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March 12, 2023

4.18 - Put Your Best Plot Forward

4.18 - Put Your Best Plot Forward

Year(s) Discussed: 1811-1812

In 1811, President Madison brought in a new US Minister who he felt might actually be able to navigate the complicated diplomatic intrigues of the Napoleonic French government to bring about a resolution to long-standing issues with that government as he and his administration worked with Congress to set the nation on a path of war with Great Britain. Meanwhile, on the border with East Florida, American agents gathered supplies and plotted to take that Spanish colony for the US. Sources used for this episode can be found at https://www.presidenciespodcast.com.

Special thanks to Allen of the Political History of the United States for reading the opening quote for this episode and to Christian of Your Podcast Pal for his audio editing work on this episode!

The transcript for this episode can be found here.

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  • Masterson, William H. Tories and Democrats: British Diplomats in Pre-Jacksonian America. College Station, TX: Texas A&M University Press, 1985.
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  • Risjord, Norman K. “Election of 1812.” History of American Presidential Elections 1789-1968, Volume I. Arthur M Schlesinger Jr, ed. New York: Chelsea House Publishers and McGraw-Hill, 1971. pp. 249-272.
  • Skeen, C Edward. John Armstrong, Jr. 1758-1843: A Biography. Syracuse, NY: Syracuse University Press, 1981.
  • Taylor, Alan. The Internal Enemy: Slavery and War in Virginia 1772-1832. New York and London: W W Norton & Co, 2013.
  • “VENABLE, Abraham Bedford 1758-1811.” Biographical Directory of the United States Congress. https://bioguide.congress.gov/search/bio/V000083. [Last Accessed: 8 Jan 2023]

Featured Image: "Plan of Amelia Island in East Florida" by Thomas Jeffreys [c. 1777], courtesy of Wikipedia

Intro and Outro Music: Selections from “Jefferson and Liberty” as performed by The Itinerant Band