#Rochambeau asks | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

selfproclaimed-historian · 3 months

Text

John Laurens’s great service

How he influenced french policy toward the united colnies.

Without the least intention of detracting from Dr. Benjamin Franklin's undying merit of having perfected the alliance between the American Colonies and France, which league chiefly contributed to the happy consummation of the American War of Independence, still it cannot be denied that the energetic assistance which France had at first accorded to the Colonies had In 1780 grown somewhat lukewarm, on which account Gen. Washington asked Congress to dispatch an envoy extraordinary to France with a view to animate that power to redoubled exertions in furnishing fleets, troops, money, and war material, wherewith to come to the substantial and effective aid of her struggling allies. Congress readily acceded to Washington's request, who selected as envoy Lieut. Col. John Laurens, a young man twenty-seven years of age, but well skilled in diplomatic affairs, perfect master of the French tongue, acquired in France, and, withal, a true American patriot. He undertook the mission in 1781, having as his secretary Major Jackson of Philadelphia.

American historians have mentioned the fact of the mission of John Laurens, a native of South Carolina and son of the illustrious Henry Laurens, who served in country first in 1775 as President of the Committee of Safety, next in 1777, as President of Congress, and last, in 1782, as Commissioner for the treaty of Paris, after a fifteen months’ imprisonment in the Tower of London, answering the British attempts to seduce him from his allegiance to his country with the reply: ”I will never subscribe to my infamy or to the dishonor of my children,” and meeting their threats of confiscating his American possessions with the response: “None of these things can move me.”

But the American historians fall in every instance to give a detailed account of the means by which John Laurens succeeded in accomplishing his mission most thoroughly and effectively, and which are truthfully stated in Major Jackson’s report. The latter relates in plain but convincing terms how John Laurens, upon his arrival on French soil, first had an interview alone with Count de Vergeunes, the Minister of War, from whose whole manner he instantly concluded the intention of the French Cabinet of withholding effective aid from the Colonies, so as to render them more subservient to French interests by a protraction of the war, which would exhaust their means and resources. When a second interview held in the presence of Dr. Franklin, to whom the French Minister, in answer to the urgent requests of John Laurens, referred by the words: “Mais, voilà, Monsieur Franklin; il est très content de nous,” convinced the American Envoy Extraordinary of the fruitlessness of his negotiations with the French diplomat, he resolved, as his last expedient, upon a step of unprecedented boldness, and having penned an eloquent memorial, setting forth the advantages for France of an immediate vigorous assistance of her allies, the American Colonies, he appeared one day at King Louis XIV’s levee, to whom, contrary to all court etiquette, he handed in person his manuscript of the Ministers who were in attendance.

The result was that the very next day John Laurens received from the Minister President Necker an invitation to call on him at a stated time, and was informed then that the King readily acceded to all the demand of the American Congress, and that the Minister of the Marine was commissioned with the instant execution of all stipulations, which would be mutually agreed upon the next day.

These were the instant sailing to America of a strong French fleet under the command of Admiral La Grasse and the immediate dispatch of an order to Count de Rochambeau, then with a French army in Rhode Island, to unite with Gen. Washington, as well ad the liberal supply on the part of France of money and war material to the American Colonies, and they resulted the surrender of Cornwallis at Yorktown.

“Thus,” concludes Major Jackson, the secretary of John Laurens, in his memorable report, “was this important negotiation, which was certainly the hinge on which the success of Revolution then turned, brought to a happy close by the wisdom and decision of a young man who had not then attained his twenty-eighth year, but whose matured mind and heroic spirit admitted no other rule of official conduct than the honor and interest of his beloved country.”

John Laurens fell in an unimportant skirmish with a British marauding party at the Combahee, Aug. 26, 1782, and his body was deposited in the earth near the place where he died, on the plantation of Mrs. Stock, within a simple inclosure, which, as Johnson says in his biography of Gen. Greene, “seems to excite, not answer the inquiry; ‘What undistinguished stranger lies buried here?’.”

DR. F. Muench.

Charleston, S. C., Sept. 15, 1897

#john laurens #history of america #history

3 notes · View notes

alpama · 6 months

Text

Haunted House PSA #3

Don't try to get actors to break character. Please refrain from saying actors are hot, asking actors out, asking for fistbumps or games of Rochambeau or pictures, or trying to scare the actors.

We aren't allowed to hit you, but, trust me, we definitely entertain the idea.

