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Alexander Hamilton: Writings

Edited by Joanne B. Freeman

“Anyone interested in politics, finance, diplomacy, history or the fascination of a strange all-American life will want to have this Library of America volume.” — Los Angeles Times

Overview
News & Views
Table of Contents

Overview

Story of the Week “The Duel: ‘Once more Adieu,’” Alexander Hamilton
July 11, 2024

Video Who Tells Your Story: Joanne B. Freeman on Hamilton and History
December 28, 2020

Interviews The first rule of Fight Club: Violence in Congress and the road to civil war
September 18, 2018

One of the most vivid, influential, and controversial figures of the founding of America, Alexander Hamilton was an unusually prolific and vigorous writer. As a military aide to George Washington, critic of the Articles of Confederation, proponent of ratification of the Constitution, first Secretary of the Treasury, and leader of the Federalist Party, Hamilton devoted himself to the creation of a militarily and economically powerful American nation guided by a strong, energetic republican government. His public and private writings, collected by The Library of America, demonstrate the perceptive intelligence, confident advocacy, driving ambition, and profound concern for honor and reputation that contributed both to his astonishing rise to fame and to his tragic early death.

Arranged chronologically, this volume contains more than 170 letters, speeches, pamphlets, essays, reports, and memoranda written between 1769 and 1804. Included are all fifty-one of Hamilton’s contributions to The Federalist, as well as subsequent writings calling for a broad construction of federal power; his famous speech to the Constitutional Convention, which gave rise to accusations that he favored monarchy; and early writings supporting the Revolutionary cause and a stronger central government. His detailed reports as Secretary of the Treasury on the public credit, a national bank, and the encouragement of manufactures present a forward-looking vision of a country transformed by the power of financial markets, centralized banking, and industrial development.

Hamilton’s sometimes flawed political judgment is revealed in the “Reynolds Pamphlet,” in which he confessed to adultery in order to defend himself against accusations of corrupt conduct, as well as in his self-destructive pamphlet attack on John Adams during the 1800 presidential campaign. An extensive selection of private letters illuminates Hamilton’s complex relationship with George Washington, his deep affection for his wife and children, his mounting fears during the 1790s regarding the Jeffersonian opposition and the French Revolution, and his profound distrust of Aaron Burr. Included in an appendix are conflicting eyewitness accounts of the Hamilton-Burr duel.

See the contents for this volume (PDF)

Joanne B. Freeman, volume editor, is professor of history at Yale University and the author of Affairs of Honor: National Politics in the New Republic, and has appeared on PBS’s American Experience documentary “The Duel.”

This Library of America series edition is printed on acid-free paper and features Smyth-sewn binding, a full cloth cover, and a ribbon marker.

Project support for this volume was provided by: The John M. Olin Foundation.

Alexander Hamilton: Writings is kept in print by a gift from Roger and Susan Hertog to the Guardians of American Letters Fund.
News & Views

Story of the Week “The Duel: ‘Once more Adieu,’” Alexander Hamilton
July 11, 2024

Video Who Tells Your Story: Joanne B. Freeman on Hamilton and History
December 28, 2020

Interviews The first rule of Fight Club: Violence in Congress and the road to civil war
September 18, 2018

Story of the Week Alexander Hamilton, “Account of a Hurricane”
September 12, 2017

