250 and Counting

Tag: Army History

  • The Return of Charles Lee–October 14, 1776

    Cover art for October 14, 1776: Portrait engraving of Major-General Charles Lee, ca 1860 by Henry Bryan Hall, based on historical sources. via New York Public Library Digital Collection.

    Charles Lee was born in Great Britain and only came to British America in 1773, when he purchased an estate in western Virginia.

    It wasn’t his first time in America; he’d fought for the British in the French and Indian War and married the daughter of a Mohawk chief.

    Lee was injured in 1758 during an attack on Fort Ticonderoga. The following year he was part of the capture of Fort Niagara and of Montreal the year after that.

    Lee returned to Europe and served in Portugal as a lieutenant colonel. In 1763 he returned to England and retired on half-pay. Two years later he served as an aide-de-camp under King Stanislaus II of Poland. He saw some action in the Russo-Turkish War but it was during a duel in Italy that he lost two fingers.

    Lee returned to England and realized that he was sympathetic to the Colonists’ cause, so he moved to America and purchased an estate in what would now be West Virginia. When the Continental Army formed, he joined up immediately, expecting to be second-in-command to George Washington (he did realize that Congress would want a native-born Commander in Chief).

    Lee took on the command of the Southern Department and was present for the Battle of Sullivan’s Island. He was given credit for the victory, though based on some accounts the win didn’t really belong to him.

    Lee was captured in December 1776 in New Jersey and released in a prisoner exchange in 1778. In subsequent battles Lee was cast in a villain role by official reports, and he was court-martialed. He was found guilty by the jury but the court reduced the final charges and suspended from the army for a year. In 1780 Lee sent a scathing letter to Congress that led to his dismissal from the army.

    He returned to Virginia but his debts piled up and he was advised to sell off his property. Unfortunately he died in 1782 before he could complete the sale and his sister Sidney Lee inherited the property. It’s not clear but he likely died of tuberculosis.

    Lee’s legacy has waxed and waned over the years, and most recently it’s in a “down” cycle, as documents have been discovered that he may have been attempting to communicate with British officers regarding a potential plan with which they might defeat the American rebellion. However, there are still many who doubt the idea that Lee was specifically acting treasonously.

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  • A Fort Is Abandoned–October 5, 1776

    Cover art for October 5, 1776: Historical Marker denoting the former site of Bergen Neck Fort/Fort Delancey. Via Historical Marker Database.

    The cover art for today’s episode is the historical marker for Bergen Neck Fort, in Bayonne, New Jersey.

    As someone who was born and raised on the other side of the East River, it’s supposed to be my duty to bust on New Jersey and say something like “there’s nothing interesting going on in Bayonne” and I’d mostly be right, but I will note that Mercer Park, just a hair under a mile from this spot, is rather nice.

    I did spend a few years living in northern New Jersey, just a stone’s throw from what was then called The Meadowlands (and still is, if you’re a die-hard), and it’s really not a bad place to live. I had a decent sight-line to the Manhattan skyline, but my neighborhood had a very suburban feel to it. The town I lived in was practically Whoville during Christmas season.

    Bergen County was also home to many people who lost their lives to the attacks on the World Trade Center, since it was just across the Hudson River, so there are numerous memorials in the area. Lyndhurst, NJ (for example), which is mostly famous for a bunch of exterior scenes from The Sopranos, has one that’s made from stones reclaimed from the rubble. I moved away from the area just a couple of weeks before September 11, but I kept in touch and many people in the area were deeply affected.

    And now that I think about it, Bayonne—which is literally within sight of the former WTC buildings and the Statue of Liberty— has a truly moving memorial commonly called “The Teardrop”, which was a gift to the United States by a Russian sculptor named Zurab Tserteli. At 100 feet high, it can actually be seen from the other side of the river as well. So don’t go to Bayonne to see Bergen Neck Fort, since there’s nothing there. But if you do go, head to Harbor View Park.

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    And please don’t tell anyone I have a soft spot for northern New Jersey; I could lose my NY cred for that.

  • Re-Mastering the Army–October 1, 1776

    Cover art for October 1, 1776: Portrait of Thomas Mifflin by Charles Willson Peale, ca. 1783-4. via Independence Hational Historical Park.

    Thomas Mifflin was the Continental Army’s first Quartermaster General, and he was replaced by someone who just couldn’t get the job done, so he was asked to return to the position. He was good at the Quartermaster duties, but he really preferred to be on the front lines.

