William Branch Giles Underestimates Hamilton's Notes
William Branch Giles was a mover and shaker for the Democratic Republican Party during the Washington Administration.
By the time James Madison became President, Giles had serious doubts about his colleagues.
William Branch Giles
When Theodorick Bland passed away, one of the first special elections were held to fill his place in the United States House of Representatives.
The man chosen as his replacement was 28-year-old William Branch Giles.
Giles came from a wealthy Virginia family and had graduated from Princeton before studying law under George Wythe.
Censuring Hamilton
When he arrived in Congress, Giles quickly sided with the Democratic Republicans.
The young man became a side-kick (author Gregory May called him a henchman) of sorts to James Madison, who was also serving in the House at the time.
William made a statement on the floor of Congress when he called for the censure of Treasury Secretary Alexander Hamilton.
Some money was transferred from one bank account to another under shady circumstances and Giles led the way in the accusations against the head of the Treasury Department.
To everyone’s surprise, Hamilton provided documentation that verified the finances were all used properly and indeed SAVED the nation money.
Drifting From The Party
Though his grand gesture had backfired, Giles remained in the House for eleven of the first fourteen years the Federal Government existed.
He followed this up with another eleven years as a US Senator.
During this time William continued as a Democratic-Republican, though he slowly drifted away from the party during the Jefferson Administration. This was mostly due to disagreements with the new Treasury Secretary Albert Gallatin.
By the time his old buddy Madison became President, Giles was highly critical of the Party’s leadership.
Governor
By the 1820’s, William was publishing articles that were critical of James Monroe as well as John Quincy Adams.
He unsuccessfully attempted to be reappointed as a Senator but instead found himself elected as Governor of Virginia.
Giles held the maximum three year term, which expired just months before his death in 1830.
Want to learn about other GOVERNORS OF VIRGINIA?
OK, here you go:
Edmund Randolph Disappoints Washington
John Page Explains His Change of Heart
Giles does have a biography, but it was written in the 19th century.
The heart of this story came to my attention while reading ‘Jefferson’s Treasure’ about the aforementioned Albert Gallatin. It’s a great book so far, I’ve learned a ton about the Jefferson Administration’s attempt to clean up Hamilton’s treasury implementations.
If you’d like a copy you can get one through the Amazon affiliate link below (you’ll support this site, but don’t worry, Amazon pays me while your price stays the same).
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