By Richard N. Côté          

One of the best-loved and most important women in the new American republic, Dolley Payne Todd Madison was not just a national hero. Her personal strength, integrity, bravery, radiant charm, beautiful blue eyes, fair skin, black curls, and immense reservoir of tact and diplomacy commanded international attention. When her second husband, James Madison, was chosen to be Thomas Jefferson's secretary of state in 1801, Dolley often served as the president's hostess, as Jefferson had been a widower for many years. In 1809, her husband succeeded Jefferson, and Dolley officially became First Lady.

In the first three years of her husband's first term, Dolley supervised the elegant and trend-setting furnishing of the White House (then known as the President's House) in collaboration with its architect, Benjamin Latrobe. During the War of 1812, the British attacked and burned Washington. Dolley's personal heroism saved the Gilbert Stuart portrait of George Washington and the stunning red drapes from destruction by the troops who burned the President's House and the Capitol on the night of August 24, 1814. That portrait is the most important of the very few surviving national treasures from the original building, save for the scorched stone walls themselves.

Based on reading Dolley's own correspondence, which has been lovingly assembled from archives worldwide by the University of Virginia's Papers of James Madison Project; her papers and images in other Madison archives and published resources; and through on-site research at James Madison's Montpelier, Scotchtown Plantation in Hanover County, Virginia, and the Greensboro Historical Museum, biographer and social historian Richard N. Côté has recreated the richness and flavor of her extraordinary life. Strength and Honor explores Dolley's birth and Quaker roots in what is now Guilford County, North Carolina in 1768; her marriage to attorney John Todd, Jr.; the birth of their two children in Philadelphia; and the death of her husband and one son in a massive yellow fever epidemic.

Côté then introduces the reader to the young widow's future husband, Virginian James Madison, who had asked his friend, Senator Aaron Burr, to introduce him to Dolley. “The 'great little Madison' has asked to see me this evening,” Dolley wrote in 1794. A friend later wrote to her that Madison “thinks so much of you in the day that he has Lost his Tongue, at Night he Dreams of you.” Dolley married for love, and her new husband adored her. Disowned by her Quaker congregation because she married outside her faith, Dolley quickly adapted to her new position as the wife of "the father of the U.S. Constition," an acclaimed statesman, and U.S. Representative from Virginia. Her extraordinary hospitality, extraordinary fashions (glorious, multi-colored turbans, such as the one pictured above, were her passion), and political acumen soon made her the best-known, most-loved woman in the nation's capitol.

The book follows Dolley and James Madison through the War of 1812, the burning of the White House in 1814, and its rebuilding. After Madison's retirement in 1817, they retired to Montpelier, his magnificent Virginia plantation estate. The narrative then explores the never-ending problems caused by Dolley's profligate and dissipated son, John Payne Todd, and describes the embattled life the nation's much-loved matron endured after her husband died in 1836. A beloved national figure, Dolley Madison died in Washington in 1849 at the age of eighty-one, honored by all. First buried in the Congressional Cemetery with scores of Washington dignitaries in attendance, her remains were later reinterred next to those of her husband at Montpelier.

As with Richard Côté's previous biographies, Mary's World and Theodosia Burr Alston, Strength and Honor: The Life of Dolley Madison is lavishly illustrated with 91 rare portraits, engravings, and maps. It also includes extensive source notes, a detailed name and subject index, and a full bibliography. The 464-page book is distributed by Ingram Book Company and Baker and Taylor, and is available to readers through independent, chain, and online bookstores nationwide as follows:

EDITORIAL REVIEWS

Richard Côté provides an insightful look at the life of the historical icon, Dolley Madison. Extensive research, historical images, and details of Dolley's life make this an exciting and informative read.
—Kelli Bender Scott, Curator of Education, National Society Daughters of the American Revolution Museum.

Thoroughly researched, amply illustrated, carefully written-an admirable recreation of the world in which Dolley Madison came of age and flourished. Côté is far and away her best biographer to date.
—Frank E. Grizzard, Jr., Ph.D., Senior Associate Editor, The Papers of George Washington.

Strength and Honor brings Dolley Payne Madison back to life in this delightfully vivid, totally engrossing and accurate account of America's extraordinary 'First First Lady.'
—Lee Langston-Harrison, Curator, James Madison's Montpelier.

Richard Côté's engrossing new biography of our nation's most famous First Lady, Dolley Madison, presents exciting facts and pictures never before published which will keep the reader racing through its pages.
—Ray Swick, Ph.D., Historian, Blennerhassett Island State Park.

