Alexander Hamilton
1st United States Secretary of the Treasury
1755 CE to 1804 CE
Alexander Hamilton (January 11, 1755 or 1757 – July 12, 1804) is a Founding Father, soldier, economist, political philosopher, one of America's first constitutional lawyers and the first United States Secretary of the Treasury.
As Secretary of the Treasury, Hamilton is the primary author of the economic policies of the George Washington Administration, especially the funding of the state debts by the Federal government, the establishment of a national bank, a system of tariffs, and friendly trade relations with Britain.
He becomed the leader of the Federalist Party, created largely in support of his views, and is opposed by the Democratic-Republican Party, led by Thomas Jefferson and James Madison.
Hamilton served in the American Revolutionary War.
At the start of the war, he organized an artillery company and is chosen as its captain.
He later becomes the senior aide-de-camp and confidant to General George Washington, the American commander-in-chief.
He serves again under Washington in the army raised to defeat the Whiskey Rebellion, a tax revolt of western farmers in 1794.
In 1798, Hamilton calls for mobilization against France after the XYZ Affair, and secures an appointment as commander of a new army, which he trains for a war.
However, the Quasi-War, although hard-fought at sea, is never officially declared.
In the end, President John Adams finds a diplomatic solution that avoids war.
Of illegitimate birth and raised in the West Indies, Hamilton is effectively orphaned at about the age of 11.
Recognized for his abilities and talent, he is sponsored by people from his community to go to North America for his education.
He attends King's College (now Columbia University).
After the American Revolutionary War, Hamilton is elected to the Continental Congress from New York.
He resigns to practice law, and founds the Bank of New York.
Hamilton is among those dissatisfied with the first national constitution the Articles of Confederation, because it lacks a president, courts, and taxing powers.
He leads the Annapolis Convention, which successfully calls on Congress to issue a call for the Philadelphia Convention to create a new constitution.
He is an active participant and helps achieve ratification by writing half of the Federalist Papers, which supports the new constitution and to this day is the single most important source for Constitutional interpretation.
In the new government under President George Washington, Hamilton is appointed the Secretary of the Treasury.
An admirer of British political systems, Hamilton i a nationalist who emphasizes strong central government, and successfully argues that the implied powers of the Constitution can be used to fund the national debt, assume state debts, and create the government-owned Bank of the United States.
These programs are funded primarily by a tariff on imports and later also by a highly controversial excise tax on whiskey.
Embarrassed when an extramarital affair with Maria Reynolds becomes public, Hamilton resigns from office in 1795 and returns to the practice of law in New York.
He keeps his hand in politics and is a powerful influence on the cabinet of President Adams (1797–1801).
Hamilton's opposition to John Adams helps cause Adams' defeat in the 1800 elections.
When Thomas Jefferson and Aaron Burr tie in the electoral college, Hamilton helps defeat Burr, whom he fins unprincipled, and elect Jefferson as president despite philosophical differences.
After opposing Adams, the candidate of his own party, Hamilton loses some prominence within his own party.
Vice President Burr runs for governor in New York State, but Hamilton's influence in his home state is strong enough to prevent a Burr victory.
Taking offense at some of Hamilton's comments, Burr challenges him to a duel and mortally wounds Hamilton, who dies within days.
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The Continental Army has been put through a new training program, supervised by Baron von Steuben, introducing the most modern Prussian methods of drilling.
On May 5, 1778, on General Washington's recommendation, Congress appoints Steuben inspector general of the army, with the rank and pay of major general.
Internal administration has been neglected, and no books have been kept either as to supplies, clothing or men.
Steuben has become aware of the "administrative incompetence, graft, war profiteering" that exists.
He enforces the keeping of exact records and strict inspections.
His inspections save the army an estimated loss of five to eight thousand muskets.
Steuben has picked one hundred and twenty men from various regiments, to form an honor guard for General Washington, and has used them to demonstrate military training to the rest of the troops.
These men in turn train other personnel at Regimental and Brigade levels.
Steuben's eccentric personality greatly enhanced his mystique.
In full military dress uniform, he twice a day trains the soldiers who, at this point, are themselves greatly lacking in proper clothing.