#haunted house #halloween #psa

2 notes · View notes

pub-lius · 2 years

Text

part something of research for @thereallvrb0y

I'm so productive today so here we go. Today, we got Ben Tallmadge, James McHenry, John and Abigail Adams. Love you, Richie

@thereallvrb0y

Oh, also, for my sources, I really just used Mount Vernon and the White House website because I am a capitalist piece of shit. (the white house has the best timeline, Mount Vernon has more specifics)

Benjamin Tallmadge

Benjamin Tallmadge was born on February 25, 1754 in Setauket, Long Island *insert Turn theme* as the second of five sons to Reverend Benjamin Tallmadge and Susannah Tallmadge. He was educated in the classics by his father, who didn't send him to Yale until 1769.

"President Dagge[t, at that University], on a visit to [his] father, examined and admitted [Tallboy] as qualified to enter college, when [he] was twelve or thirteen years old."

Tallmadge developed a "close friendship" with Nathan Hale as a student at Yale. I'll let someone more eloquent in Halemadge mythology tackle that information, but to me they seem kinda sus but slay.

He completed his studies in 1773 and took up a teaching post at a school in Wethersfield, Connecticut. However, after the disaster that was 1775, Tallmadge began seriously considering joining the Army. He was offered the position of lieutenant in one of the six month regiments in Connecticut by Captain Chester of Wethersfield in 1776. He first saw action in the Battle of Long Island in August 1776, which was a British victory. Meanwhile, his older brother, William, was taken prisoner at Long Island and "literally starved to death in one of [the British] prisons."

But all that bad stuff is okay because in December of that year, he was appointed to a captain in Colonel Elisha Sheldon's 2d Regiment of Light Dragoons, then rose to the rank of major in April 1777. They grow up so fast. Tallmadge was also present at Brandywine and Germantown, which would be slay queen pussy boss, if both those battles weren't losses lol.

In 1778, Tallmadge was appointed director of military intelligence by Washington, with a focus on getting information from New York City, so "[he] opened a private correspondence with some persons in New York (for Gen. Washington) which lasted through the war." This was, you guessed it, Abraham Woodhull, Caleb Brewster, Anna Strong (allegedly!), Robert Townsend, and Austin Roe (we don't know who tf that is).

Those people formed the Culper Spy Ring, named after the nickname given to Woodhull, "Samuel Culper." Tallmadge was given a similar nickname, "John Bolton".

A system was created for the spies in which numbers were substituted for common words, names, and places. A key was provided to Washington, Woodhull, and Townsend. Washington also provided them with invisible ink because apparently he's Dumbledore. A message would be written with it, sometimes on the back of a normal letter, for the recipient to treat the paper with a reagent to reveal the message. This, apparently, saw significant use.

"I have not any of the Ink, but I will endeavor to provide some of it as soon as possible," -Washington to Tallmadge on April 30, 1779

The Spy Ring prevented a British fleet from sailing for Rhode Island in July 1780. Woodhull passed the intelligence of the fleet to Tallmadge, who allerted Washington. A fake plan of attacking New York was made, which made the British recall their ships, and allowed Lafayette and Rochambeau to land 6,000 troops at Newport.

Tallmadge also played a significant role in the apprehension of John Andre. If you want the whole story of John Andre's arrest and Benedict Arnold's flee from West Point, I have that shit memorized and I love talking about it so send me an ask bc I don't feel like typing all that shit out rn lol.

After the war, Tallmadge returned to civilian life with his wife, Mary Floyd Tallmadge, and their seven children in Connecticut. He entered into several business and financial ventures, for example serving as president of the Phoenix Bank and joined the Ohio Company to purchase and resell land in the west.

During Washington's first presidential term, Tallmadge was given the position of postmaster for Litchfield, Connecticut. He was elected to Congress in 1800 as a Federalist (here in my notes I wrote "freaks who fuck together federal together" and I'm not sure why, but there you go) and remained in the House until 1817. He died at 81 in 1835.

James McHenry

James McHenry was born on November 16, 1753 in County Antrim, Ireland. He was classically educated in Dublin before immigrating to Philadelphia in 1771. He returned to Philadelphia from a term at Newark Academy in Delaware to study medicine under Dr. Benjamin Rush in the years leading up to the Revolutionary War.