Video Watch: Joanne Freeman answers your questions about Alexander Hamilton
June 16, 2017
Table of Contents
The West Indies, the Revolution, and the Confederation, 1769-1786
- To Edward Stevens, “My Ambition Is Prevalent,” November 11, 1769
- To Nicholas Cruger, Counting-House Business, February 24, 1772
- To Royal Danish American Gazette, Account of a Hurricane, September 6, 1772
- A Full Vindication of the Measures of the Congress, December 15, 1774
- To John Jay, The Danger of Trusting in Virtue, November 26, 1775
- To Gouverneur Morris, The New York Constitution, May 19, 1777
- To George Clinton, The Trouble with Congress, February 13, 1778
- To Elias Boudinot, The Battle of Monmouth, July 5, 1778
- To John Jay, Enlisting Slaves as Soldiers, March 14, 1779
- To John Laurens, Hope for a Wife, c. April 1779
- To William Gordon, An Insult to Honor, September 5, 1779
- To John Laurens, “I Am Not Fit for This Terrestreal Country,” January 8, 1780
- To Elizabeth Schuyler, “Examine Well Your Heart,” August 1780
- To James Duane, “The Defects of Our Present System,” September 3, 1780
- To Elizabeth Schuyler, Opinions Regarding the Sexes, September 3, 1780
- To Elizabeth Schuyler, The Plight of Mrs. Arnold, September 25, 1780
- To Elizabeth Schuyler, The Fate of Major André, October 2, 1780
- To Margarita Schuyler, Advice About Marriage, January 21, 1781
- To Philip Schuyler, A Break with Washington, February 18, 1781
- To James McHenry, Washington Will Repent His Ill Humor, February 18, 1781
- The Continentalist No. I, July 12, 1781
- The Continentalist No. III, August 9, 1781
- The Continentalist No. IV, August 30, 1781
- The Continentalist No. VI, July 4, 1782
- To Richard Kidder Meade, The Birth of a Son, August 27, 1782
- Remarks in Congress on Raising Funds, January 27, 1783
- Remarks in Congress on Collecting Funds, January 28, 1783 121
- To George Washington, The Prospect of a Mutiny, February 13, 1783
- To George Washington, “Contending for a Shadow”, March 17, 1783
- A Letter from Phocion to the Considerate Citizens of New-York, on the Politics of the Day, January 1784
- To James Hamilton, “I Feel All the Sentiment of a Brother”, June 22, 1785
- Address of the Annapolis Convention, September 14, 1786
Framing and Ratifying the Constitution, 1787-1789
- Plan of Government, c. June 18, 1787
- Speech in the Constitutional Convention on a Plan of Government, June 18, 1787
- To George Washington, “The Critical Opportunity”, July 3, 1787
- Conjectures About the New Constitution, c. late September, 1787
- The Federalist No. 1, October 27, 1787
- The Federalist No. 6, November 14, 1787
- The Federalist No. 7, November 17, 1787
- The Federalist No. 8, November 20, l787
- The Federalist No. 9, November 21, 1787
- The Federalist No. 11, November 24, 1787
- The Federalist No. 12, November 27, 1787
- The Federalist No. 13, November 28, 1787
- The Federalist No. 15, December 1, 1787
- The Federalist No. 16, December 4, 1787
- The Federalist No. 17, December 5, 1787
- The Federalist No. 21, December 12, 1787
- The Federalist No. 22, December 14, 1787
- The Federalist No. 23, December 18, 1787
- The Federalist No. 24, December 19, 1787
- The Federalist No. 25, December 21, 1787
- The Federalist No. 26, December 22, 1787
- The Federalist No. 27, December 25, 1787
- The Federalist No. 28, December 26, 1787
- The Federalist No. 29, January 9, 1788
- The Federalist No. 30, December 28, 1787
- The Federalist No. 31, January 1, 1788
- The Federalist No. 32, January 2, 1788
- The Federalist No. 33, January 2, 1788
- The Federalist No. 34, January 5, 1788
- The Federalist No. 35, January 5, 1788
- The Federalist No. 36, January 8, 1788
- The Federalist No. 59, February 22, 1788
- The Federalist No. 60, February 23, 1788
- The Federalist No. 61, February 26, 1788
- The Federalist No. 65, March 7, 1788
- The Federalist No. 66, March 8, 1788
- The Federalist No. 67, March 11, 1788
- The Federalist No. 68, March 12, 1788
- The Federalist No. 69, March 14, 1788
- The Federalist No. 70, March 15, 1788
- The Federalist No. 71, March 18, 1788
- The Federalist No. 72, March 19, 1788
- The Federalist No. 73, March 21, 1788
- The Federalist No. 74, March 25, 1788
- The Federalist No. 75, March 26, 1788
- The Federalist No. 76, April 1, 1788
- The Federalist No. 77, April 2, 1788
- To James Madison, Coordinating a Campaign, April 19, 1788
- The Federalist No. 78, May 28, 1788
- The Federalist No. 79, May 28, 1788
- The Federalist No. 80, May 28, 1788
- The Federalist No. 81, May 28, 1788
- The Federalist No. 82, May 28, 1788
- The Federalist No. 83, May 28, 1788
- The Federalist No. 84, May 28, 1788
- The Federalist No. 85, May 28, 1788
- To James Madison, Fears of Civil War, June 8, 1788
- Speech in the New York Ratifying Convention on Representation, June 21, 1788
- Speech in the New York Ratifying Convention, on Interests and Corruption, June 21, 1788
- Speech in the New York Ratifying Convention, on the Distribution of Powers, June 27, 1788
- To George Washington, Convincing Washington To Serve, September 1788
- To James Wilson, Withholding Votes from Adams, January 25, 1789
- To George Washington, Presidential Etiquette, April 5, 1789
Secretary of the Treasury, 1789-1795
