Some differences between ‘Hamilton’ and history

Las Vegas Review-Journal

6 years ago

This is an undated photo of an etching of Alexander Hamilton. Hamilton fought in the Revolutionary War and he became one of six aides-de-camp, secretaries, in 1777 and became the first Secretary of the Treasury in 1789. As a member of Congress he played a key role in the ratification of the U.S. Constitution and was the only New York delegate to sign the document. He died in 1804 in a duel with Aaron Burr. (AP Photo)

This is a 1786 portrait of Thomas Jefferson by artist Mather Brown. (AP Photo)

Undated portrait of Marie-Joseph-Paul-Yves-Roch-Gilbert du Motier, Marquis de La Fayette or Lafayette. (AP Photo/National Archives)

In this painting, Gen. George Washington leads in the battle at Princeton, Jan. 3, 1777, in a decisive American victory against the British. (AP Photo)

The committee chosen to draft a declaration of independence for the 13 North American British colonies is shown at work in this 19th century engraving. The five members are, from left, Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, Philip Livingston and Roger Sherman. On July 1, 1776, the committee submitted their draft to the Continental Congress, which voted on July 2 for final separation, and approved and formally adopted the Declaration of Independence on July 4. (AP Photo)

Thanks to some exhaustive source material, “Hamilton” is historically accurate — for the most part. Lin-Manuel Miranda did take a few creative liberties, however, such as:

— In “One Last Time,” George Washington begins working on his farewell address the day Thomas Jefferson resigned his post as secretary of state. In truth, Jefferson stepped down Dec. 31, 1793, while Washington didn’t decide to retire until 1796.

— In “Satisfied,” Angelica Schuyler sings, “My only job is to marry rich / My father has no sons so I’m the one / Who has to social climb for one.” In reality, she was married when she met Alexander Hamilton. Also, she had two brothers.

— John Adams didn’t fire Hamilton when he became president. Hamilton already had resigned.

— Jefferson and the Marquis de Lafayette looked nothing alike. (You’ll get it once you see the show.)

No one ever paid $2,228.50, the top price sought on StubHub last week for a single ticket for Tuesday’s opening night, to see the real Hamilton.

— It should go without saying, but the actual historical figures were overwhelmingly Caucasian.

— Contrary to popular belief, only a handful of the Founding Fathers were into hip-hop.