The defeat of Adams in 1800 by his Vice President, Thomas Jefferson, who had previously served as Washington's Secretary of State, marked the true beginning of the Virginia Dynasty, which is usually associated with what is now called the Democratic-Republican Party, although it was generally referred to as simply the "Republican" or "Jeffersonian" Party at the time. Jefferson served two terms before retiring, in the Washingtonian precedent, in favor of his Secretary of State, fellow Virginian James Madison, called the "Father of the Constitution." Although the War of 1812 greatly weakened Madison's popularity in the Northeast, especially in New England which consequently discussed secession, he was nonetheless re-elected rather easily in 1812 and was able to assist another Virginian who had remained loyal to him and the party, James Monroe, to be elected president in 1816.