Richard Côté's original biography of Dolley Madison paints a dynamic picture of the fascinating First Lady. The superb illustrations complement the intriguing and well-researched text of the life and times of one of the most famous mothers of our country.
—Ryan Hyman, F. M. Kirby Curator of Collections, Macculloch Hall Historical Museum.

Based on over 2,000 letters, this intimate portrait of Dolley Madison is buttressed by a wealth of primary sources. According to the author, the “best-loved first lady of the nineteenth century” was respected for her intelligence, wit, and interpersonal skills. A young Quaker widow, Dolley Payne Todd was introduced to James Madison by Aaron Burr, becoming an indispensable domestic and political helpmate to the often diffident and ailing Madison. An accomplished hostess and fashion trendsetter, she was also practical, levelheaded, and politically astute, able to charm both dandies and statesmen alike. Lauded as a national heroine for her courageous and quick-thinking behavior during the War of 1812, she earned a well-deserved place of honor among the pantheon of beloved first ladies. Although biographies of Dolley Madison are plentiful, Côté's reinterpretation of her life provides a very human profile of a legendary historical figure. —Margaret Flanagan, American Library Association Booklist, January 15, 2005

Stylish, caring, and brave, a White House hostess in both the Jefferson and Madison administrations, Dolley Madison was one of the most celebrated and admired women of her era but often has been treated as little more than an extension of her spouse. The award-winning author of two well-received biographies of 19th-century woman-including Theodosia Burr Alston-Côté uncovers the real Dolley Madison, moving from her simple Quaker roots to her ascendancy to the nation's highest social and political circle and final years in gentile poverty. The result is a readable, quick-moving portrait that stresses the charisma of this popular First Lady while also showing her “innovation, integrity and heroism.” Extensively illustrated with 91 illustrations and maps, the text includes an extensive index, index, bibliography, chronology and genealogical information on both the Madison and Payne families. The first book-length treatment of Mrs. Madison in a generation, this work is recommended for larger public and academic libraries even where other biographies, such as Ethel Arnett's Mrs. James Madison: The Incomparable Dolley, are available. —Theresa R. McDevitt, Library Journal, January 15, 2005.

Author Côté examines Dolley Madison's impressive life.
By Bill Thompson, Books Editor, November 29, 2004

Don't scoff. Dolley Madison's stature can be seen to rival that of husband James Madison, the fourth president of the United States. Consider: She was the first widow and first woman of Quaker birth to become first lady, and as the first lady was first to act as an unofficial lobbyist, to personally stop a duel of mortal combat, to publicly reproach the wife of a foreign minister, to grant a press interview, to have a ship named for her and to authorize and attend a presidential inaugural ball. She also was the first woman to send a message by telegraph, and the first woman to be assigned a permanent seat of honor in the gallery of the House of Representatives. Most impressively, Dolley Madison (1768-1849) was a heroine of the first rank.

One need not ask why she is significant, or worthy of biographical treatment. So says Richard N. Côté of Mount Pleasant, author of "Strength and Honor: The Life of Dolley Madison" (Corinthian Books). "The three things for which Dolley always has been known were her heroism, demonstrated during the War of 1812; her extraordinary talents as a designer (she furnished the White House not only once but twice); and the unique social space that she created, which permitted her husband's supporters and even his most intense enemies to come together in a place where they could just be men and calmly discuss things about which they otherwise ranted. As vicious as the 2004 presidential campaign was, it was nowhere near as dirty as the politics of the 20-year period after the Revolution." But Côté is quick to add that these three characteristics are well-known. What is not so obvious is that, though she was not the initial first lady, she may have been the template for her successors. "Dolley's character and performance, taken as a whole, set the gold standard for every first lady who followed her. She exceeded every one of them in the nation's history in this one regard: personal heroism. Dolley volunteered to remain behind at the President's House—it wasn't called the White House yet—during the British attack on Washington during the War of 1812."

On Aug. 24, 1814, James Madison was in the field, trying to defend the capital with an army that consisted chiefly of volunteer militia. This, against 3,000 English regulars, the same ones who had just defeated Napoleon at Waterloo. "She volunteered to stay behind to evacuate the nation's treasures. Not her family's wonderful things, but the nation's. She knew that the British troops were only six miles away, headed straight for the capital to attack the city, burn it and secure the subjugation of the United States government. On that fateful day, Dolley became the first and only first lady to personally face an attacking army on her own soil." Unprotected, one might add. There were no American troops defending her by the time the British arrived, thanks to a certain Col. Carberry.