As he can only speak and write a small amount of English, Steuben originally writes the drills in the German dialect of Prussian, the military language of Europe at the time.
His secretary, Du Ponceau, then translates the drills from Prussian into French, and a secretary for Washington translates it to English.
They do this every single night so Washington can command his soldiers in the morning.
Colonel Alexander Hamilton and General Nathanael Greene are of great help in assisting Steuben in drafting a training program for the Army.
The Baron's willingness and ability to work with the men, as well as his use of profanity (in several different languages), makes him popular among the soldiers.
It is here he has met his reputed future lover, Captain Benjamin Walker.
Upon meeting Walker for the first time he exclaimed "If I had seen an angel from Heaven I should not have more rejoiced."
Within weeks, Walker was Steuben's aide-de-camp.
Steuben introduced a system of progressive training, beginning with the school of the soldier, with and without arms, and going through the school of the regiment.
This corrects the previous policy of simply assigning personnel to regiments.
Each company commander is made responsible for the training of new men, but actual instruction is done by sergeants specifically selected for being the best obtainable.
The British control the coast line from the sea, two major cities, and the western frontier.
The treasury is in debt by $25 million (about $353 million today) and public credit has collapsed, of which Robert Morris again pays this debt from his personal funds.
With the failure of their own policies, Congress changes from the committee systems they had used for years and creates the first executive offices in American history.
In a unanimous vote, Congress appoints Morris to be Superintendent of Finance and Marine of the United States from 1781 to 1784.
His detractors worry he is gaining "dictatorial powers."
In defending himself from would-be critics, Morris insists Congress allow him to continue his private endeavors while serving in a related public office, Superintendent of Marine.
He is not active in private business during this term but remains a silent partner in various companies.
The United States government recalls its currency to counteract Britain’s undermining of its monetary value through the dumping of counterfeit money in America.
Earlier, on April 30, 1781, Alexander Hamilton had sent Morris a letter.
First, Hamilton revealed that he had recommended Morris for the position the previous summer when the constitution of the executive was being solidified.
Second, he proceeded to lay out a proposal for a National Bank.
Morris, who had corresponded with Hamilton previously (1780) on the subject of funding the war, immediately drafts a legislative proposal based on Hamilton's suggestion and submits it to the Congress three days after becoming Superintendent of Finance.
The original charter of May 26, 1781, calls for the disbursement of 1,000 shares priced at $400 each.
Benjamin Franklin purchases one share for 0.1% ownership as a sign of good faith to Federalists and the new bank and Hamilton make public endorsement of the establishment under his pseudonym.
William Bingham's first daughter, Ann Louisa Baring, was born the day before the bank opened, and her father purchases 9.5% of the shares for himself.
She is also the granddaughter of Thomas Willing, a primary shareholder and the original President of the bank offices at Philadelphia.
Robert Morris, using a gift/loan from France, purchases 63.3% of the original shares for the government.
Morris deposits large quantities of gold and silver coin and bills of exchange obtained through loans from the Netherlands and France.
He then issues new paper currency backed by this supply.
Congress have wisely appointed a superintendent of their finances,—a man of acknowledged abilities and integrity, as well as of great personal credit and pecuniary influence.
It was impossible that the business of finance could be ably conducted by a body of men however well composed or well-intentioned.
Order in the future management of our moneyed concerns, a strict regard to the performance of public engagements, and of course the restoration of public credit may be reasonably and confidently expected from Mr. Morris' administration if he is furnished with materials upon which to operate—that is, if the federal government can acquire funds as the basis of his arrangements.
He has very judiciously proposed a National Bank, which, by uniting the influence and interest of the moneyed men with the resources of government, can alone give it that durable and extensive credit of which it stands in need.
This is the best expedient he could have devised for relieving the public embarrassments, but to give success to the plan it is essential that Congress should have it in their power to support him with unexceptionable funds.
Had we begun the practice of funding four years ago, we should have avoided that depreciation of the currency which has been pernicious to the morals and to the credit of the nation, and there is no other method than this to prevent a continuance and multiplication of the evils flowing from that prolific source.
- 'The Continentalist' No. IV, August 30, 1781
Washington orders that all guns within range begin blasting the redoubts to weaken them for an evening assault.
