1. The Burr-Hamilton Duel

2. Aaron Burr

3. • Aaron Burr was born in New Jersey in 1756, the son of the second
president of Princeton and the grandson of the well-known theologian
Jonathan Edwards. Both of Burrs parents died when he was very young
and he was put into the care of relatives until he entered Princeton at the
age of 13. He graduated from Princeton three years later with a degree in
law.
• In 1775 Burr began his military career when he volunteered for Benedict
Arnold’s “March to Quebec.” Burr spent the majority of the revolution in
New York as the commander of a regiment of troops which saw action at
the battle of Monmouth. He retired from military service in 1779 to
continue to pursue his study of law. Burr married Theodosia Bartow
Prevost in 1782 and they had one daughter; Theodosia. As an attorney
Burr was very successful (He shared a practice with Hamilton for a time)
and in 1789 the political career which he had so long desired was
launched when he was made Attorney General of New York. Riding the
wave of his success, Burr garnered a seat in the Senate in 1791. He would
serve for six years before losing his seat and being elected to New York’s
state legislature.

4. Alexander Hamilton

5. • Hamilton was born on the West Indian island of Nevis in 1757. He father
was absent for his childhood, forced to remain in Scotland due to a debt
he held. Because of this, his mother was somewhat dependent on friends
and relatives for financial support. When Hamilton was about the age of
ten his mother passed away. Hamilton who, although he had no formal
schooling, was a gifted writer and when he published a description of a
sermon in a local newspaper, the article garnered so much attention that a
group of readers agreed to pay his way to American to receive a formal
education.
• During his time at King’s College Hamilton was surrounded by talk of
revolution. As war appeared to become ever more inevitable, Hamilton
immersed himself in the study artillery tactics and mobility. In 1776 he
joined the New York Artillery, of which he was soon made captain.
Hamilton earned quite a reputation during the war for his heroism and
gallantry and before its conclusion he would be a Major General.

6. Rivalry
• The rivalry between Hamilton and Burr had its roots a 1791 Senate
race where Burr defeated Hamilton’s father-in-law, Phillip Schuyler.
Schuyler, a staunch federalist, would have supported policies
proposed by Washington’s administration (and especially those
proposed by Hamilton). The next major bout came during the
election of 1800. Thomas Jefferson was running against the
incumbent John Adams with vice presidential candidate Aaron Burr.
When the votes came in Jefferson and Burr were both tied at 73
electoral votes. While Hamilton favored neither candidate, he
preferred Jefferson to Burr and used in political influence into New
York to secure Jefferson the position of President. The final straw
that would trigger the final confrontation between the two men
was election for the seat of Governor of New York, for which Burr
was a candidate. Burr lost the general election in a landslide and he
blamed (with questionable legitimacy) Hamilton for his loss and
challenged him to a duel. Hamilton reluctantly accepted.

7. The Duel
• The duel took place on July 11th 1804 at
Weehawken Heights, New Jersey. At
approximately 7:00 a.m. both parties agreed up
on the number of paces that would be taken, that
number being ten. Both men were given a pistol
with a single shot and could fire after the word
“present” was stated by one of the men’s
seconds. Hamilton kept his word and threw away
his shot, firing into the air. Burr took aim and
fired, his bullet penetrating Hamilton’s abdomen.
Hamilton would die of his wounds the following
day.

8. The Aftermath
• The duel, in addition to ending the life of one
of the most significant players in American
History, also seemed to be applicable to the
life of the Federalist Party. After the duel the
Federalist would continue to lose political
influence until they fell out of relevance
entirely. Aaron Burr was tried and convicted of
murder, and though he was later
pardoned, the duel was an indelible black
mark on his political record.