Emperor of liberty: Thomas Jefferson's foreign policy

317 Pages·2014·2.317 MB·English

by  Cogliano, Francis D.;Jefferson, Thomas

Emperor of Liberty
The Lewis Walpole Series in Eighteenth-Century
Culture and History
The Lewis Walpole Series, published by Yale University
Press with the aid of the Annie Burr Lewis Fund, is
dedicated to the culture and history of the long eighteenth
century (from the Glorious Revolution to the accession of
Queen Victoria).  It welcomes work in a variety of fi elds,
including literature and history, the visual arts, political
philosophy, music, legal history, and the history of science.
In addition to original scholarly work, the series publishes
new editions and translations of writing from the period, as
well as reprints of major books that are currently unavailable.
Though the majority of books in the series will probably
concentrate on Great Britain and the Continent, the range of
our geographical interests is as wide as Horace Walpole’s.
Emperor
Liberty
of
Thomas Jeff erson’s Foreign Policy
Francis D. Cogliano
New Haven and London
Published with assistance from the Annie Burr Lewis Fund.
Copyright © 2014 by Yale University.
All rights reserved.
This book may not be reproduced, in whole or in part, including illustrations, in any form
(beyond that copying permitted by Sections 107 and 108 of the U.S. Copyright Law and
except by reviewers for the public press), without written permission from the publishers.
Yale University Press books may be purchased in quantity for educational, business, or
promotional use. For information, please e-mail [email protected] (U.S. offi ce) or
[email protected] (U.K. offi ce).
Designed by Sonia Shannon.
Set in Bulmer type by Westchester Book Group.
Printed in the United States of America.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Cogliano, Francis D.
Emperor of liberty : Thomas Jeff erson’s foreign policy / Francis D. Cogliano.
pages cm—(The Lewis Walpole series in eighteenth-century culture and history)
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-0-300-17993-4 (cloth : alk. paper) 1. United States—Foreign relations—
1801–1809. 2. Jeff erson, Thomas, 1743–1826. I. Title.
E331.C67 2014
327.73009'034—dc23
2013049557
A cata logue record for this book is available from the British Library.
This paper meets the requirements of ANSI/NISO Z39.48– 1992 (Permanence of Paper).
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
For Peter Onuf
This page intentionally left blank
Contents
Ac know ledg ments / ix
A Note on Sources / xiii
introduction Three Emperors 1
chapter 1 According to the Judgment of a Good Man 11
chapter 2 “To Compel the Pyratical States to Perpetual Peace” 42
chapter 3 “Mr. Jeff erson Is a Decided Republican” 76
chapter 4 The Reign of the Witches 115
chapter 5 “Chastise Their Insolence” 144
chapter 6 Empire of Liberty 172
chapter 7 “They Expect the President to Act” 204
conclusion “Ne Plus Ultra” 243
Notes / 247
Index / 293
This page intentionally left blank
Ac know ledg ments
It is a plea sure to acknowledge the many debts I have incurred in the
course of writing this book.
All research on Jeff erson eventually leads to Monticello, Jeff erson’s
home on the outskirts of Charlottesville, Virginia. I am im mensely grate-
ful to the Thomas Jeff erson Foundation, which owns Monticello and
operates it as a museum and research center, for its support while I was
writing this book. In par tic u lar I am grateful to Leslie Greene Bowman,
president of the Thomas Jeff erson Foundation, for her encouragement
and enthusiasm. Leslie supports research on all aspects of Jeff erson and
his time. She understands that scholars must follow the evidence wher-
ever it may lead. She seeks neither to “defend” nor “attack” the master of
Monticello but promotes scholarship and public engagement through
honest dialogue about Jeff erson and his legacy. Much of that dialogue at
Monticello is conducted under the auspices of the Robert H. Smith In-
ternational Center for Jeff erson Studies. Under the leadership of Andrew
Jackson O’Shaughnessy the ICJS has emerged as major scholarly center
not only for the study of Jeff erson particularly but of revolutionary and
early national America generally. During my numerous visits to Char-
lottesville while writing this book Andrew always off ered a warm welcome
and generous hospitality. Andrew also aff orded me numerous opportu-
nities to present my research and test my ideas at conferences and sym-
posia that he or ga nized in Charlottesville and around the world. While I
was writing my manuscript I enjoyed a research fellowship at the ICJS
for which I am very grateful. The ICJS campus at Kenwood, within sight
of Monticello, is a delightful place to think and write about Jeff erson.
Among the many good people at Monticello who helped me are: Anna
ix