13th United States Congress

The 13th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, consisting of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C. from March 4, 1813, to March 4, 1815, during the fifth and sixth years of James Madison's presidency. The apportionment of seats in the House of Representatives was based on the 1810 United States census. Both chambers had a Democratic-Republican majority. The first two sessions were held at the Capitol building while the third, convened after the Burning of Washington, took place in the First Patent Building.

Major events

September 10, 1813: War of 1812: Battle of Lake Erie
October 5, 1813: War of 1812: Battle of the Thames
March 27, 1814: Creek War: Battle of Horseshoe Bend
July 25, 1814: War of 1812: Battle of Lundy's Lane
August 25, 1814: War of 1812: Burning of Washington
September 11, 1814: War of 1812: Battle of Lake Champlain
September 13, 1814: War of 1812: Bombardment of Fort McHenry at Baltimore
November 7, 1814: War of 1812: Forces under Gen. Andrew Jackson seized Pensacola
November 23, 1814: Vice President Elbridge Gerry died
December 15, 1814: Hartford Convention convened through January 5, 1815, in which New England Federalists met to discuss their grievances concerning the ongoing War of 1812 and the political problems arising from the federal government's increasing power. Despite radical outcries among Federalists for New England secession and a separate peace with Great Britain, moderates outnumbered them and extreme proposals were not a major focus of the debate.
December 24, 1814: War of 1812: Treaty of Ghent signed
January 8, 1815: War of 1812: Battle of New Orleans

Major legislation

Treaties ratified

February 17, 1815: War of 1812: Senate ratified the Treaty of Ghent,

Party summary

The count below identifies party affiliations at the beginning of the first session of this congress. Changes resulting from subsequent replacements are shown below in the "Changes in membership" section.

Senate

House of Representatives

Following the 1810 census, the size of the House was increased to 182 seats from 142.

Leadership

Senate

President: Elbridge Gerry (DR), until November 23, 1814; thereafter vacant.
President pro tempore: William H. Crawford (DR), March 4, 1813 Ã¢ÂÂ March 23, 1813
Joseph B. Varnum (DR), December 6, 1813 Ã¢ÂÂ February 3, 1814
John Gaillard (DR), from November 25, 1814

House of Representatives

Speaker: Henry Clay (DR), until January 19, 1814
Langdon Cheves, (DR), from January 19, 1814

Members

This list is arranged by chamber, then by state. Senators are listed by class, and representatives are listed by district.

Senate

Senators were elected by the state legislatures every two years, with one-third beginning new six-year terms with each Congress. Preceding the names in the list below are Senate class numbers, which indicate the cycle of their election. In this Congress, Class 1 meant their term ended with this Congress, requiring reelection in 1814; Class 2 meant their term began in the last Congress, requiring reelection in 1816; and Class 3 meant their term began in this Congress, requiring reelection in 1818.