He put his medical training to good use in the "American Continental Hospital" (idk why that's in quotes but I figured it's important) near Boston in the Autumn of 1775. He followed the Army to New York and was appointed surgeon for the 5th Pennsylvania Regiment on August 10, 1776. He was captured less than three months later with over 2,800 soldiers at the fall of Fort Washington on November 16, 1776. McHenry actively treated wounded comrades during captivity and informed Washington of the condition of prisoners of war in New York. He was exchanged in March 1778.

McHenry returned to his duty as a senior surgeon at Valley Forge. He accepted Washington's invitation to join his staff as an assistant secretary without a rank. He assisted in the duties of an aide-de-camp, and became particular friends with Alexander Hamilton, which is a job all within itself. He formed the opinion that Washington "is a singular exhibition of Human Excellence."

He proved himself "worthy to wield the sword as the pen" at Monmouth on June 28, 1778. He transferred to Lafayette's staff in August 1780 as an aide-de-camp and was given the rank of Major on October 30, 1780. McHenry "tempered the young Frenchman's ardor" during the 1781 Virginia campaign. He fought at the Battle of Green Spring and at Yorktown.

Oh, also, he was the only one on Hamilton's side at his wedding. Like literally everyone else there was in the Schuyler family or were family friends. Isn't that depressing. Anyway.

In December 1781, McHenry resigned military commission to sit in the Maryland senate. He began a correspondence with Washington in order to keep him aware of the political state of affairs that would continue for fourteen years. He held a number of local, state, and national government positions, including being a Maryland representative to the Constitutional Convention, where he reluctantly signed the document and voted for ratification.

Washington offered him the position of Secretary of War in early 1796 after three others declined. He remained in the cabinet of John Adams. During the Quasi war, in 1798, Washington expressed disappointment in Mchenry during the initial months of preparation for war. Despite this, he proved to be a capable Secretary, despite dealing with fucking John fucking Adams and "two domineering generals" aka Hamilton and Washington.

Adams forced McHenry's resignation in May of 1800 because he was loyal to Hamilton, and McHenry retired to his estate near Baltimore before his passing on May 3, 1816.

John Adams

John fucking Adams was born in the Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1735. His father was from Braintree, Massachusetts and was a farmer and a cobbler. Adams was educated at Harvard in 1751 and then decided to be a lawyer.

He married Abigail Smith in 1764. She was the daughter of a Weymouth, Congregationalist minister and granddaughter of pre-revolutionary era politician, John Quincy. They ended up having six kids and managing a farm together.

During the war, Adams served as a delegate to the First and Second Continental Congresses where he led the movement for Independence. He met George Washington for the first time in 1774. They dined together several times, and he respected Washington greatly. In 1775, he pushed Congress for him to be Commander in Chief of the Continental Army.

"This Appointment will have a great Effect, in cementing and securing the Union of these Colonies." -John Adams

Adams served in France and Holland in diplomatic roles during the war and helped negotiate the Treaty of Paris. However, he wasn't really a good diplomat. Everyone thought he was blunt, annoying, impatient, hypersensitive to criticism, and a fucking asshole. He would also convince himself that everyone else was evil and out to get him in some way. The most outrageous example of this, in my opinion, was the one time he accused the Marquis de Lafayette of attempting to colonize America... I'll let that sink in for a moment. Marquis de I'm-fucking-obsessed-with-America Lafayette. Mf literally had an America themed house and Adams thought "yep. he's plotting the downfall of this country." So that was fucking stupid.

Tl;dr Adams isn't as great as mainstream media thinks he is.

Adams also served as minister to the Court of St. James's from 1785-1788 but that was irrelevant apparently because I have no info on it lol.

Adams wanted to return when he got back to America but instead had to serve as Vice President and I don't feel bad for him. He didn't like being Vice President though, and I still don't feel bad for him.

"My country has in its wisdom contrived for me the most insignificant office that ever the invention of man contrived or his imagination conceived." -John Adams to Abigail Adams

He was a one term president after that and geez was that one term a mess. There was a war between France and Britain going on because the French are continually fucking up international affairs at this time, and that caused complication in American shipping and domestic affairs. Why domestic affairs, you ask? Take one guess. You're right, it's Hamilton.

Specifically Hamilton and Jefferson. Because of fucking course. The Federalist (Hamilton and Adams' party) wanted to support Britain because the French were too liberal, and the Democratic Republicans (Jefferson, Madison and Monroe's party/ies, it's complicated) wanted to support France because they were allies to the US once blah blah blah they were just liberal.

