Ever since Thomas Jefferson’s inauguration as third president of the United States in March 1801, divergent opinions had circulated regarding the style and personal image he brought to the office. The presidential protocol established by George Washington and then John Adams followed some traditions of the British court but with American moderation. Still Jefferson was uncomfortable, even alarmed, at what he believed to be monarchical customs in the presidential office. Following the extremely contentious and polarizing politics of the 1790s and with his defeat of John Adams in the election of 1800, Jefferson came to office intent upon placing a stamp on the American government that reflected his idea of true democratic-republicanism. The newly elected president used his inaugural ceremony as an initial demonstration of his egalitarian ideas. Rather than use a carriage, he chose to walk the short distance from where he was staying at Conrad and McMunn’s boardinghouse to the still unfinished Capitol. This may have taken on the appearance of a small, improptu parade, as he was joined by some supporting members of Congress and the Alexandria militia. Edward Thornton, the British attaché who preceded Anthony Merry, sent his observations on this republican “performance” to the Foreign Office in London and noted that Jefferson proceeded to the Capitol “on foot, in his ordinary dress.”4 Unfortunately, Thornton gave no detail of what comprised his “ordinary dress,” nor did the local newspaper coverage. Local reporters were more respectful of the ceremony itself but stated only that the new president presented himself as a “plain citizen with no distinctive badge of office.”5
Jefferson’s supporters lauded his “republican simplicity,” while detractors maintained that his appearance was contrived and politically motivated. British Minister Merry’s young attaché, Augustus John Foster, agreed with the Federalist opposition that even though the president “affected to despise dress,” in reality “Mr. Jefferson knew too well what he was about.” Foster based this opinion upon his knowledge of Jefferson’s background. As a member of the Virginia landed gentry, he was, in Foster’s estimation, an American “aristocrat.” Moreover, Foster knew that Jefferson had lived five years in Paris representing the United States as minister plenipotentiary at the Court of Versailles, a position that had afforded him the opportunity to interact with members of the French aristocracy and participate in some of Paris’s finest intellectual salons. In addition, he had been presented at the British Court of St. James’s when on a diplomatic trip to London. Jefferson’s ability to circulate within the society of France’s ancien régime with its demands of impeccable dress and demeanor convinced Foster that Jefferson “was playing a game” and that the purpose of this game was to appeal to the “greater mass” within the American polity.6