Edmund Randolph

For more information on Edmund Jennings Randolph, visit Britannica.com.

Edmund Randolph (1753-1813), American statesman and lawyer, was an exceedingly influential public figure from 1780 to 1800.

Edmund Randolph's father, of a family long prominent in Virginia, was king's attorney and returned to England before the American Revolution. Edmund, however, graduated from the College of William and Mary, and influenced by his uncle Peyton who was a firm patriot, broke with his father. In August 1775 he joined George Washington's army. When Peyton Randolph (president of the first Continental Congress) died a few months later, Edmund returned to Virginia. He served in the Virginia Convention of 1776, was mayor of Williamsburg, and was attorney general of Virginia before his twenty-fifth birthday. His marriage in 1776 to Elizabeth Nicholas, daughter of Robert Nicholas, consolidated his position in Virginia's public life.

In 1781 Randolph began serving as a delegate to the Continental Congress. There and in the Virginia Legislature he worked with James Madison to strengthen the union of the states. At the same time Randolph became one of Virginia's leading attorneys, distinguished for his learning and oratory. He was elected governor of Virginia in 1786.

Randolph's national service resumed in 1786 at the Annapolis Convention, and in 1787 he became a Virginia delegate to the Federal Constitutional Convention. Though not as thorough a nationalist as Washington or Madison, Randolph presented Madison's centralizing Virginia Plan to the Convention. He impressed the Convention with his "most harmonious voice, fine person, and striking manners," as well as with his keen sense of the dangers of tyranny. But his reservations about "energetic government," a concern for the special interests of Virginia, and a kind of indecisiveness caused him to refuse to sign the Constitution. Responding to Madison's tactful persuasion, though, he finally came out for the Constitution and played a key role at Virginia's ratifying convention.

Appointed attorney general of the United States (1789), Randolph soon became Washington's mediator in the bitter quarrels between Alexander Hamilton and Thomas Jefferson. As secretary of state (1794), he sought to maintain friendly relations with both England and France. He approved Jay's Treaty with England as well as the contradictory mission of James Monroe to conciliate republican France. Though he earned Washington's respect and gratitude, Jefferson declared him "a perfect chameleon," while Timothy Pickering aroused Washington's anger by alleging Randolph's subservience to France. Humiliated, Randolph resigned and wrote a Vindication of his conduct.

Randolph resumed his large law practice. In 1807 he was senior counsel for Aaron Burr in his treason trial. Randolph's health failed, however, and after writing a valuable manuscript history of the Revolution in Virginia, he died on Sept. 12, 1813.

Further Reading

The biography of Randolph by John J. Reardon, in progress, should become the standard work. Samuel F. Bemis, Jay's Treaty: A Study in Commerce and Diplomacy (1923; rev. ed. 1962), covers Randolph's career as secretary of state.

Additional Sources

Reardon, John J. Edmund Randolph; a biograp, New York, Macmillan 1975, 1974.

Edmund Jennings Randolph served as U.S. attorney general and secretary of state during the administration of President George Washington. Randolph previously had played a central role in the drafting of the U.S. Constitution.

Randolph was born on August 10, 1753, in Williamsburg, Virginia. He attended William and Mary College and then studied law with his father, who was a prominent lawyer and the king's attorney in the colony of Virginia. As the American Revolution approached, Randolph sided with the independence movement, while his father remained loyal to the crown. In 1775 Randolph's father, mother, and sisters left for England.

In 1775 Randolph briefly served in the Virginia militia as an aide to George Washington before returning to manage his uncle's estate. Randolph's friendship with Washington continued, and soon Randolph was handling Washington's personal legal affairs.

Randolph's political career began in 1776 when he served in the Virginia Constitutional Convention. He helped draft a bill of rights and a state constitution. That same year he was appointed state attorney general, a post he held for ten years. During this period he also briefly served as mayor of Williamsburg. From 1779 to 1782, Randolph was a member of the Continental Congress. In 1786 he was elected governor of Virginia.

Randolph was a prominent member of the Constitutional Convention of 1787. A key issue before the convention was the structure and representation of a national legislature. Delegates from small states opposed those from large states. Randolph offered the Virginia Plan on behalf of the large states, which provided for a two-house legislature with representation of each state based on its population or wealth. William Paterson of New Jersey proposed the New Jersey Plan on behalf of the smaller states, which provided for equal representation in Congress. The matter was resolved by the Connecticut Compromise, which created a bicameral legislature with proportional representation in the lower house and equal representation of the states in the upper house.

Randolph refused to sign the final draft of the Constitution because he believed that it did not protect the rights of states and individuals. In 1788 he did, however, urge Virginia to ratify the Constitution, proclaiming the need for national unity.

From 1789 to 1794, he served as U.S. attorney general for the new national government. Following Thomas Jefferson's resignation as secretary of state, President Washington appointed Randolph to the post. France and Great Britain were at war at the time, and both countries had supporters within the United States. Randolph attempted to carry out Washington's policy of neutrality in the conflict but earned enemies on both sides.

Randolph's public career ended in a cloud of scandal in 1795, after the British minister to the United States claimed that Randolph had expressed a willingness to accept money from France to create U.S. policy favorable to that country. Though the charges were eventually shown to be untrue, Randolph resigned.

Randolph returned to Virginia and practiced law for the remainder of his life. In 1807 he served as chief defense counsel for Aaron Burr, who was on trial for treason. Burr was acquitted after it became clear that the charges were groundless and politically motivated.

Randolph died on September 12, 1813, at his estate in Clarke County, Virginia.

Edmund Jenings Randolph
2nd United States Secretary of State
In office January 2, 1794 – August 20, 1795
President	George Washington
Preceded by	Thomas Jefferson
Succeeded by	Timothy Pickering
1st United States Attorney General
In office September 26, 1789 – January 26, 1794
President	George Washington
Preceded by	None
Succeeded by	William Bradford
7th Governor of Virginia
In office 1786 – 1788
Preceded by	Patrick Henry
Succeeded by	Beverley Randolph
Born	August 10, 1753(1753-08-10) Williamsburg, Virginia
Died	September 12, 1813 (aged 60) Millwood, Virginia
Political party	Federalist
Spouse(s)	Sara Elizabeth Nicholas
Alma mater	College of William and Mary
Profession	Lawyer, Politician
Religion	Episcopalian
Signature
Military service
Service/branch	Continental Army
Battles/wars	American Revolutionary War

Edmund Jenings Randolph (August 10, 1753 – September 12, 1813) was an American attorney, Governor of Virginia, Secretary of State, and the first United States Attorney General.

Contents 1 Biography 2 Political career 2.1 Constitutional Convention 2.2 Washington's Cabinet 2.3 Resignation 3 Notes 4 External links

Biography

Randolph was born on August 10, 1753 to the influential Randolph family in Williamsburg, Virginia. He was educated at the College of William and Mary. After graduation he began reading law with his father John Randolph and uncle, Peyton Randolph. In 1775, with the start of the American Revolution, Randolph's father remained a Loyalist and returned to Britain; Edmund Randolph remained in America where he joined the Continental Army as aide-de-camp to General George Washington.

Upon the death of his uncle Peyton Randolph in October of 1775 Randolph returned to Virginia to act as executor of the estate, and while there was elected as a representative to the Virginia Convention. He would go on to serve as mayor of Williamsburg, and then as the first Attorney General of the United States under the newly-formed government.

He was married on August 29, 1776 to Elizabeth Nicholas (daughter of Robert C. Nicholas), and had a total of six children, including Peyton Randolph Governor of Virginia from 1811 to 1812.

Randolph died at age 60, suffering from paralysis, September 12, 1813 while visiting the home of a friend, Nathaniel Burwell of Carter Hall, near Millwood, Virginia, in Clarke County and is buried at a nearby Burwell family cemetery "Old Chapel".^[1]

Political career

Randolph was selected as a delegate to the Continental Congress in 1779, and served there to 1782. During this period he also remained in private law practice, handling numerous legal issues for George Washington among others.

Randolph was elected Governor of Virginia in 1786, that same year leading a delegation to the Annapolis Convention.

Constitutional Convention

The following year, as a delegate from Virginia to the Constitutional Convention, Randolph introduced the Virginia Plan as an outline for a new national government. He argued against importation of slaves and in favor of a strong central government, advocating a plan for three chief executives from various parts of the country. The Virginia Plan also proposed two houses, where in both of them delegates were chosen based on state population. Randolph additionally proposed, and was supported by unanimous approval by the Convention's delegates, "that a Nationally Judiciary be established" (Article III of the constitution established the federal court system).^[2] The Articles of Confederation lacked a national court system for the United States.

Randolph was also a member of the "Committee of Detail" which was tasked with converting the Virginia Plan's 15 resolutions into a first draft of the Constitution. Randolph refused to sign the final document, however, believing it had insufficient checks and balances, and published an account of his objections in October 1787. He nevertheless reversed his position at the Virginia Ratifying Convention in 1788 and voted for ratification of the Constitution because eight other states had already done so, and he did not want to see Virginia left out of the new national government.

Edmund Randolph

Washington's Cabinet

Randolph was appointed as the first U.S. Attorney General in September 1789, maintaining precarious neutrality in the feud between Thomas Jefferson (of whom Randolph was a second cousin^{[citation needed]}) and Alexander Hamilton. When Jefferson resigned as Secretary of State in 1793, Randolph succeeded him to the position. The major diplomatic initiative of his term was the Jay Treaty with Britain in 1794, but it was Hamilton who devised the plan and wrote the instructions, leaving Randolph the nominal role of signing the papers. Randolph was hostile to the resulting treaty, and almost gained Washington's ear. Near the end of his term as Secretary of State, negotiations for Pinckney's Treaty were finalized.

Resignation

A scandal involving an intercepted French message led to Randolph's resignation in August 1795. The British Navy had intercepted correspondence from the French minister, Joseph Fauchet, to the U.S. and turned it over to Washington. Washington was dismayed that the letters reflected contempt for the United States and that Randolph was primarily responsible. The letters implied that Randolph had exposed the inner debates in the cabinet to the French and told them that the Administration was hostile to France. At the very least, Elkins and McKitrick conclude, there "was something here profoundly disreputable to the government's good faith and character." Washington immediately overruled Randolph's negative advice regarding the Jay Treaty. A few days later Washington, in the presence of the entire cabinet, handed the minister's letter to Randolph and demanded he explain it. Randolph was speechless and immediately resigned. Elkins and McKitrick (pages 425-6) conclude that Randolph was not bribed by the French but "was rather a pitiable figure, possessed of some talents and surprisingly little malice, but subject to self-absorbed silliness and lapses of good sense."

After leaving the cabinet he returned to Virginia to practice law; his most famous case was that of defense counsel during Aaron Burr's trial for treason in 1807.

Notes

1. ^ "Founding Fathers: Virginia". FindLaw Constitutional Law Center. 2008. http://supreme.lp.findlaw.com/documents/fathers/virginia.html. Retrieved 2008-11-14. 
2. ^ Erwin Chemerinsky. Federal Jurisdiction. New York: Aspen Publishers. 2007.

External links

• Edmund Randolph at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress Retrieved on 2009-5-17
• Edmund Randolph at Find a Grave Retrieved on 2009-5-17

Political offices
Preceded by Patrick Henry	Governor of Virginia 1786 – 1787	Succeeded by Beverley Randolph
Preceded by Thomas Jefferson	United States Secretary of State Served Under: George Washington January 2, 1794 – August 20, 1795	Succeeded by Timothy Pickering
Legal offices
Preceded by (none)	Attorney General of the United States September 26, 1789 – January 26, 1794	Succeeded by William Bradford

v • d • e United States Secretaries of State Jefferson • Randolph • Pickering • J Marshall • Madison • Smith • Monroe • Adams • Clay • Van Buren • Livingston • McLane • Forsyth • Webster • Upshur • Calhoun • Buchanan • Clayton • Webster • Everett • Marcy • Cass • Black • Seward • Washburne • Fish • Evarts • Blaine • Frelinghuysen • Bayard • Blaine • Foster • Gresham • Olney • Sherman • Day • Hay • Root • Bacon • Knox • Bryan • Lansing • Colby • Hughes • Kellogg • Stimson • Hull • Stettinius • Byrnes • G Marshall • Acheson • Dulles • Herter • Rusk • Rogers • Kissinger • Vance • Muskie • Haig • Shultz • Baker • Eagleburger • Christopher • Albright • Powell • Rice • Clinton

v • d • e United States Attorneys General Randolph • Bradford • Lee • Lincoln • Breckinridge • Rodney • Pinkney • Rush • Wirt • Berrien • Taney • Butler • Grundy • Gilpin • Crittenden • Legaré • Nelson • Mason • Clifford • Toucey • Johnson • Crittenden • Cushing • Black • Stanton • Bates • Speed • Stanberry • Evarts • Hoar • Akerman • Williams • Pierrepont • Taft • Devens • MacVeagh • Brewster • Garland • Miller • Olney • Harmon • McKenna • Griggs • Knox • Moody • Bonaparte • Wickersham • McReynolds • Gregory • Palmer • Daugherty • Stone • Sargent • W D Mitchell • Cummings • Murphy • Jackson • Biddle • T C Clark • McGrath • McGranery • Brownell • Rogers • Kennedy • Katzenbach • W R Clark • J N Mitchell • Kleindienst • Richardson • Saxbe • Levi • Bell • Civiletti • Smith • Meese • Thornburgh • Barr • Reno • Ashcroft • Gonzales • Mukasey • Holder

v • d • e Governors of Virginia Henry · Jefferson · Fleming · Nelson · Harrison · Henry · E. Randolph · B. Randolph · H. Lee · Brooke · Wood · Monroe · Page · Cabell · Tyler Sr. · G. Smith · Monroe · G. Smith · P. Randolph · Barbour · Nicholas · Preston · T. Randolph · Pleasants · Tyler Jr. · Giles · J. Floyd · Tazewell · Robertson · Campbell · Gilmer · Patton · Rutherfoord · Gregory · McDowell · W. "EB" Smith · J.B. Floyd · Johnson · Wise · Letcher · W. "EB" Smith · Pierpont · Wells · Walker · Kemper · Holliday · Cameron · F. Lee · McKinney · O'Ferrall · J.H. Tyler · Montague · Swanson · Mann · Stuart · Davis · Trinkle · Byrd · Pollard · Peery · Price · Darden · Tuck · Battle · Stanley · Almond · A. Harrison · Godwin · Holton · Godwin · Dalton · Robb · Baliles · Wilder · Allen · Gilmore · Warner · Kaine · McDonnell (elect)

v • d • e Cabinet of President George Washington (1789–1797) Vice President John Adams (1789–1797) Secretary of Foreign Affairs John Jay (1789) Secretary of State Thomas Jefferson (1790–1793) · Edmund Randolph (1794–1795) · Timothy Pickering (1795–1797) Secretary of the Treasury Alexander Hamilton (1789–1795) · Oliver Wolcott, Jr. (1795–1797) Secretary of War Henry Knox (1789–1794) · Timothy Pickering (1795) · James McHenry (1796–1797) Attorney General Edmund Randolph (1792–1794) · William Bradford (1794–1795) · Charles Lee (1795–1797) Postmaster General Samuel Osgood (1789–1791) · Timothy Pickering (1791–1795) · Joseph Habersham (1795–1797)

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