Aaron Burr: Conspiracy to Treason (Hardcover)

Aaron Burr′s contemporaries did not think very highly of him. Alexander Hamilton, who could not know how prescient he was, called the vice president "a dangerous man, and one not to be trusted with the reins of the government." John Adams exclaimed that Burr was an "encouragement to party intrigue, and corruption!" Others referred to him as a "modern Machiavelli." And Burr, as Melton shows, had little trouble living up to his reputation. Feeling spurned by his own partner in office, President Jefferson, who indeed had little affection for him, Burr set out to make his own fortune by conspiring to unite the territory west of the Mississippi and secede from the United States. Plotting elaborately, Burr tried to play the English government against the U.S. and manipulated the Spanish government in an attempt to gain access to its western territory. But Burr′s reputation had long preceded him, and both the British and the Spanish, as well as numerous would–be supporters like Andrew Jackson, turned Burr in to Jefferson as a traitor. Although Burr was never convicted of treason, he left the U.S. soon after his highly publicized trial and died a broke and lonely man. Melton, a professor of law at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, provides a scintillating blow–by–blow account of Burr′s treason trial, introducing players like Judge John Marshall who were to become key figures in the history of U.S. jurisprudence. Drawing on the rich documentary history of the Burr conspiracy case, he weaves a spellbinding tale of betrayal and intrigue against the backdrop of a new nation struggling to define its laws and its geographical boundaries. Maps and illus. (Nov. 30) (Publishers Weekly, October 22, 2001)

Recent books on Aaron Burr–such as Arnold Rogow′s A Fatal Friendship: Alexander Hamilton and Aaron Burr (LJ 4/15/98) and Thomas Fleming′s Duel: Alexander Hamilton, Aaron Burr, and the Future of America (LJ 10/1/99)–have concentrated on his relationship with Alexander Hamilton and their infamous duel of 1804. Melton (constitutional law, Univ. of North Carolina, Chapel Hill), whose The First Impeachment: The Constitution′s Framers and the Case of Senator William Blunt (Mercer Univ., 1989) concerns efforts in the early nation to detach the Southwester territories from the young United States, here moves to another conspiracy. Following his duel with Hamilton, Burr proceeded to the Southwest, this time to become the obsessive mastermind behind a plan to invade Mexico and establish an independent republic. The book shows Burr as a person of significant resilience and persistence, with much design but little strategy. Ultimately, he was tried for treason and, while not found guilty, was left virtually alone and defeated–a pitiful fate despite his enormous determination to betray his country. Melton captures all aspect of this lesser–know aspect of Burr′s life. An accessible and readable narrative. —Charles K. Piehl, Minnesota State Univ., Mankato (Library Journal, Feb. 15, 2002)

"...the book is suprisingly breezy and entertaining...he is an excellent writer..excellent book.... Deserves to be read by anyone with the slightest interest in the early struggles that shaped the world′s most powerful country..." (Sunday Business Post website, 8 April 2002)

"...thoroughly enjoyed my insight into the life of Aaron Burr...an accurately written and well researched book..." (M2 Communications, 27 May 2002)

"Melton...provides a scintillating blow–by–blow account of Burr’s treason trial..." (Publishers Weekly, October 22, 2001)

"...thoroughly enjoyed my insight into the life of Aaron Burr...an accurately written and well researched book..." (M2 Communications, 27 May 2002)