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James Madison |
Dolley Madison |
After Dolley Payne's husband died, many people expected her to marry her
lifelong friend, Aaron Burr, to whom she had entrusted her son's education.
Her marriage to James Madison carne as a surprise to everyone, apparently
including Dolley. Only two months before the wedding, she was still denying
that she was engaged. Her hesitance in marrying the future President of the
United States was expressed in a note written one day before her wedding,
when she wrote "Mrs. Dolley Madison, Alas, Alas."
James and Dolley met officially in
late May of 1794, when Madison asked his friend Aaron Burr to introduce
them. Dolley was 26 and James was 43 They married three
and a half months later. Their whirlwind courtship and wedding was well recounted
in the 1946 film The Magnificent Doll with Ginger Rodgers as Dolley,
Burgess Meredith as James Madison, David Niven as Aaron Burr.
Dolley and James were married on on September 15, 1794, at her sister's home in Virginia. Because James was Episcopalian and she was a Quaker, her family immediately disowned her. The marriage, however, proved to be very successful and as James Madison began to ascend the political ladder, Dolley's reputation as Washington's most popular hostess soared. After Jefferson's election and the appointment of James Madison as Secretary of State, Dolley became Jefferson's official hostess. Both Jefferson and his vice-president, Aaron Burr, were widowers, and this left Dolley next in line to act as hostess.
Dolley took Washington by storm. Despite her Quaker background, she quickly became a trendsetter in fashion and entertaining. By the time her husband had been elected to the presidency, Dolley had already established a reputation as "First Lady" that has never been matched by any of her successors. Her sassy, bubbly personality, love of entertaining, and a passion for snuff seemed at odds with her Quaker upbringing. However, her most lasting achievement was her rescue of valuable treasures, including state papers and a Gilbert Stuart painting of President George Washington, from the White House before it was burned by the British army in 1814 during the War of 1812.
Her great flair for entertaining reflected Dolley's interest in cooking. She was constantly experimenting with new recipes. She preferred simple versions of popular American dishes to the sometimes affected ostentations of French cooking favored in diplomatic circles. Many of Dolley's recipes have retained their popularity. Probably the most famous is her Dolley Madison Cake. a rich pound cake flavored with brandy and rosewater, and filled with currents and citron. One of the best examples of her "everyday recipes" that she served at diplomatic functions is her macaroni soup.