michigan were given up. Giles lost even his re-nomination.
[5] Van Rensselaer was technically unopposed in 1820 - but a screw-up with one faithless elector meant that Cowles Mead became President and an instant lame-duck. That flaw was subsequently very quickly amended out of the Constitution.
[6] Daniel D. Tompkins charged war heroes Stephen Decatur and William Henry Harrison as merely entryists – whereas Decatur very narrowly prevailed in the Caucus, Tompkins swept the Federalist state legislatures across the country, and with it, the election. Tompkins died shortly after the inauguration – but the split would be enduring, as the regular wing of the party swept back into power with popular Maryland Senator Covington.
[7] The ‘High’ Federalists languished in the wilderness as suffrage requirements were gradually lifted – aristocrats from Charleston to Boston could barely command a following anymore. In 1836 they were joined by a new no-hoper party – Senator Gorham Parks had split with the President on everything from trade unions to bank charters to foreign policy – and many in the lower class flocked to his banner. But without a pre-existing party organization, the Working Men’s Party failed miserably at winning over state legislatures. Both parties distrusted the yeomen farmers, the middle class, the Nouveau Riche that were seizing the reins of power. Both parties put two and two together. And now things got exciting.
[8] The New Englander shivered in the inauguration day cold, pulled his crumpled speech out of a coat-pocket, and began to speak. “The era of small government, of rule by bank, of bowing to the Bourbon powers - is over!” And at this last point the Vice President smiled.
- Zaffre
- Word Count: 850