"I don't think he's mentioned in too many family histories. Carberry and a hundred troops, with their two cannons, who had been detailed specifically to protect the President's House, evaporated when the British broke through the lines six miles distant." Madison was born on a backwoods North Carolina farm, the child of Quakers. Few could have predicted the course her life would take. From wife, mother and soon a grieving young widow—yellow fever took her husband, John Todd, as well as other members of her family—to the wife and partner of a future president, integrity and dedication were to characterize her entire life, earning her a reputation as one of the young nation's most acclaimed women.

Based on more than 2,000 of her letters, this portrait serves as the successor to the author's two previous biographies of 19th-century American women: "Mary's World: Love, War, and Family Ties in 19th-century Charleston" (1999) and "Theodosia Burr Alston: Portrait of a Prodigy" (2002). His is the first biography of Dolley Madison published since 1972. Recipient of the Bobby Gilmer Moss Award in History from the Daughters of the American Revolution, Côté is a native of Connecticut. He studied political science and journalism at Butler University. After serving on the staff of the South Carolina Historical Society for several years, he invested the 1980s and 1990s in researching and writing about Southern plantation life, social history, architecture and local "microcultures." Access to the 2,000 letters was, of course, pivotal.

“When a biographer decides he or she would like to write about a subject, there's often a basic challenge. There are loads of desirable subjects for which adequate source material is not available. Enough for a 1,500-word article, perhaps, but not enough for a 400-page book. Finding the proper subject is first, and I'm pretty well-specialized now in strong Southern women of extraordinary character. I was 'led' to Dolley via a personal introduction from the late Mrs. Joseph Alston, Theodosia. And I'd been introduced to Theodosia courtesy of the late Mrs. William Pringle. So you research one story and then you run into something else, and so forth. You can always ask lots of questions, but whether or not you can answer them depends on adequacy of the source material. "In the case of Mary Pringle, I had 167 letters to work with. With Theodosia, it was 110 letters. In the case of Dolley Madison, I had over 2,000. The reason is simple: Dolley was extremely fortunate in that when she married Madison, her papers were considered to be an equal part of the papers of the president. This is the first time ever that a first lady's papers have been given the same scholarly treatment, care and collection, with the same diligence, that the papers of her husband were. James Madison's papers first became available at the University of Virginia, and from day one, the staff there sought out Dolley's letters with the same zeal and enthusiasm. This did not happen for Martha Washington or for Abigail Adams. And Jefferson's wife died before he took office."

What this meant, says Côté, is that a scholar can find either the original or copies of every piece of paper that's got her name on it -- coming or going -- in one place. "I had already read about 1,000 of her letters, which have always been available from various sources, but last fall, the entire collection at UVA became readily available as the university was preparing a digital edition." Côté says he brings different tools to bear, depending on the subject. But his basic approach is first to choose a subject who has enduring qualities, "not just pop-culture history," and after taking that fundamental step, to dig in. "Dolley was particularly intriguing. I was fascinated by the conundrum she inherited when she married Madison, for he was a major slave owner, and John Payne, Dolley's Quaker father, had, as a matter of moral imperative, emancipated his slaves a decade earlier. That noble act of emancipation cost him the largest part of his net worth, and John Payne soon went bankrupt. I got the sense that Dolley may have resented her father for having sold his slaves, the act that sent his family spiraling into financial instability and ultimately ruin."

Côté also was amused that Aaron Burr, a notorious womanizer, should have played Cupid to the Madisons. Burr, Madison's old college chum, made the introduction. At the time, Dolley was a young widow helping her mother with a boarding house in Philadelphia. "She lost her first husband and another son in the 1793 yellow fever epidemic in Philadelphia. Because of his many courtesies to Dolley and her mother (in Philadelphia, Burr was living in Mary Payne's boarding house), and to assure her son a good education in case she died, Burr became his guardian." Dolley Madison would, however, end her days in financial straits. She was not divorced from the upper reaches of Washington society, but neither was she aided when she had critical needs. Small reward for a life well spent.

