When a Dinner Party Changed America's Capital
Rea,
You’ve been singing those catchy Hamilton songs around the house lately! That cabinet battle where Jefferson and Hamilton argue about the national debt plan is actually based on a real historical moment that changed America forever. With our family moving to Paris this fall, it’s the perfect time to tell you about the surprising connection between these two cities.
In 1790, America faced a serious problem. After winning independence, the country owed about $80 million in war debt - an enormous sum back then. Northern states like New York and Massachusetts had borrowed more money for the war effort than southern states like Virginia. Alexander Hamilton wanted the new federal government to take on all this debt, but southern states didn’t think that was fair. Why should they help pay northern debts?
Another big question remained unsettled: where would America’s permanent capital be located? The temporary capital was in New York City, which northern states liked just fine. Southern states wanted the capital moved south, where they would have more influence. The disagreement threatened to tear apart the young nation.
On June 20, 1790, Thomas Jefferson hosted a small dinner party at his home on Maiden Lane in New York City. Only three people attended: Jefferson, Hamilton, and James Madison. Over food and wine, they struck a deal that would change American history. Southern states would support Hamilton’s debt plan if the capital moved south to the Potomac River.
The compromise worked perfectly. Hamilton got his financial plan approved. The capital would temporarily move to Philadelphia for ten years, and then permanently to a new city built from scratch along the Potomac. President Washington himself chose the exact location for what would become Washington D.C.
Here’s where Paris enters the story. Thomas Jefferson had lived in Paris from 1784 to 1789 as America’s minister to France. He fell in love with Parisian architecture and city planning. The wide boulevards, classical buildings, and beautiful public spaces made a lasting impression. Jefferson even redesigned his home at Monticello based on a Parisian mansion he admired called the Hôtel de Salm.
When it came time to design the new American capital, Jefferson’s Parisian experiences shaped his vision. He helped select Pierre L’Enfant, a French-born architect, to design the city. L’Enfant’s plan featured wide diagonal avenues intersecting with a grid of streets - just like parts of Paris. The National Mall was inspired by the garden promenade of the Tuileries in Paris. Even the classical style of buildings like the Capitol reflected the architecture Jefferson had admired in France.
Today, Washington D.C. stands as one of the world’s most beautiful capital cities, with its grand avenues, open spaces, and impressive monuments. What began as a political compromise at a dinner party created not just a financial system but literally shaped American geography with a distinctly Parisian flair.
Next time you listen to those Hamilton songs about cabinet battles and compromises, remember that they’re about real decisions that created the America we know today - including its beautiful capital city.
Love, Abba