However, this all was different when um. France kind of. Fucked everything up. Again.

So basically Adams sent three commissioners to France to try to get them to stop fucking up everything so the US could mind their business. However, in the spring of 98, a little birdie tells Adams that French Foreign Minister Talleyrand (a fashion icon let me tell you /j) and the French Directory refused to negotiate unless the US gave them money.

Adams, a Federalist, was like FUCK THAT and snitched to COngress who was also like fuck that, and the Senate printed the correspondence, which only referred to the French commissioners or whatever they were as "X, Y, and Z" *roll credits*

The nation had "the X. Y. Z. fever" in the words of Tommy J which increased the popularity of the Federalist party because they realized the French were fucking everything up, and people even liked Adams for a little while.

So this caused some problems later, but I'll get to that in a sec. When the debate of France vs Britain was still largely 50/50, Adams approved this little thing you might have heard of called the Alien and Sedition Acts. These were acts made to "frighten foreign agents out of the country and stifle the attacks of Republican editors." To translate out of propaganda speak, Adams was trying to limit the rights of immigrants and stop people from printing negative things about him. So you know. Infringing on Constitutional Rights. (oh, btw, Hamilton agreed with these, which is why people say he was anti-immigrant)

Anyway back to the XYZ affair kind of. Basically, because of those proceedings, the US was like "...well we're fucked." And they were, because France started fighting America on the sea. And at this point in history, America was. detrimentally fucked when it came to anything military.

American shipping was basically defenseless since they disowned Daddy Britain who had big guns and big money, both of which were used to protect shipping. For example, (this comes up later with Jefferson), the Barbary states in North Africa had pirates that would attack European merchant vessels to steal their merchandise as well as the people on board to enslave. The European superpowers (Britain, Spain, France, etc.) would large sums of money for the Barbarian governments to keep their pirates from attacking their shipping. America didn't have that kind of money. And because they didn't have that kind of money to pay bribes, they didn't have that kind of money to buy guns. or ships. or gunpowder. or food. or like anything you need to run a navy.

So France was basically decimating American merchant ships. But they chilled out by 1800 because shit was going down. The Federalists called it a war since Daddy Hamilton was angry, but war was never officially declared, so we call it what the Democratic Republicans called it, the Quasi War.

Long negotiations ended the Quasi War and I don't care. However, someone special was a little bit kind of extremely PISSED that Adams sent a peace mission to France. Take one guess- you know what I'm not even going to let you finish, it's Hamilton.

By the time of the election of 1800, Republicans had their shit together. They knew Jefferson was the most obvious choice for president, with Burr being the kind of underdog that still had potential, however the Federalists were fucked, since the party was already dying. Now you're thinking, but wait, I thought Adams was Federalist. We'll not anymore because the sluttiness in the room is about to get ASTRONOMICAL.

Hamilton and Adams were on each other's shit list since the Revolutionary War. Hamilton hated Adams because Adams was in the Continental Congress and ignored how the army was struggling in order to make a point, and Adams hated Hamilton because Hamilton made him wake up at 3 am once (evacuation of Philadelphia).

Hamilton's political influence was so great, not because he was widely respected (he wasn't) but because he had people in nearly every position that he could influence to vote in the direction that benefited him most. It didn't always work, but it worked in Adams' case.

This was also another reason Hamilton didn't like Adams because, despite being in the same party as him, Adams was too stubborn to be manipulated by Hamilton. Also, when they were both in the cabinet, Adams was mostly, if not entirely, outcast from the proceedings, mainly because of how Hamilton and Jefferson overshadowed the other cabinet members with their big personalities, big opinions, and intense rivalry. To compound this even further, Hamilton held both second and first in command positions (the latter after Washington retired [again]). So for basically an entire decade, Hamilton unofficially outranked Adams, even though Adams held the more important position.

Their rivalry wasn't personal like Hamilton and Madison/Monroe, nor was it like Hamilton and Jefferson's rivalries where they were basically the antithesis of one another. It was really just political, but because they both expected the other to agree, being in the same party, and also because they were both so hypersensitive to criticism, it became very personal in their eyes.

Hamilton wanted Adams gone. And he handled this quite differently from how Jefferson handled it, even though they both wanted Adams out of the running.

