Petticoat affair
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The Petticoat affair was a political scandal involving members of President Andrew Jackson's Cabinet and their wives, from 1829 to 1831. Led by Floride Calhoun, wife of Vice President John C. Calhoun,
A cigar box exploiting Eaton's fame and beauty, showing President Jackson introduced to Peggy O'Neal (left) and two lovers fighting a duel over her (right)
Peggy O'Neill Eaton, in later life
Floride Calhoun, wife of Vice President John Calhoun and leader of the "anti-Peggy" Washington wives
President Andrew Jackson supported the Eatons in the Petticoat affair.
Peggy Eaton
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Margaret Eaton, was the wife of John Henry Eaton, a United States senator from Tennessee and United States Secretary of War, and a confidant of Andrew Jackson. Their marriage was the cause of a nation
Petticoat affair
…Calhoun, wife of Vice President John C. Calhoun, these women, dubbed the "Petticoats", socially ostracized Secretary of War John Eaton and his wife, Peggy Eaton, over disapproval of the circumstances surrounding the Eatons' marriage and what they deemed her failure to meet the "moral standards of a Cabinet…
Margaret Peggy O'Neal Eaton 1
Cigar box shows President Jackson introduced to Peggy (left) and two lovers fighting a duel over her (right).
Margaret Peggy O'Neil Timberlake Eaton (1796–1879), painted by Henry Inman
Margaret O'Neill Eaton in later life