Uploaded October 2017 | Updated September 2026, 32 minutes ago
James Madison and American Democracy, by Professor William B. Allen. In this video, Professor William B. Allen insightfully explicates the intellectual processes and pragmatic policies of James Madison, Father of the Constitution. Wrestling with issues such as slavery, the nature of republican government, and religious liberty; and working with individuals like Thomas Jefferson and Alexander Hamilton, Madison shaped his colleagues’ understanding of democracy and laid the foundations for our contemporary perspectives.
Professor William B. Allen is an emeritus professor Political Philosophy and the former Dean of the James Madison College at Michigan State University. He was a member of the National Council on the Humanities 1984–87, and Chairman of the United States Commission on Civil Rights from 1988 to 1989.
American History Videos are sponsored by the James Madison Memorial Fellowship Foundation. These videos are offered to help teachers, students and the general public learn more about America's founding and the Constitution of the United States. www.jamesmadison.gov.
0:00 Intro
0:32 Constitutional theory
4:45 Madison, Jefferson, and Hamilton
10:10 Political philosophy
17:37 Madison in Congress
20:53 Political career
James Madison and American Democracy, by Professor William B. Allen. In this video, Professor William B. Allen insightfully explicates the intellectual processes and pragmatic policies of James Madison, Father of the Constitution. Wrestling with issues such as slavery, the nature of republican government, and religious liberty; and working with individuals like Thomas Jefferson and Alexander Hamilton, Madison shaped his colleagues’ understanding of democracy and laid the foundations for our contemporary perspectives.
Professor William B. Allen is an emeritus professor Political Philosophy and the former Dean of the James Madison College at Michigan State University. He was a member of the National Council on the Humanities 1984–87, and Chairman of the United States Commission on Civil Rights from 1988 to 1989.
American History Videos are sponsored by the James Madison Memorial Fellowship Foundation. These videos are offered to help teachers, students and the general public learn more about America's founding and the Constitution of the United States. www.jamesmadison.gov.
0:00 Intro
0:32 Constitutional theory
4:45 Madison, Jefferson, and Hamilton
10:10 Political philosophy
17:37 Madison in Congress
20:53 Political career