Jefferson was basically the master of eliminating his political enemies from the competition. He, like many other statesmen of the time, including Hamilton, owned publishing companies where he would commission writers to publish slander against his political enemies in order to worsen public opinion of them, therefore losing them the majority of popular vote, and by extension, the electoral vote. This was the smart way to go about things, because it was anonymous, there was no risk of damage to Jefferson's public image most of the time. Emphasis on most of the time, because the newspaper wars of the earlier 1790s weren't as anonymous but whatever.

While Hamilton did utilize this strategy, when it was a case like Adams where he needed to deal the most about of damage as fast as possible, he needed to use more than one strategy at once. So in conjunction with the above, he also spread rumors, like he did with Burr at this exact same time, he made a direct publication(s). I put that s there because I haven't gotten to look into this era of Hamilton's life in excessive detail, so I don't know all the facts, but I do know how Hamilton works.

Essentially, Hamilton struck Adams' reputation on three fronts: word on the street, pamphlets circulating, and newspaper articles. Adding Jefferson's efforts, along with Hamilton's influence among the electoral voters, Adams was cast out of the running fairly quickly.

Adams gave up on politics after that, and retired to his farm in Quincy, and rebuilt his relationship with Jefferson, which had died sometime during the Washington administration, and they remained friends until July 4, 1826, when they both died.

"Thomas Jefferson survives" -John Adams' last words, not knowing Jefferson had died a few hours earlier. Dumbass.

Abigail Adams

Abigail Smith was born in 1744 at Weymouth, Massachusetts. She was descended from the Quincys on her mother's side. Every colony had Those Families that were pretty much their since the founding and made up the elite of that colony. New York had the Schuylers, Van Rensselaers, and Livingstons, Virginia had the Jeffersons, the Washingtons, and the other one, South Carolina had the Ramsays and the Pickneys, and Massachusetts had the Quincys and the Adamses.

Abigail lacked formal education, like most other women, but was known for her keen intelligence that she gained from reading whatever she could. This love of reading created a bond between her and John Adams, and they got married in 1764 when she was 19.

They lived together in John's farm at Braintree or in Boston when he had to do lawyer things. She had three sons and two daughters in ten years (ouch) and looked after the family and their home when John was running around the globe getting fired from every job he had.

"Alas! How many snow banks divide thee and me..." -Abigail Adams to John Adams in December 1773

They were apart for most of their relationship, and I think they're one of the best examples of the 18th century, mid-upper class relationship between husband and wife. In the American culture of this time, the wife was expected to remain home and raise the children, while also being involved in local politics and diplomacy to maintain the family name, while the husband was expected to have a similar role in state/national affairs. This is why you often see, in the upper class, women having prominent roles in their family and community.

Abigail joined John in Paris in 1784. Then, after 1785, she had to define and fill the role of wife of the first United States Minister to Great Britain, and she absolutely slayed. Then, they returned to Massachusetts in 1788.

Abigail had much a much more defined political ideology than other women at their time, even if they were equally involved in politics, because of how boldly she informed her husband, as well as the Massachusetts Colony General Court in 1775, of her beliefs. She was a humanitarian and an activist, with an unbiased opinion of the United States. She advocated for gender equality in public education and the need to pay attention to how women were affected by current events. When she was informed that the Declaration of Independence was to be written, she reminded her husband to, "Remember the Ladies..."

She also wrote a will that left the majority of her possessions to her female family members, which was surprising since her belongings would technically belong to her husband. As if he could argue with her. She was smarter than him.

Although Adams rarely listened to his wife, her opinions influenced him heavily. She had so much influence over him that she was nicknamed "Mrs. President" which I think is iconic.

She also believed in the necessity of emancipation, and firmly believed in independence, saying, "Let us separate, they are unworthy to be our Brethren. Let us renounce them..."

As the wife of the Vice President, she became good friends with Martha Washington, helping her with official entertaining, since she had experience in foreign courts. However, she became sick frequently after 1791, so she was in Massachusetts most of the time.

Funny story about when she met George Washington, she kind of didn't like him because he had slaves and was a member of the Virginia planter elite. But, after meeting him, she was "struck with General Washington" and said that he was marked by "Dignity with ease... the Gentleman and Soldier look agreeably blended in him."

When Adams became president, she continued a formal pattern of entertaining, even if the capital was kind of... not there. She fucking hated it.

She retired with her husband in 1801, and lived a happy life until 1818 when she died. She is buried beside her husband in United First Parish Church.

