Dinner at Mr. Jefferson's: Three Men, Five Great Wines, and the Evening That Changed America

by Charles A. Cerami

Overview

Cerami wittily recounts the evening in rich detail.
—Library Journal

Only two guests were invited to what was arguably the most elegant, sumptuous, and important dinner party that Thomas Jefferson ever hosted. Each course was prepared and laid out in advance so that no servants would enter the dining room to disrupt conversation and overhear random remarks, which they might later repeat to others. Privacy was imperative. Jefferson believed that the very future of the United States of America depended on convincing Alexander Hamilton to agree to a compromise he and Madison were proposing on two issues that threatened to tear the young republic apart.

Plying his guests with the fine wine and exquisite cuisine only a former ambassador to France could provide, Jefferson set the stage for a compromise that enabled the federal government to pay its debts, both domestic and foreign, and make the American dollar "as good as gold."

In Dinner at Mr. Jefferson's, you'll discover the little-known story behind this pivotal evening in American history, complete with wine lists, recipes, and wonderful illustrations of 1790s New York, then the nation's capital. It is a feast not to be missed for lovers of American history, fine dining, and a compelling true story well told.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780470450444
Publisher:	TURNER PUB CO
Publication date:	06/01/2009
Edition description:	First Edition
Pages:	288
Sales rank:	497,304
Product dimensions:	5.60(w) x 8.80(h) x 0.80(d)

About the Author

Charles A. Cerami is the author of several popular histories, including the New York Times extended bestseller Jefferson's Great Gamble, Young Patriots, Benjamin Banneker, and other books.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments ix

Introduction 1

1 Before the Clash 3

2 An Old Friend's Bombshell 15

3 The Mounting Anger 27

4 The Radical Conservative 41

5 Aggressive Lobbying 51

6 Thoughts of Breaking Up 61

7 Jefferson's Awakening 75

8 A Country without a Capital 85

9 Doubters and Believers 95

10 Nearing a Decision on the Capital 107

11 That Day on the Street 117

12 Dinner at Secretary Jefferson's 125

13 The Philadelphia Story 139

14 Doubts Settled, Doubts Revived 149

15 Hamilton the Unstoppable? 159

16 Before the Fall 171

17 From Brilliance to Disaster 179

18 The Disappearing Cabinet 193

19 One Heart and One Mind 209

20 The Jefferson Factor 221

Appendix A Recipes from Monticello's Kitchen 229

Appendix B Alexander Hamilton's Letter to New Coast Guard Officers 239

Notes 245

Bibliography 257

Index 261

Editorial Reviews

"Cerami wittily recounts the evening in rich detail, embracing the culinary details as well as the larger story of President Washington's quarrelsome cabinet, the evolution of the dual party system, and Jefferson's emergence as a persuasive national leader."" (Library Journal, February 1, 2008)

It was 1790, and Thomas Jefferson and one of his dinner guests, James Madison, were determined to work out a political compromise critical to the nation’s future with their third dinner companion (and political opponent), Alexander Hamilton. This gathering around Jefferson’s celebrated table involved nothing less than the creation of the young nation’s finances, foreign relations and the eventual location of its capital. The dinner’s results? An agreement that, Congress willing, the new government would assume the states’ war debts, issue bonds to fund the national debt and make the Potomac’s banks the capital’s permanent site. Congress agreed. Cerami (Jefferson’s Great Gamble) presents a fast-paced narrative of an event well-known but never told so brightly—nor at such unnecessary length. While Cerami puts the dinner-table agreement at his story’s center, it was but one of a number of seismic events, acts and decisions of the 1790s. Cerami slights many of those when he’s not giving us too much detail about other minor ones, such as Jefferson’s cooking recipes and a short disquisition (and a long document) on Hamilton’s role in the Coast Guard’s founding. Compression would have made this inherently fascinating story pack the punch it should. (Feb.) (Publishers Weekly, October 22, 2007)

From the Publisher

In the wake of the American Revolution, the United States, collectively and individually, had acquired a sizable debt to numerous foreign governments. Questions of how to deal with the debt, as well as foreign policy and the location of the national government, led to a dispute between Thomas Jefferson and James Madison on one side and Alexander Hamilton on the other. To resolve these differences, Jefferson arranged a dinner between the three, during which they worked out solutions. William Dufris narrates this detailed historical work with ease. With his expressive and clear delivery, he sounds more like a storyteller recalling an intricate story than someone who is reading a text. M.T.F. © AudioFile 2008, Portland, Maine

OCT/NOV 08 - AudioFile