Why did the Burr-Hamilton duel become legendary?

There is no doubt that both of these men were icons of the
era in which the duel took place. However, of greater significance is the impact this
event had on finalizing the "death" of the Federalist Party. In the Presidential
Election of 1800 (nicknamed the Revolution of 1800 because it
altered the structure of US Government from Federalist Party dominance to that of the
Democratic-Republican Party) the Jeffersonian Republicans claimed control of the US
Government. Republican success was not so much due to thier ability to woe the masses
but more so to the schism from within their opposition, the Federalist Party. Hamilton
and John Adams had been involved in bitter disagreement/s throughout the Adams'
Presidency. The peace agreement with France by Adams in 1799 severed any hope of a
unified federalist ticket in 1800. This helped to make more managable the Republican
Revolution.

This Revolution of Democracy in 1800 did not
mean an end to the Federalist Party opposition; it meant they needed to regroup,
reorganize and/or retool themselves for the presidential election of 1804. This never
happened because of the duel between Burr and Hamilton. Hamilton was the creator and
unquestioned leader of the Federalist Party but one that was not eligible for the office
the US Presidency due to his citizenship at birth. Therefore, Hamilton's death
ultimately gave complete dominance to the Democratic-Republican Party which culminated
in the Era of Good Feelings. Ironically, it would be the leadership of yet another Adams
(John Quincy in 1828) that would propel the Democratic-Republican Party into the next
political party schism. Therefore, this event should be looked upon in a much larger
context. Dueling was a somewhat typical method of settling disagreements of honor back
then therefore the method of Hamilton's death is NOT why it is legendary. It's legendary
because of who died, the effect it had on American political party structure and also
what it does to the reputation of the two men thereafter; in
history.

Lastly, please note that this event has, without a
doubt made Alexander Hamilton an America Icon of great fame but Aaron Burr an American
Icon of poor fame. Burr will ultimately, after this event, become the new "Benedict
Arnold" in US History. Of course it is self inflicted by Burr but the "rumors" that
surrounded the duel made him seem like to the public at the time as a patriot slayer.
The best example of how things can have profound impact on a person/s reputation over
the course of time is that fact that in the duel Hamilton apparently did not aim his
firearm at Burr. It is believed that he raised the weapon to fire into the air or way
off to the side (never with intent to do harm to Burr). This is apparently made more
clear in Hamilton's own death letter he wrote in which he makes claim that he could not
raise his weapon against a fellow American. Regardless, this event is legendary for MANY
reasons.