The story of Alexander Hamilton is fascinating, his life full of intrigue, betrayal, politics, adventure, and early death at 42 years old after being shot in a duel with Aaron Burr. It’s easy to get lost in all this drama when you are watching the musical on stage. So here are 4 Hamilton facts to help you better understand the musical and to enjoy it better.
Thomas Jefferson And Alexander Hamilton Were Friends
Thomas Jefferson was Donald Trump before Donald Trump. Well, not exactly, but there are some eerie similarities between these two characters, both with lots of self-confidence and a sense of entitlement. Their rivalry is well known, as part of American history, as they were on different sides. But what we don’t hear much about in the musical is that these two men actually collaborated in person at one point! The only surviving portrait that exists today of both Jefferson and Hamilton shows them meeting face to face in 1790. This means that, up until then, they were the best of buddies.
Hamilton’s Impeachment Was Nothing Personal
The second act of the musical is all about Thomas Jefferson and James Madison, who wanted to impeach Alexander Hamilton for financial misconduct. If you are a fan of American history, and you are thinking about getting Hamilton New York Broadway tickets, go for it because seeing this musical is the surest way to get this historical fact right. The underlying story here is that their biggest competitor had just quit President John Adams’ cabinet, leaving them totally unequipped to deal with all these foreign policy issues. A war with France was looming, which meant that they needed someone on their side who could actually negotiate treaties, so they turned against one of America’s founding fathers to get him back working for them.
Hamilton Was Not A Big Fan Of Slavery
The musical makes it very clear that Alexander Hamilton was an abolitionist, but not because he despised slavery for being cruel. The truth is more mundane than that—Hamilton accepted that slavery would be part of America’s future and needed to be financially compensated by Great Britain if the colonies wanted to gain their independence. To him, it was a pragmatic issue rather than a moral one, as long as slavery existed in America there would be no peace with England, so he accepted this harsh reality.
The Duel Was A Total Set Up
This is a popular topic among Hamilton fanatics because we’d like to think that our hero did not kill another human being in cold blood. But the truth of the matter is that he probably did, but nobody held him accountable for it! On paper, Alexander Hamilton actually killed his rival Aaron Burr during their famous dueling session, which led to an uproar against him back home in New York. In reality, both men knew what was going to happen long before they got there, and neither party wanted any harm to come to the other since they were both good friends outside of work.
American Founding Father, Alexander Hamilton, led a very complex life and for people who want to truly enjoy his music, it would be great to know about the man on the 10 dollar bill who helped shape the destiny of the United States of America.