- To Lafayette, “I Hazard Much”, October 6, 1789
- Memorandum by George Beckwith on a Conversation with Hamilton, October, 1789
- To Henry Lee, “Suspicion Is Ever Eagle Eyed”, December 1, 1789
- Report on Public Credit, January 9, 1790
- Report on a National Bank, December 13, 1790
- Opinion on the Constitutionality of a National Bank, February 23, 1791
- Report on the Subject of Manufactures, December 5, 1791
- To Philip A. Hamilton, “A Promise Must Never Be Broken”, December 5, 1791
- To Edward Carrington, “A Faction Decidedly Hostile to Me”, April 26, 1792
- To George Washington, The Necessity of Reelection, July 30, 1792
- An American No. I, August 4, 1792
- To George Washington, Political and Personal Defense, August 18, 1792
- To John Adams, Reprimanding Adams, September 9, 1792
- To George Washington, Responding to a Plea for Peace, September 9, 1792
- Amicus, September 11, 1792
- To an Unknown Correspondent, “An Embryo-Cæsar”, September 26, 1792
- Draft of a Defense of the Neutrality Proclamation, c. May 1793
- Pacificus No. I, June 29, 1793
- To Andrew G. Fraunces, “Contemptible as You Are”, October 1, 1793
- To Angelica Hamilton, Advice to a Daughter, c. November 1793
- To George Washington, Crisis with Britain, April 14, 1794
- To George Washington, The Whiskey Rebellion, August 2, 1794
- Tully No. I, August 23, 1794
- Tully No. III, August 28, 1794
- To Angelica Church, “Wicked Insurgents of the West”, October 23, 1794
- To Angelica Church, “A Politician, and Good for Nothing”, December 8, 1794
- Memorandum on the French Revolution, 1794
- To George Washington, Resigning from Office, February 3, 1795
Federalist Leader and Attorney, 1795-1804
- To Rufus King, A Threat to the Public Credit, February 21, 1795
- To Robert Troup, “public fools”, April 13, 1795
- The Defence No. I, July 22, 1795
- Memorandum on the Design for a Seal of the United States, c. May 1796
- To George Washington, A Draft of the Farewell Address, July 30, 1796
- To William Loughton Smith, Crisis with France, April 10, 1797
- To William Hamilton, Introduction to an Uncle, April 2, 1797
- The “Reynolds Pamphlet,” August 25, 1797
- To George Washington, An Appeal to Washington, April 19, 1798
- To Elizabeth Hamilton, “My Good Genius”, November 1798
- To Theodore Sedgwick, The Problem of Virginia, February 2, 1799
- Memorandum on Measures for Strengthening the Government, c. 1799
- To Josiah Ogden Hoffman, “The Force of the Laws Must Be Tried”, November 6, 1799
- To Charles Cotesworth Pinckney, The Death of Washington, December 22, 1799
- To Martha Washington, “So Heart-rending an Affliction”, January 12, 1800
- To John Jay, An Electoral Stratagem, April 7, 1800
- To Theodore Sedgwick, Withdrawing Support from Adams, April 10, 1800
- To Charles Carroll of Carrollton, Supporting Pinckney, July 1, 1800
- To John Adams, Response to an Accusation, August 1, 1800
- To Oliver Wolcott Jr., “I Am in a Very Belligerent Humour”, August 3, 1800
- To William Jackson, “The Most Humiliating Criticism”, August 26, 1800
- Rules for Philip Hamilton, 1800
- To John Adams, “A Base Wicked and Cruel Calumny”, October 1, 1800
- Letter from Alexander Hamilton, Concerning the Public Conduct and Character of John Adams, Esq. President of the United States, October 24, 1800
- To Gouverneur Morris, Jefferson over Burr, December 26, 1800
- To John Rutledge Jr., Anxiety about the Election, January 4, 1801
- To James A. Bayard, Burr Has “No Fixed Theory”, January 16, 1801
- Proposal for the New York Legislature for Amending the Constitution, January 1802
- Remarks on the Repeal of the Judiciary Act, February 11, 1802
- To Gouverneur Morris, “Mine Is an Odd Destiny”, February 29, 1802
- To Benjamin Rush, The Death of Philip Hamilton, March 29, 1802
- To James A. Bayard, The Christian Constitutional Society, April 1802
- To Rufus King, “A Most Visionary Theory Presides”, June 3, 1802
- To Charles Cotesworth Pinckney, “Refuge of a Disappointed Politician”, December 29, 1802
- To Elizabeth Hamilton, “A World Full of Evil”, March 17, 1803
- Purchase of Louisiana, July 5, 1803
- To Timothy Pickering, Explaining a Plan of Government, September 16, 1803
- Speech to a Federalist Meeting in Albany, February 10, 1804
- Propositions on the Law of Libel, February 15, 1804
- From Aaron Burr, Origins of a Dispute, June 18, 1804
- To Aaron Burr, Declining to Avow or Disavow, June 20, 1804
- From Aaron Burr, New Reasons for a Definite Reply, June 21, 1804
- To Aaron Burr, “Expressions Indecorous and Improper”, June 22, 1804
- From Aaron Burr, “The Course I Am about to Pursue”, June 22, 1804
- Response to a Letter from William P. Van Ness, June 28, 1804
- Statement Regarding Financial Situation, July 1, 1804
- To Elizabeth Hamilton, “Fly to the Bosom of Your God”, July 4, 1804
- Statement Regarding the Duel with Burr, c. July 10, 1804
- To Theodore Sedgwick, “Our Real Disease; Which Is Democracy”, July 10, 1804
- To Elizabeth Hamilton: An Obligation Owed, July 10, 1804
Appendix: Statements on the Hamilton-Burr Duel
- Joint Statement by William P. Van Ness and Nathaniel Pendleton, July 17, 1804
- Statement by Nathaniel Pendleton, July 19, 1804
- Statement by William P. Van Ness, July 21, 1804

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