Beautiful Home or Social Statement?

James Madison’s Montpelier is a large, stately home, nestled into the hills of Virginia. Much like the presidents before him, Madison had a special place in his heart for gardens. His home incorporated many of the natural elements surrounding the grounds; with views of the wheat fields and distant Blue Ridge Mountains all available from the front portico. Much of Madison’s architectural plans relied on the idea of building a central home, with close access to everything. This created many unique and creative designs for Madison’s home. For example, he had an ice chest cleverly concealed under a classic garden temple near his home. One of his “hidden” architecture elements has come under scrutiny when viewing the home in a present day context.

The contentious point of Madison’s beautiful home came with the placement of his slave quarters and the treatment of his slaves. To Madison, his slaves were some of the most well-fed and cared for slaves in the new country. Madison was known for denouncing slavery as a “blot” in history. This was a new idea for the time, as many in the United States felt that slaves were lesser humans who were supposed to be working for them. For Madison, the basic human rights of the slaves were taken into consideration much more than at other plantations during this time. This does not mean, however, that everyone agreed that Madison’s efforts to help the lives of his slaves were truly genuine. Placing the slave quarter’s right next to his home allowed Madison to continue the visual appeal he had been trying to create by established a small village in the center of his grounds.  Madison also felt that places the slave quarters here was a kind way of the showing the slaves that they were important to him and did not need to be placed in the back of his land. Others, however, saw this as a direct violation of the basic right to privacy. On other manors throughout the US, slaves were regularly denied the opportunity for privacy, but placing the quarters so close to the home took the owners ability to watch and control their actions to a new level.

The beautiful grounds of Montpelier were created with Madison’s distinct vision for a united and central home. This was a layout which no one had seen before that will continue to be discussed for years to come. Along with discussion of the beautiful grounds, there will always be the lingering question of Madison’s true motive for the design plan he held for his home and the possible social statement he was trying to make. The home was a work in progress for much of Madison’s life, having been built on the land previously occupied by a home designed for and by his father. This trend has continued to the present day as the house was passed on to several owners over the years, until it was bequeathed the home to a historic society allowing a total renovation to begin in 2000. It will be interesting to see how the home continues to change and develop as time goes on.