Aaron Burr

Born in 1756, he grew up in a prominent family and went on to study at the College of New Jersey, now Princeton University. During the American Revolution, he served in the Continental Army, and after the war he built a successful legal and political career in New York.

He became one of the most striking figures in early American politics, serving as a U.S. senator, New York attorney general, and then as the third vice president of the United States from 1801 to 1805. His name is inseparable from the 1804 duel with Alexander Hamilton, an event that destroyed much of his political future even as it secured his place in American legend.

After leaving office, he was accused of treason in a widely watched case tied to alleged schemes in the American West, though he was acquitted. He spent part of his later life in Europe before returning to New York, where he died in 1836, leaving behind a legacy that still fascinates readers because it is so full of talent, ambition, and contradiction.