Scandalous Son

John Payne Todd, Dolley Madison s only surviving offspring from her brief first marriage, would always be a privileged and spoiled child. His doting mother appeared oblivious to her son s many faults and may have even been guilty of enabling and encouraging them. In 1794, the recently widowed Dolley married James Madison. The 43-year old Virginia Congressman willingly served as a surrogate father to the boy and together they would forever refer to Payne as our son. It soon became apparent, though, that Todd could never live up to the Madison s high expectations and aspirations for him. Indeed, Payne was forced to bear the incredible burden of being the only direct heir of two of the seminal figures of the early American republic. It is small wonder that he was destined to disappoint. For too long, countless numbers of historians and Madison biographers have hastily dismissed Payne Todd as a pathetic alcoholic, a petulant ingrate, and a greedy opportunist.