Okay geez that was a lot, I did this all in one day FHSKJHSKLJH (not the tallmadge and mchenry notes, i did those a while back, hence why i can't decipher "freaks who fuck together federal together). my wrist hurts so im going to go play minecraft and probably read fanfiction since ive got Hamilton on the brain (if you couldn't tell). hope this helps. love ya!!!!

#history #amrev #amrev history #american revolution #american history #benjamin tallmadge #james mchenry #john adams #abigail adams #alexander hamilton #hamilton #historical hamilton #thomas jefferson #if you can't tell i don't like adams #and im sure there are some positive things out there about him #i just cannot conjure those words myself #election of 1800 #i had a really bad american history teacher in 7th grade so now whenever i have to talk or think about the xyz affair or the quasi war #part of me dies #but man am i glad to be done with this #also i think the schedule of me working on history on saturdays works pretty well because its easy work but still productive #im on a roll guys don't let me get off track #jk you're not responsible for me #but if i don't post for like months yell at me #be mean its okay #also ignore any typos you can't pay me to proofread my tumblr posts #i already cross referenced what more do you want from me #okay i'll shut up now #do it for richie 💪

24 notes · View notes

nordleuchten · 1 year

Text

24 Days of La Fayette: December 9th - Comte de Charlus

Armand-Charles-Augustin de La Croix de Castries, comte de Charlus was a French nobleman that served as a Colonel en Second in the Saintonge Regiment. The Regiment was founded as the 85e Regiment of the Line in 1684. In 1780, during the Revolutionary War it was dispatched to the former colonies under the command of the comte de Rochembeau and participated in the battle of Yorktown. After the French Revolution, the regiment was transformed into the 82e Regiment of Infantry.

Charlus was born on May 23, 1756 as the oldest son of Charles Eugène Gabriel de La Croix de Castries, marquis de Castries (1727-1801) and Gabrielle Isabeau Thérèse de Rosset. Castries served as Secretray of the French Navy from 1780 until 1787. He was made a Marshal of France in 1783.

The Marquis de Chastellux described Charlus career and character as follows in a letter to George Washington from January 12, 1781:

Count de Charlus the son of marquis de Castries our new minister is a young gentleman endowed with the best and most amiable qualities, but i may do him justice in a word by saying that he is a worthy friend to marquis de la fayette. he resigned a colonelship at home to serve in America and left in france a very handsome lady whom he had married the month before. I hope that he will testify to your excellency the respect and the attachment of the whole french army (…).

"To George Washington from François-Jean de Beauvoir, marquis de Chastellux, 12 January 1781,” Founders Online, National Archives, [This is an Early Access document from The Papers of George Washington. It is not an authoritative final version.] (09/09/2022)

Charlus had already been a friend of La Fayette when he came over with his regiment, but their relationship deepened after Charlus offered his service as a volunteer aide-de-camp in March of 1781. The comte de Charlus joined La Fayette along with the comte de Dillon and the comte (?) de Sainte-Maime. All three men were friends of La Fayette and joined him in order to support his expedition against Benedict Arnold in Virginia. It appears that only Charlus served directly as an aide-de-camp. By April of the same years, the three men had left Virginia for Rhode Island, making Charlus’ service a rather short one.

La Fayette wrote in a letter to George Washington dated February 24, 1781:

Count de Ste Mîme and Mons. de St Victor are with me-- They ask Your permission to follow me and so will Count de Charlus &c. -- I told them that You would Have No objection to it As far as may Be Consistent with their Arrangements with Count de Rochambeau upon which You will not Intrude, and that the American Army will Be Happy in all times to Be Honor’d with the visit of Such Volonteers-- But these Expressions will still do Better from You, and the word Volonteer must not Be forgotten for Reasons obvious in any thing You’ll order me to Answer to them.

"To George Washington from Marie-Joseph-Paul-Yves-Roch-Gilbert du Motier, marquis de Lafayette, 24 February 1781,” Founders Online, National Archives, [This is an Early Access document from The Papers of George Washington. It is not an authoritative final version.] (09/09/2022)

La Fayette described the whole situation further in a letter to the Prince de Poix from August 24, 1781:

You will already have learned that Charlus came to Virginia with me. He had permission to travel, but they compelled him to return nonetheless, an event that has not affected him very much.

Idzerda Stanley J. et al., editors, Lafayette in the Age of the American Revolution: Selected Letters and Papers, 1776–1790, Volume 4, April 1, 1781–December 23, 1781, Cornell University Press, 1981, p. 356-349.

