The Petticoat Affair: Manners, Mutiny, and Sex in Andrew Jackson's White House

A stubborn man of deep principles, Andrew Jackson reacted violently to political or social injustice. Rumors surrounding the timing of his marriage devastated his wife, Rachel, who died after his election. But nothing tested Jackson's resolve quite like the Eaton Affair in which his Secretary of War's wife was labeled a "loose woman" and shunned in political circles. Jackson's support of the secretary and his wife began an imbroglio that became a scandal complete with media manipulation, quicksand coalitions, to rumors piled high. This account shows us that sex and scandal are hardly new to American politics. About the Author:John F. Marszalek is professor of history at Mississippi State University and the author of Court Martial: A Black Man in America and Sherman: A Soldier s Passion for Order.