ACF Founders #2: Gouverneur Morris

 

The Founders series continues with Gouverneur Morris. Morris was a man who saw up close both the American and French Revolutions, who judged politics on both continents with a keen eye and no piety, and who conducted himself more generously than any other Founder. We owe Richard Brookhiser a debt of gratitude for bringing to modern audiences Gouverneur Morris’s incredibly charming and inspiring story. Morris faced physical and political dangers with great manliness, and at the same time was America’s most sophisticated aristocrat–he had all the vices we admire and none of the virtues which annoy us, to paraphrase Churchill. He was a patriot and dedicated much of his life to public service, but he also dedicated much of his life to business, making money, and about as much to enjoying the spending of it, often in the company of women to whom he wasn’t married. He was a Federalist, an adept of a strong national government with a strong executive, almost immune to idealism, and so a great match for Alexander Hamilton, the hero of our first conversation.

For those who missed our fist episode, on Alexander Hamilton, the immigrant patriot, here’s the Ricochet post. You can also find it on SoundCloud, iTunes, PocketCasts, and Stitcher.

For those who want to hear even more stories about Gouverneur Morris, Mr. Brookhiser talked about him at Mount Vernon in the promotional tour for his fine book Gentleman Revolutionary: Gouverneur Morris, The Rake Who Wrote The Constitution.

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