READER REVIEWS

The life of the most beloved First Lady in American History. After reading Strength and Honor: The Life of Dolley Madison, I am convinced more than ever that Dolley Madison was the most beloved First Lady in American History. In my lifetime the women who have been married to the President have often been figures of admiration more than affection. Eleanor Roosevelt and Jacqueline Kennedy were both greatly admired, for quite different reasons. Betty Ford and Barbara Bush have probably engendered the most affection along with that admiration, but it did not reach the sort of transcendent heights that exists long after their time in the White House. The greatest common denominator for First Ladies the last several decades has been the recurring idea that these women have been smarter than their husbands, a bipartisan belief that applies as much to Nancy Reagan as it does to Hilary Clinton. Being smarter than her husband is one thing that could not be said about Dolley Madison, whose second husband, "the great little Madison," was the only person on the American continent who had a mind on the same level of Thomas Jefferson.

The idea that Dolley Madison was beloved is ingrained in many of the examples related about her "Days of Grace and Honor" after Madison's death. In 1844 she was present when Samuel Morse made the first public demonstration of his electric recording telegraph. After the initial transmission of Numbers 23:23, "What hath God wrought?", Morse asked Dolley if she wished to send a message. With a Baltimore cousin at the other end, the wife of a U.S. Representative, she asked Morse to send: "Message from Mrs. Madison. She sends her love to Mrs. Wethered." This made her the first person to send a personal message by telegraph. The following year, when American troops marched off to Mexico they marched past Dolley's home on Lafayette Square to cheer and salute their heroine.

Of course, Dolley Madison has been assured a footnote in American History because as she fled the Executive Mansion at the last minute while British troops were marching on Washington, D.C. on August 24, 1814 during the War of 1812 she made a point of saving the nation's treasures, including the celebrated 1797 Lansdowne portrait of George Washington by Gilbert Stuart along with cabinet papers, at the expense of her personal belongings, including a miniature of Dolley. Richard N. Côté relates that defining event as part of a chapter entitled "From Hostess to Heroine," but the book begins in media res with Dolley "In Harm's Way" on the day that would make her an American immortal. Yet what this book really underscores is how for half a century Dolley Madison was the most important woman in the social circles of America.

Born a Quaker firm girl in the North Carolina wilderness, Dolley Payne grew up in Philadelphia following the strict discipline of the Society of Friends, but was always considered to have a happy personality and warm heart. In 1790 she married John Todd, Jr., a lawyer, but three years later a yellow-fever epidemic too the life of her son, her husband, and both of his parents, leaving her a widow with one son. With her charm, black curls, fair skin, and laughing blue eyes, the young widow of property attracted many suitors. But then she was introduced by family friend, Aaron Burr, to Representative James Madison, Jr., of Virginia and the rest, as Côté amply demonstrates, was not only a love story but a key part of American history as well.

Acknowledged as the Father of the Constitution, Madison was 17 years older than Dolley and an Episcopalian. In September 1794 they were married, and although Dolley was disowned by the Quakers for marrying a non-Quaker, they were happily married for 42 years ("Our hearts understand each other," she wrote to him in 1805). When Madison served as Jefferson's Secretary of State it was Dolley who assumed the role of official hostess at the President's House, and continued in that position for sixteen years when her husband succeeded Jefferson as president. No wonder she defined the role of First Lady with her immense warmth, effervescence, tact, and popularity and became one of the most-acclaimed women in America. Working on more 2,000 of her letters, Côté provides an intimate portrait that tells the story of vivacious woman who triumphed over adversity, poverty, and tragedy while helping to build the new American republic. There are points at which the historical record is sketchy at best, and Côté does a nice job of not going out of the way to fill in the gaps despite the absence of evidence. For the most part he tells her story and lets Dolley speak on her own behalf when possible through her letters.

This handsome book is illustrated with reproductions of paintings and photographs of historical artifacts. There is also a Puck cartoon on "The Reign of Dolley Madison" lampooning her role as "The Presidentress," but by then Côté has already made the compelling case for her title as the queen of Washington society and her attempt to create a climate that reflected the Republican simplicity of American social values while also projecting a sense of refined elegance and high fashion. You will also find a trio of daguerreotypes of Dolley Madison taken in the last years of her life and what I find so compelling of them is that even given the strictures of the time for taking such pictures, you can see the smile on her lips and in her eyes, such as you can see them in the Gilbert Stuart painting on the front cover. In the end the simple lesson of the life of Dolley Payne Todd Madison was that to know her was to love her. Strength and Honor: The Life of Dolley Madison, will easily win a new generation of hearts for her as well.
— Lawrance M. Bernabo, Amazon.com #2 Reviewer, October 29, 2004