In one of the least understood events in early American national history, Aaron Burr plotted to invade Mexico and detach the Mississippi Valley from the United States. His challenge to the territorial integrity of the new Union failed, but from it emerged a Supreme Court decision that mere intent cannot in itself be considered treasonous.
From 1804 through 1806, Aaron Burr promoted, organized, and led an expedition into the Mississippi Valley. Although his purpose remains unclear, he may have intended to invade Spanish Mexico, detach several western states from the union, colonize in what is now northwestern Louisiana, or some combination of these goals. In addition, he was accused of plotting to overthrow the U.S. government and seize Washington, D.C.
Burr had been prominent in the American Revolution (1775-1783) and was a generally successful politician noted for ambition, elegance, womanizing, and opportunism. After he was rejected for a second term as vice president by Thomas Jefferson
Angered by Alexander Hamilton’s
On March 2, 1805, Burr withdrew from the Senate. He then met with Merry and offered to detach Louisiana (at that time, the huge region extending from the Great Lakes to the Gulf of Mexico, bordered on the east by the Mississippi River and on the west by the Great Plains) from the United States. His price for doing so would be one-half million dollars and British naval support in the Gulf of Mexico. Merry
On April 23, Burr set out for Pittsburgh and the Ohio and Mississippi Valleys, seeking support and widely discussing his various plans. On his way down the Ohio River
After returning to Washington in November, 1805, Burr and his associates unsuccessfully sought aid from the Marqués de Casa
Dispersal of Burr’s expedition.
As Burr was developing his plans, President Jefferson
Meanwhile, Wilkinson apparently lost confidence in Burr’s plan and informed Jefferson of the scheme to dismember the United States. Wilkinson also sent Jefferson
Chief Justice John Marshall
After his release, Burr spent four years in Europe lobbying the British and French governments to support his Mexican plans. After returning to the United States, he practiced law in New York. Wilkinson was investigated by Congress and court-martialed by the army but was cleared and retained his command.
Although Burr discussed his plans with hundreds of people, the true story of his conspiracy remains controversial. Until his death, he continued to promote diverse settlement schemes and expeditions into Spanish and Mexican territory. Documents relating to his plans that have survived are wildly contradictory, unreliable, and incomplete. His daughter, Theodosia Burr Alston
Burr’s alleged goals were by no means unique. Secession was repeatedly proposed to advance regional interests until the Civil War (1861-1865). Private American filibustering excursions into Spanish and Mexican territory persisted until after the Spanish American War (1898). A mature sense of national identity did not come to the United States until the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.
Burr’s case also had important constitutional ramifications. Chief Justice Marshall’s
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Adams, Henry. History of the United States of America During the Administrations of Jefferson and Madison. 9 vols. New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1889-1891. After examining English and Spanish archives, Adams concluded that Burr conspired to dismember the union; his conclusion gained wide acceptance. -
Brodie, Fawn M. Thomas Jefferson: An Intimate History. New York: Bantam, 1974. This distinguished biography of Jefferson suggests that Burr’s many conflicting purported plots and unfounded claims resulted from mental imbalance on his part. -
Fleming, Thomas J. Duel: Alexander Hamilton, Aaron Burr, and the Future of America. New York: Basic Books, 1999. Lively study of the political rivalry between Burr and Hamilton that is placed firmly within the chaotic political environment of the time. -
Lomask, Milton. Aaron Burr: The Conspiracy and Years of Exile, 1805-1806. New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1982. Based on primary documents and scholarly analyses of older records, including a discrediting of Burr’s purported “cipher letter” to Wilkinson. -
Melton, Buckner F., Jr. Aaron Burr: Conspiracy to Treason. New York: John Wiley & Sons, 2002. Study of Burr’s plot to set up an independent republic in the western United States or Mexico. A constitutional law expert, Melton provides a detailed account of Burr’s treason trial. -
Montgomery, M. R. Jefferson and the Gun-men: How the West Was Almost Lost. New York: Crown, 2000. Popular account of Burr’s conspiracy. -
Parmet, Herbert S., and Marie B. Hecht. Aaron Burr: Portrait of an Ambitious Man. New York: Macmillan, 1967. A well-documented biography of one of the most enigmatic figures in American history. -
Vidal, Gore. Burr. New York: Random House, 1973. Well-documented historical novel, in which fact and fiction are clearly separated. Re-creates the contemporary social and political environment during Burr’s lifetime. Vidal is remotely related to Burr.
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Aaron Burr; Andrew Jackson; John Marshall; Zebulon Pike.