    Oddly enough, though, when the soldiers at Valley Forge went through all their hardships, it was Mifflin who got the blame for it, and Congress had to appropriate a lot of money to settle the complaints. He still managed to keep the position, but the writing was on the wall and he resigned his commission a few months later.

    Mifflin wasn’t done with public service, though. He became a delegate to the Congress and even spent some time as its President. And once Pennsylvania revamped its Constitution to include a genuine Governor position, as the last President of Pennsylvania he became the state’s first Governor, from 1790 to December 1799. He returned to the State Legislature but died a few weeks later.

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  • Washington’s Desperate Letter–September 24, 1776

    Cover art for September 24, 1776: portrait of George Washington commissioned by John Hancock shortly before the Declaration was issued, painted by Charles WIllson Peale in 1776. via the Brooklyn Museum.

    George Washington was a practical man, and he realized that without a standing army, he wouldn’t stand a chance against the British.

    Sure, it’s good to have motivated people who are passionate about the cause, but when they have setbacks, they’re more likely to bail out, and that’s exactly what he was facing once the dust began to settle from his losses in New York. Many of the recruits that he had weren’t finishing out the enlistment period they’d agreed on when they first joined up, and the fact that their supplies and their pay were sporadic didn’t help matters.

    It was with this in mind that Washington wrote to Congress, strongly recommending that they make some changes to the way that the Continental Army was being administered. Improving pay would be great, but simply ensuring that pay happened on a regular basis would be even better. And, of course, if a standing army could be established, then the men would be locked in for longer periods of time, and his officers wouldn’t spend so much time training new recruits.

    Whether Congress agrees to this change…stay tuned.

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  • To Stay, Or Not To Stay?–September 12, 1776

    Cover art for September 12, 1776: "Washington's Council of War at Hopewell," James Edward Kelly, 1884. Cigar Box inner label based on a relief sculpture.

    George Washington’s Council of War finally got to meet on this day in 1776, to figure out what happens next.

    The Battle of Long Island was a rout for several reasons. In addition to the Continental Army being outnumbered by roughly two-to-one, there was poor communication and a couple of tactical errors. And the only reason more soldiers weren’t captured or killed was because poor weather prevented the British from figuring out that they were escaping across the East River until it was far too late.

    So, as any good soldier would, Washington took a moment out to seek advice from his Council of War. Nathanael Greene recommended just getting out of town and regrouping elsewhere, but he also suggested burning the city down to keep it out of British hands. Washington already knew that Congress didn’t like the burning thing.

    Most of Washington’s council recommended leaving the city, but Washington still wanted to ensure that some portions of the city were fortified and made appropriate plans. Unfortunately those plans fell apart rather quickly, as we’ll soon learn.

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  • Maintaining Motivation–August 11, 1776

    Cover art for August 11, 1776: "George Washington In Prayer at Valley Forge," bronze relief by James Edward Kelly, 1904. This can be seen at the front of Federal Hall in New York City.

    George Washington’s means for maintaining motivation in the Continental Army came from two directions: discipline and stirring rhetoric as a means of providing the troops with something to rally for.

    And his Orders of the Day for this day seem to be focused simultaneously on both.

    As noted elsewhere, Washington could be a stickler for protocol, and it shows in his Orders of the Day, which were usually written in the third person. But there was also some room—not a lot, but some—for a little floridness in his writing. For example, here’s an excerpt from today’s orders:

    The Honorable Continental Congress having been pleased to allow a Chaplain to each Regiment, with the pay of Thirty-three Dollars and one third per month—The Colonels or commanding officers of each regiment are directed to procure Chaplains accordingly; persons of good Characters and exemplary lives—To see that all inferior officers and soldiers pay them a suitable respect and attend carefully upon religious exercises: The blessing and protection of Heaven are at all times necessary but especially so in times of public distress and danger—The General hopes and trusts, that every officer, and man, will endeavour so to live, and act, as becomes a Christian Soldier defending the dearest Rights and Liberties of his country.

    In other words, God is here, we’re paying for him to be here, and God is someone you really don’t want to annoy, so get it together, please.

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  • Flying Camp Rations–August 9, 1776

    Cover art for August 9, 1776: the broadside issued this day outlining Flying Camp rations. via Library Company of Philadelphia.

    The idea to have a flying camp at all belonged to Geroge Washington. He knew that he was going to be facing huge numbers of British soldiers soon, and he proposed having a mobile unit that could show up wherever they were needed.

    While the soldiers came from three specific states, they were intended to be our first national force, with no specific state basis. Thus, they were recognized as “First Battalion,” “Second Battalion” and so on rather than “Burrell’s Connecticut Regiment” or “Pennsylvania Second Battalion”. That said, because there were specific quotas from each state, the various groups tended to have soldiers from those states and could still be identified as such.

