The Scandalmonger's Revenge

Explicit content warning

02/18/20 • 45 min

3 Listeners

We dig into the rise and fall of James Thomson Callender, the pamphleteer who exposed the greatest sex scandals in early American history. His story is told through his attacks on Alexander Hamilton, John Adams, and Thomas Jefferson.

Sources:
With the Hammer of Truth: James Thomson Callender and America's Early National Heroes by Michael Durey
Eliza Hamilton: The Extraordinary Life and Times of the Wife of Alexander Hamilton by Tilar J. Mazzeo
The Rise and Fall of Alexander Hamilton by Robert Hendrickson
The Reynolds Pamphlet – "The variety of shapes which this woman could assume was endless."

Show notes and sources at plodpod.com

Join our Patreon family at https://www.patreon.com/ploddingthroughthepresidents for exclusive bonus content!

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Show notes and sources at plodpod.com

Join our Patreon family at https://www.patreon.com/ploddingthroughthepresidents for exclusive bonus content!

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Previous Episode

Jefferson's Broken Heart and Wrist

1 Recommendations

We explore Thomas Jefferson's dangerous liaison in Paris with the talented artist Maria Cosway and her monkey-like husband Richard Cosway - a love story that resulted in two broken hearts, one permanently damaged wrist, and one epic 4000-word love letter written as a dialogue between Jefferson's head and heart.

(A note: This is one of our very first episodes, and we were still finding our rhythm and voice. If you're new to the podcast, you might want to start with Season 2 or newer episodes for a better sense of how we've evolved!)

Sources:

Founders Online - Jefferson's Head and the Heart letter to Maria Cosway

Mr. Jefferson's Women by Jon Kukla

Thomas Jefferson: The Art of Power by Jon Meacham

Jefferson and the Rights of Man by Dumas Malone

Jefferson: A Revealing Biography by Page Smith

John Adams by David McCullough

Richard Cosway, “The Macaroni Miniature Painter” from The Art Amateur, Vol. 8, No. 2 (January 1883)

Inspired by my post "Thomas Jefferson's Head, Heart, and Wrist"

I won't link directly to the "don't say I didn't warn you" painting of Leda and the Swan, but it's up to you if you want to Google Leda and the Swan by François Boucher 1740. (Don't do it.)

Show notes and sources at plodpod.com

Join our Patreon family at https://www.patreon.com/ploddingthroughthepresidents for exclusive bonus content!

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Next Episode

A Tale of Two Stepsons

George Washington and James Madison never had any biological children, but they each had a problem child stepson. We explore the lives of the "voluptuous" Jacky Custis and the debauchery enthusiast John Payne Todd and how they affected their famous stepfathers and mothers.

Sources:

My original (and unfairly harsh) article about Jacky Custis: George Washington's Disappointing Stepson

Letters between Jonathan Boucher and George Washington - Founders Online
Letter from James Madison to John Payne Todd - Founders Online
The Bad Boy: Payne Todd by William Seale
Payne Todd: Prodigal Son
You Never Forget Your First: A Biography of George Washington by Alexis Coe
Dolley Madison's Son Payne Todd: The Final Blow by Feather Schwartz
Mrs. James Madison: The Incomparable Dolley by Ethel Stephens Arnett

Show notes and sources at plodpod.com

Join our Patreon family at https://www.patreon.com/ploddingthroughthepresidents for exclusive bonus content!

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices