Why am I passionate about this?
Iāve been a historian of the period for more than two decades, and I am still fascinated by Andrew Jackson. He captures the attention of my undergraduate students and his name offers one of the best ways to start a shouting match at an academic conference. As I sifted through the various accounts of Jackson for this book, I was amazed at the range. Writers dealing with the same individual concluded that he was either a product of his age, a hero, the founder of American democracy, a populist, a racist, or a monstrous psychopath. All of these interpretations might have some merit, which made the project, in my opinion, all the more interesting.
Sean's book list on Andrew Jacksonās bizarre, violent, divisive life
Why did Sean love this book?
One of Jacksonās earliestāand most criticalābiographers wrote in 1860: āthe political history of the United States, for the last thirty years, dates from the moment when the soft hand of Mr. Van Buren touched Mrs. Eaton's knocker.ā This earnest statement has not aged particularly well, but the significance of the Peggy Eaton Affair, in which Andrew Jackson risked an enormous amount of political capital defending the honor of one of his Secretary of Warās spouse, still fascinates. Marszalek reconstructs the world of gender, respectability, and the inner workings of Jacksonās White House with skill and grace.
1 author picked The Petticoat Affair as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.
This account of the Eaton Affair describes the story of how Peggy O'Neale Eaton, the wife of President Andrew Jackson's secretary of war, was branded a "loose woman" and snubbed by Washington society. The president's defence of her honour fuelled intense speculation and a scandal began.