Alexander Hamilton’s widely documented affair was with Maria Reynolds , a married woman living in Philadelphia in the early 1790s.

Quick Scoop: The Basics

  • The affair began in 1791, when Maria Reynolds approached Hamilton claiming she needed help escaping an abusive husband and financial trouble.
  • Hamilton started a sexual relationship with her, visiting her regularly while secretly paying her husband, James Reynolds.
  • James Reynolds then used the relationship to blackmail Hamilton for money in exchange for his silence.
  • Years later, Hamilton publicly confessed to the affair in a pamphlet (the “Reynolds Pamphlet”) to clear himself of accusations of financial corruption, sacrificing his private reputation to protect his public one.

Who Was Maria Reynolds?

  • Maria Reynolds was a young woman married to James Reynolds, a small-time swindler involved in various financial schemes.
  • She contacted Hamilton in 1791, claiming distress and asking for money and help, which led to their first encounter at her rented room.
  • Evidence from letters and testimony suggests Maria and her husband likely collaborated in the blackmail scheme once the affair started.

Why This Is Still a Trending Topic

Hamilton’s affair has become a modern “trending topic” again because of:

  • The Broadway musical Hamilton , which dramatizes the Reynolds affair, introducing it to a huge new audience.
  • Ongoing forum and social media debates over:
    • Whether Maria was primarily a victim of an abusive husband, a willing participant in the scheme, or both.
* How much blame to place on Hamilton versus James Reynolds and the social constraints on women at the time.

On history forums, you’ll often see threads asking not just “Who did Hamilton have an affair with?” but “Was Maria Reynolds a victim, a conspirator, or trapped in both roles?”.

Key Facts in a Nutshell

  • Person he had an affair with: Maria Reynolds.
  • Time period: Started summer 1791 , continued into 1792.
  • Her husband: James Reynolds , who used the affair to extort money from Hamilton.
  • Later fallout: Hamilton’s public confession in the “Reynolds Pamphlet” damaged his personal reputation but aimed to clear him of financial corruption charges.

TL;DR: Alexander Hamilton had a notorious extramarital affair with Maria Reynolds , and the relationship turned into a blackmail scandal run by her husband, James Reynolds, leading to one of early America’s first big political sex scandals.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.