La Fayette and Charlus were reunited for the Battle of Yorktown although they were not directly serving together. We have previous letters where La Fayette expresses his warm feelings for Charlus but his letter from October 20, 1781 is my favourite example of these warm feelings. La Fayette wrote to the Prince de Poix:

I become more and more attached to Charlus. To the distinguished qualities that make him esteemed, he joins all those that make him loved. (…) Charlus, the vicomte, Damas, and I live as intimately together as in Paris.

Shortly after the Battle of Yorktown, Charlus returned to France where his military career continued to thrive. La Fayette wrote in a letter to George Washington on January 18, 1782:

Charlus is adjutant General of the Gendarmerie of France Which his Father Commands.

"To George Washington from Marie-Joseph-Paul-Yves-Roch-Gilbert du Motier, marquis de Lafayette, 18 January 1782,” Founders Online, National Archives, [This is an Early Access document from The Papers of George Washington. It is not an authoritative final version.] (09/09/2022)

The Marquis mentioned Charlus career again in a letter to George Washington from May 24, 1786:

Count de charlus, now Called duke de Castries, is Commander in second of the Gendarmerie which is Commanded by His father.

“To George Washington from Lafayette, 24 May 1786,” Founders Online, National Archives, [Original source: The Papers of George Washington, Confederation Series, vol. 4, 2 April 1786 – 31 January 1787, ed. W. W. Abbot. Charlottesville: University Press of Virginia, 1995, pp. 71–73.] (09/09/2022)

Their apparent closeness should make for a great friendship between La Fayette and Charlus, should it not? Well, let me introduce you to a little something called the French Revolution.

Charlus was initially quite positive towards the Revolution and even supported the abolishing of privileges for the nobility – at heart he however remained the most astute royalist. It did not took him and La Fayette too long to clash over the politic of the Revolution. Charlus even duelled Charles Lameth, the brother of Alexandre Lameth, La Fayette’s fellow prisoner. Lameth was slightly wounded during the duel.

Charlus fled to Coppet in Switzerland where he had family and joined the Armée des émigrés in 1794 and founded his own regiment. He only returned back to France after the Restauration in 1814. He died on January 19, 1842.

Charlus had a younger sister, Adélaïde Marie de La Croix de Castries, who married the Vicomte de Mailly in 1767. He had been married twice and each marriage produced one surviving son. He was succeeded by his first born son, Edmond Eugène Philippe Hercule de La Croix de Castries.

#24 days of la fayette #marquis de lafayette #la fayette #french history #american history #american revolution #french revolution #letter #history #lafayette's aide-de-camps #comte de charlus #george washington #founders online #marquis de chastellux #1781 #1782 #1786 #1842 #1756

9 notes · View notes

todayshistory · 2 years

Text

Today In History:

A bit of October 19th history…

202 BC - Battle of Zama: Hannibal Barca and the Carthaginian army are defeated by Roman legions under Scipio Africanus, ending 2nd Punic War

1781 - British forces under General Cornwallis sign terms of surrender to Washington and de Rochambeau at Yorktown, ending the US Revolutionary War (pictured)

1901 - Edward Elgar’s “Pomp and Circumstance March” premiers in Liverpool

1943 - Streptomycin, the 1st antibiotic remedy for tuberculosis, is isolated

2005 - Saddam Hussein goes on trial in Baghdad for crimes against humanity

2014 - A working human intestine is generated in a lab from stem cells in the US

2019 - UK parliament votes for the Letwin Amendment in a special Saturday sitting, which forces Boris Johnson to ask the EU for an extension and delays vote on his Brexit deal

#Today In History:

0 notes

ruvieracd · 3 years

Note

Lyra has a nightmare and Lee isn't around. Who does she go to? Who's the one she's closest to after Lee?

Um...so I can’t imagine Lee not being around, but if he wasn’t, I’d say she’d go to Usnavi first-you guys are going to get to see her interacting with all of them one on one very soon, but Usnavi is already raising a kid so I’d imagine he’d know how to comfort her the best. They are all going to be stand-in dads for her. Trust me. These are HER boys.

