Who was president in 1803?
1 Answer
Thomas Jefferson was president in 1803.
Explanation:
Following Washington and Adams, Thomas Jefferson became the third president of the United States.
Many important events took place during Jefferson's presidency, especially in 1803.
1) First of all, the Louisiana Territory was purchased from Bonaparte. This was totally unexpected because Jefferson encouraged a strict interpretation of the Constitution, which led him to believe that the president should not have that much power. However, he couldn't resist the awesome deal to buy 828,000 square miles of land for $15 million.
2) Secondly, the Marbury v. Madison court case took place, where the Supreme Court of the United States established the principle of judicial review. John Adams had appointed Federalist "midnight appointees" to the White House right before he left office, and this really left a headache for Jefferson, who was a Republican. Marbury was one of those midnight appointees who had been appointed Justice of Peace by Adams.
Marbury told the Supreme Court to force Madison, the new Secretary of State, to deliver the documents to officially give him his position. The Court was about to steer the case in favor of Marbury when suddenly the Supreme Court stopped short in commanding Madison to hand over Marbury's commission. Instead, they held ng that the provision of the Judiciary Act of 1789 that enabled Marbury to bring his claim to the Supreme Court was itself unconstitutional since it sought to extend the Court's original jurisdiction beyond that which Article III established. Therefore, the petition was denied.
3) And finally, Ohio was admitted as the 17th U.S. state because of its growing population.
These are just a few main points that stand out in Jefferson's presidency in 1803.
Hope this helps!