Washington plans to use the cover of a moonless night to gain the element of surprise.
To reinforce the darkness, he adds silence, ordering that no soldier should load his musket until reaching the fortifications.
Redoubt 10 is near the river and holds only seventy men, while redoubt 9 is a quarter of a mile inland, and is held by one hundred and twenty British and Germans.
Both redoubts are heavily fortified with rows of abatis surrounding them, along with muddy ditches that surround the redoubts at about twenty-five yards (twenty-three meters).
Washington devises a plan in which the French will launch a diversionary attack on the Fusiliers redoubt, then a half an hour later, the French will assault redoubt 9 and the Americans redoubt 10.
Redoubt 9 will be assaulted by four hundred French regular soldiers under the command of the German Lieutenant Colonel Wilhelm von Zweibrücken and redoubt 10 will be assaulted by four hundred light infantry troops under the command of Alexander Hamilton.
There is briefly a dispute as to who should lead the attack on Redoubt No. 10.
Lafayette names his aide, Jean-Joseph Sourbader de Gimat, who commands a battalion of Continental light infantry.
However, Hamilton protests, saying that he is the senior officer.
Washington concurs with Hamilton and gives him command of the attack.
At 6:30 pm, gunfire announces the diversionary attack on the Fusiliers redoubt.
At other places in the line, movements are made as if preparing for an assault on Yorktown itself, which cause the British to panic.
With bayonets fixed, the Americans march towards Redoubt No. 10.
Hamilton sensds Lieutenant Colonel John Laurens around to the rear of the redoubt to prevent the British from escaping.
The Americans reach the redoubt and begin chopping through the British wooden defenses with their axes.
A British sentry calls a challenge, then fires at the Americans.
The Americans respond by charging with their bayonets towards the redoubt.
They hack through the abatis, cross a ditch and climb the parapet into the redoubt.
The Americans force their way into the redoubt falling into giant shell holes from the bombardment of the redoubts.
The British fire is heavy, but the Americans overwhelmed them.
The British throw hand grenades at the Americans with little effect.
Men in the trench stand on the shoulders of their comrades to climb into the redoubt.
The bayonet fight clears the British out of the redoubt and almost the entire garrison is captured, including the commander of the redoubt, Major Campbell.
In the assault, the Americans lose nine dead and twenty-five wounded.
The French assault begins at the same time, but they are halted by the abatis, which is undamaged by the artillery fire.
The French begin to hack at the abatis and a Hessian sentry comes out and asks who is there.
When there is no response, the sentry opens fire as do other Hessians on the parapet.
The French soldiers fire back, then charge the redoubt.
The Germans charge the Frenchmen climbing over the walls but the French fire a volley, driving them back.
The Hessians now take a defensive position behind some barrels but throw down their arms and surrender when the French prepare a bayonet charge.
With the capture of redoubts 9 and 10, Washington is able to have his artillery shell the town from three directions and the allies move some of their artillery into the redoubts.
He then orders a storming party of three hundred and fifty British troops under the command of Colonel Robert Abercromby to attack the allied lines and spike the American and French cannon (i.e., plug the touch hole with an iron spike).
The allies are sleeping and unprepared.
The British party spikes several cannon in the parallel, then spikes the guns on an unfinished redoubt.
A French party comes and drives them out of the allied lines and back to Yorktown.
The British have been able to spike six guns, but by the morning they will all be repaired.
The bombardment resumes with the American and French troops engaged in competition to see who can do the most damage to the enemy defenses.
In desperation, Cornwallis attempts to evacuate his troops across the York River to Gloucester Point.
At Gloucester Point the troops might be able to break through the allied lines and escape into Virginia and then march to New York.
One wave of boats makes it across but a squall hits when they return to take more soldiers across, making the evacuation impossible.
The fire on Yorktown from the allies is heavier than ever as new artillery pieces join the line.
Cornwallis talks with his officers and they agree that their situation is hopeless.
The bombardment ceases, and the officer is blindfolded and led behind the French and American lines.
To make sure that nothing falls apart between the French and Americans at the last minute, Washington orders that the French be given an equal share in every step of the surrender process.