Aaron Burr Jr.: The Controversial Aspects of His Life
Aaron Burr Jr. (1757-1836), American politician, Revolutionary War hero, adventurer, and the third Vice-President of the United States is one of the most enigmatic characters in the early American history. His distinguished ancestry1, unquestioned courage, and brilliant mind saw him rise quickly to a position of political prominence and he came within a hair-breadth of occupying the highest office in the country; when both he and Thomas Jefferson got an equal number of electoral votes in the Presidential election of 1800. His character defects, however, brought about his equally precipitous downfall as he managed to antagonize some of the most influential persons of the time; fought an infamous duel with the brilliant Federalist politician, Alexander Hamilton, which resulted in the latter's death; and hatched a conspiracy to separate the newly acquired Western territories from the Union. Although acquitted in the ensuing treason trial, he will always be remembered as a villain. This paper examines the controversial aspects of Burr's life: the background and events that led to his duel with Hamilton and the conspiracy. Involvement in the Revolutionary WarAaron Burr's was a young law student2 in 1775 when he volunteered to serv
But even if is established that Burr was an "intriguer" or an untrustworthy person, it does not prove that he was a traitor. " Hamilton was evasive in his reply, and Burr continued to pursue the matter, eventually putting Hamilton in a position from where he had to accept his challenge of a duel or be considered a coward. Aaron Burr, like New York City, was neither a Republican nor a Federalist but was an increasingly important player in New York politics. The DuelHaving been ignored for the Republican ticket, Burr decided to run for the governorship of New York in 1804. The result was that Philip Schuyler lost his seat and Burr was elected Senator from New York. Aaron Burr was, therefore, acquitted by the court, despite being considered "guilty" in most peoples' eyes (Linder, n. He came in third in the elections; the Presidency went to the Federalist, John Adams, and Jefferson became the Vice President. When Burr read "the still more despicable"11 remarks, he was outraged, considering it an affront to his honor; he wrote to Hamilton demanding a "prompt and unqualified acknowledgment or denial of the use of any expressions which could warrant the assertions of Dr. Hamilton, unlike Burr was a poor West Indian immigrant and did not have an aristocratic family background. Surely, so many wise men could not be wrong. In 1800, the Federalists had lost ground and Jefferson was a stronger Republican candidate. (Ibid)The die was thus cast and the country witnessed its most famous duel on the morning of July 11, 1804 at the top of the New Jersey cliffs that overlook the Hudson River. In the elections of 1800, both Jefferson and Burr polled the same number of electoral votes and the country was faced with its first Electoral College crisis8 as the tie went to the House of Representatives for choosing the president (Ibid.
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