    These men were largely able to focus on the defense of New Jersey while the main Continental Army spent its time in New York. However, several men from Maryland and Delaware were assigned to fight in Brooklyn Heights when the Battle of Long Island broke out, and most of them lost their lives. They did, however, manage to prevent the capture of most of Washington’s army, but it could be viewed as a Pyrrhic victory.

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  • Cleaning Up The Act–July 28, 1776

    Cover art for July 27, 1776: An anonymous engraving used to depict colonial-era medical practices.

    Hygiene in the Continental Army was practically nonexistent. As you can imagine, things got pretty ripe around camp, especially in the summer.

    And when people don’t take good care of such things, they’re probably going to wind up sick. Getting sick when you’re supposed to be on duty likely means that you’re going to do your “business” fairly close to where you’re working, This, in turn, is going to have the effect of getting other people sick while simultaneously perpetuating your own illness. This was especially true when such things took place too close to the water source, thereby contaminating that as well.

    Ain’t we got fun!

    There were a few people—the Officer grade men, primarily—who may not have known anything about bacteria, but they were able to see what and who was where, and connect the dots, so they began to take steps to help keep illness down.

    Did it help? Probably not right away, After all, the soldiers were still a rather undisciplined group, and maintaining hygiene in the Continental Army was pretty low on their personal priorities. If we had to guess, things probably abated a little bit, but didn’t really improve until the men that Silas Deane, et. al. came over and got things on track.

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  • The Schuyler Is Falling–July 24, 1776

    Cover art for July 24, 1776: portrait of Philip Schuyler by John Trumbull, 1792. Currently housed at the New York Historical Society.

    Philip Schuyler was part of a prominent New York family, enough that if you have any familiarity with that state’s history, you realize that the Schuyler name keeps popping up, especially during and shortly after the Revolution. (Similarly, the names Schermerhorn and Burr also manage to crop up a lot; Burr is probably the most famous name of the three but there are more Burrs than just Aaron.)

    Schuyler was born in Albany but moved to New Rochelle when he was eight years old, shortly after his father died. He fought in the French and Indian War, and was sent to England for three years afterward to help settle some expenses related to the war.

    Philip Schuyler was elected to the Second Continental Congress but left to become a general in the Continental Army, where he was involved with the failed invasion of Quebec. His health forced him to turn command over to General Montgomery, and in 1777 he returned to Congress.

    Later in life, he served as a Semator in the First US Congress, but lost his bid for re-election to Aaron Burr. (See? Popping up everywhere.) He did return to the Senate a few years later, and remained there until he resigned due to his health.

    Schuyler died at the Schuyler Mansion in Albany on November 18, 1804, four months after his son-in-law, Alexander Hamilton, was killed in a duel (by Aaron Burr) and two days before his 71st birthday. He is buried at Albany Rural Cemetery in Menands, New York, about 500 feet away from President Chester A. Arthur. It’s really a lovely place to visit and see the graves of several notable figures, not all of whom were “big” names historically unless you like to deep-dive into such things.

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  • When Accusation Is A Confession–July 22, 1776

    Cover art for July 22, 1776: General Lee on Horseback, Engraved by Johann Michael Probst, 1790. via Library of Congress.

    That Charles Lee turned out to be giving information to the British is one of those things that feels obvious in retrospect.

    As Mike notes during the episode, Lee was passed over for command of the Continental Army, and even though he was still in a position of importance and command, things like that can eat away at some people.

    Now, by most accounts, and through review of existing documents, Lee generally acquitted himself well in the Southern Department and in New York, although at the time of his capture there he was writing a letter to General Horatio Gates complaining that George Washington was somehow deficient.

    However, his attitude toward the Continental Army continued to deteriorate after his release in 1778. He was held partly responsible for the outcome of the Battle of Monmouth, likely because he was rather capricious with his actions. Because he behaved insubordinately afterward, Lee was court-martialed (at his demand) and found guilty, but given the very light sentence of a year’s suspension from the army. Before the year was out, however, he wrote an angry letter to Congress that resulted in his termination of service.

    It wasn’t until the 1850s that the New York Historical Society discovered a manuscript Lee had written while he was a prisoner of war. It was addressed to both Richard and William Howe, and outlined a plan by which the British could defeat the Continental Army. Whether Charles Lee is specifically guilty of treason is still debated among historians, though he’s commonly been presented as a villain in popular culture of the past 80 years or so.

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