Changes

Thanks in part to his personal connections as a member of the Virginia planter class, but also because of his skill and integrity as an officer, Lewis was steadily promoted through the army officer corps. In March 1799, he received the rank of lieutenant and shortly thereafter became regimental paymaster; in December 1800, he was promoted again, to captain. It has been noted that, given Lewis' pronounced sympathy for the [[Democratic-Republican]] party, his advancement at a time when President [[John Adams]] was trying to pack the army with [[Federalist]] officers was itself a testament to his abilities.<ref>Ambrose, ''Undaunted Courage'', p. 43, 49-50.</ref>  

Thanks in part to his personal connections as a member of the Virginia planter class, but also because of his skill and integrity as an officer, Lewis was steadily promoted through the army officer corps. In March 1799, he received the rank of lieutenant and shortly thereafter became regimental paymaster; in December 1800, he was promoted again, to captain. It has been noted that, given Lewis' pronounced sympathy for the [[Democratic-Republican]] party, his advancement at a time when President [[John Adams]] was trying to pack the army with [[Federalist]] officers was itself a testament to his abilities.<ref>Ambrose, ''Undaunted Courage'', p. 43, 49-50.</ref>  

In 1801, President [[Thomas Jefferson]] recruited Lewis to be his private secretary. When Jefferson had proposed such an expedition in 1792, Lewis had been among the first volunteers, although his youth and inexperience disqualified him at the time. When he became experienced in frontier, Lewis made a perfect candidate in Jefferson's eyes, and the President soon set out a course of study that would equip him with the scientific skills needed for his journey.

 

Upon becoming President in 1801, [[Thomas Jefferson]] recruited Lewis, whom he knew as a fellow native of the Albemarle region and as a friend to the family, to be his private secretary. Jefferson's immediate goal was to have a reliably Republican assistant by his side in implementing certain policies, especially purging the army of Adams' recent Federalist appointees. As an officer of long service with thorough knowledge of the situation in the army, Lewis was able to compose a roster identifying the most anti-Jeffersonian elements in the army and recommending their removal (though in the end, Jefferson kept most of them).

 

 

For much of his political career, one of Jefferson's long-term goals had been ensuring gradual westward expansion by the United States, in part by setting out an expedition that could gather scientific information about the territory west of the [[Mississippi River]] (then the western boundary of the U.S.) and establish an American claim to it. When Jefferson had proposed such an expedition in 1792, Lewis had been among the first volunteers, although his youth and inexperience disqualified him at the time. By 1802, British explorations in the Pacific Northwest, and news that the Spanish territory of Louisiana was to be ceded to [[France]], made the President determined to launch such a mission at once. By this time, given his greater experience on the frontier, and the two of them having worked closely together, Lewis made a perfect candidate in Jefferson's eyes. At some point in the summer or autumn of that year, Jefferson made a final decision to launch the expedition, under Lewis' command, and the President soon set out a course of study that would equip him with the scientific skills needed for his journey, such as geography, botany, and astronomy.

==The Expedition==

==The Expedition==