At his inauguration¹, James Madison, a small, wizened² man, appeared old and worn; Washington Irving described him as "but a withered³ little apple-John." But whatever his deficiencies in charm, Madison's buxom⁴ wife Dolley compensated⁵ for them with her warmth and gaiety. She was the toast of Washington.

在他的就职典礼上，詹姆士•麦迪逊显得瘦小干瘪，看上去又老衣着又破旧；华盛顿•欧文将他描述为“干瘪的小苹果约翰”。但无论他魅力有多么不足的不足，麦迪逊体态丰满的妻子多莉总是能以她的热情和欢乐来弥补那些不足。她是华盛顿佩服的一位女人。

Born in 1751, Madison was brought up in Orange County, Virginia, and attended Princeton (then called the College of New Jersey). A student of history and government, well-read in law, he participated in the framing of the Virginia Constitution in 1776, served in the Continental⁶ Congress, and was a leader in the Virginia Assembly.

生于1751，麦迪逊在弗吉尼亚州的橙县长大，就读于普林斯顿（当时叫新泽西学院）。他学习历史和政府的课程，法律读得很好，他于1776年参加弗吉尼亚宪法的制定，曾参加大陆国会，并且是弗吉尼亚州议会的一位领导人。

When delegates to the Constitutional Convention assembled at Philadelphia, the 36-year-old Madison took frequent and emphatic⁷ part in the debates.

在作为代表参加在费城召开的制宪会议上，36岁的麦迪逊进行了频繁和强有力的辩论。

Madison made a major contribution to the ratification⁸ of the Constitution by writing, with Alexander Hamilton and John Jay, the Federalist essays. In later years, when he was referred to as the "Father of the Constitution," Madison protested that the document was not "the off-spring of a single brain," but "the work of many heads and many hands."

通过与亚力山大•汉密尔顿和约翰•杰伊一起写联邦党人文集，麦迪逊对宪法的颁布做出了重大的贡献。在以后的几年里，他被称为“宪法之亲”。麦迪逊反对说，文件是不是“一个大脑的结晶，是“许多个大脑和许多双手的工作。”

In Congress, he helped frame the Bill of Rights and enact⁹ the first revenue legislation. Out of his leadership in opposition¹⁰ to Hamilton's financial proposals, which he felt would unduly¹¹ bestow¹² wealth and power upon northern financiers, came the development of the Republican, or Jeffersonian, Party.

在国会，他帮助构建权利法案和制定第一部税收法。他反对汉密尔顿的财政提议，他感到提议将赐予北方的金融家过多的财富和权力，他的领导促进了共和党或杰斐逊派的发展。

As President Jefferson's Secretary of State, Madison protested to warring France and Britain that their seizure¹³ of American ships was contrary to international law. The protests, John Randolph acidly commented, had the effect of "a shilling pamphlet hurled¹⁴ against eight hundred ships of war."

作为杰佛逊总统的国务卿，麦迪逊抗议道战争中的法国和英国扣押美国船舶是违反国际法的。约翰伦道夫尖刻的评论抗议的影响就像“一先令的小册子掷向八百艘战舰。”

Despite the unpopular Embargo¹⁵ Act of 1807, which did not make the belligerent¹⁶ nations change their ways but did cause a depression in the United States, Madison was elected President in 1808. Before he took office the Embargo Act was repealed¹⁷.

尽管1807年的禁运法案不受欢迎，没有使交战的国家改变他们的方式，却导致了美国经济大萧条，但麦迪逊仍然在1808当选总统。在他上任之前禁运法案被废止了。

During the first year of Madison's Administration, the United States prohibited trade with both Britain and France; then in May, 1810, Congress authorized¹⁸ trade with both, directing the President, if either would accept America's view of neutral rights, to forbid trade with the other nation.

麦迪逊任职的第一年，禁止美国与英国和法国进行贸易；然而在1810年5月，国会授权与两国进行贸易，指导总统，如果英法两国任何一国愿意接受美国的中立权利地位，那么美国会断绝与另一个国家的贸易。

Napoleon pretended to comply. Late in 1810, Madison proclaimed non-intercourse with Great Britain. In Congress a young group including Henry Clay and John C. Calhoun, the "War Hawks," pressed the President for a more militant¹⁹ policy.

拿破仑假装答应。1810年末，麦迪逊宣布与英国断绝交往。在国会中一伙人年轻人包括亨利·克雷和约翰·C·卡尔霍恩在内的“好战分子”，为了一个更激进的政策而对总统施压。

The British impressment of American seamen²⁰ and the seizure of cargoes²¹ impelled²² Madison to give in to the pressure. On June 1, 1812, he asked Congress to declare war.

拿破仑假装答应。1810年末，麦迪逊宣布与英国断绝交往。在国会中一伙人年轻人包括亨利·克雷和约翰·C·卡尔霍恩在内的“好战分子”，为了一个更激进的政策而对总统施压。

The young Nation was not prepared to fight; its forces took a severe trouncing. The British entered Washington and set fire to the White House and the Capitol.

然而这个年轻的国家没有准备好这场战斗，受到了严重的打击。英军占领了华盛顿，并放火烧了白宫和国会大厦。

But a few notable naval²³ and military victories, climaxed²⁴ by Gen. Andrew Jackson's triumph at New Orleans, convinced Americans that the War of 1812 had been gloriously successful. An upsurge of nationalism resulted. The New England Federalists who had opposed the war--and who had even talked secession--were so thoroughly²⁵ repudiated²⁶ that Federalism disappeared as a national party.

但伴随着一些值得注意的海军和军事胜利，安得烈•杰克逊在新奥尔良的胜利将战争推向了高潮，使美国人坚信，1812的战争已经非常成功，由此掀起了民族主义的高潮。那些曾经反对战争还有那些甚至谈到了分裂出去的新英格兰的联邦主义者，彻底否定了作为一个政党联邦主义已经消失了。

In retirement²⁷ at Montpelier, his estate in Orange County, Virginia, Madison spoke²⁸ out against the disruptive states' rights influences that by the 1830's threatened to shatter the Federal Union. In a note opened after his death in 1836, he stated, "The advice nearest to my heart and deepest in my convictions is that the Union of the States be cherished and perpetuated²⁹."

麦迪逊退休后回到他在弗吉尼亚州橙县的地产—蒙彼利埃，麦迪逊公开反对在1830年流传的威胁要粉碎联邦、破坏国家的权利的影响。在1836年他死后的一份公开报告中，他声称，“我心中始终坚信美国联盟为上帝所珍视并将永存。”