#lee scoresby #Lyra Belacqua #his dark materials #hdm #usnavi de la vega #in the heights #alexander hamilton #hamilton #do no harm #ruben marcado #juan alvarez #fic stuff #rochambeau asks #rochambeau

20 notes · View notes

nicojoe · 2 years

Note

#imagine Andy *INSISTING* that she be part of the chase and joe & nicky having kittens at the thought but eventually relenting#and then doing rock paper scissors or something to decide which one of them will go with her lmaooo -> this would be hilarious, tbh. i need to see it!

Fun fact! Apparently “rock, paper, scissors” had its origins during the Han Dynasty in China (206 BCE - 220 CE), and was originally called shoushiling: the three choices were "frog, poisonous centipede, and snake".

In other words, they’ve probably made impetuous decisions this way for centuries. LMAO.

#and agreed i think i would die laughing if i ever saw joe and nicky Rochambeau-ing each other #anon #anonymous #asks

12 notes · View notes

thebulletinhamilton-quotes · 5 years

Note

Rochambeau??

Rochambeau = What do you think of me? Be honest.

First off, I think you are hilarious and whenever I see your name pop up, it always makes my day. I enjoy getting to know you and talking with you more and more as I can, so I appreciate it. I’m still getting to know you but I would say you are a smart, driven, humorous, and kind individual. I look forward to getting to know you better :)

PS can I also say how patient you are too?? I take forever to respond so I appreciate your patience with it, I really do!!

Thank you so much for the ask @alexxanderhamiltrash !! I hope this answers your question! I always look forward to seeing your name pop up!

#hamilton ask list #hamilton ask list meme #alexxanderhamiltrash #rochambeau #thebulletinhamiltonquotes answered #ask answered

10 notes · View notes

rainchyme · 2 years

Text

I'll just tag the people who asked to see this bc I have no clue how tumblr works oml @maximum-rude @red-rochambeau

It doesn't follow the maximum ride series, not really. It's more focusing on the labs being bad and needing to take them down, but it's 100% a romantic fic.

It's also very cringe and embarrassing and I apologise for the mistakes I write it at 4am

#Should I add maximum ride tags #I guess #Uh okay #Maximum ride #Iggy #Iggy ride #Yep #Okay #I'm actually so embarrassed to post this here even though its my baby haha

15 notes · View notes

whattolearntoday · 3 years

Photo

A bit of October 19th history...

202 BC - Battle of Zama: Hannibal Barca and the Carthaginian army are defeated by Roman legions under Scipio Africanus, ending 2nd Punic War

1781 - British forces under General Cornwallis sign terms of surrender to Washington and de Rochambeau at Yorktown, ending the US Revolutionary War

1901 - Edward Elgar’s “Pomp and Circumstance March” premiers in Liverpool

1943 - Streptomycin, the 1st antibiotic remedy for tuberculosis, is isolated

2005 - Saddam Hussein goes on trial in Baghdad for crimes against humanity

2014 - A working human intestine is generated in a lab from stem cells in the US (pictured)

2019 - UK parliament votes for the Letwin Amendment in a special Saturday sitting, which forces Boris Johnson to ask the EU for an extension and delays vote on his Brexit deal

#history #anthropology #punic war #revolutionary war #pomp and circumstance #tuberculosis #saddam hussein #stem cells #brexit

37 notes · View notes

first-empire-fancy-boys · 2 years

Text

Lejeune talking about Berthier

This is right after Lejeune's Spain report not getting much use.

Major-General Prince Berthier was good enough to drive me back to Paris, and the next day I went with him to join a hunting party at Grosbois, where he and his family were just then staying. This journey of six or seven leagues with the Prince was of deep interest to me. for in it I really got to know something about the General's kind heart, which I should perhaps never otherwise have done, for he made a point of always appearing grave and severe with his young officers. He looked at me now again and again with a happy, almost eager expression of affection, such as a father would wear who had regained a beloved son whose loss he had mourned. He maintained, however, the dignified silence of a commander, only breaking it now and then with an eager question, showing how great was his interest in what I was saying, and how much he felt for the sufferings I had gone through. Prince Berthier was very different in this respect from the Emperor, who was always very free and easy when he wanted to get information, and only put on a solemn manner when dismissing those he received. The Prince maintained, on the other hand, a dignified reserve with those under him, concealing with difficulty the promptings of his generous nature, and never yielding to the gaiety which really was part of his character, except with those over whom he had no authority. Prince Berthier's career had really been more brilliant than that of any of the officers immediately surrounding our Caesar, but he never assumed any special distinction, for he was always simple, modest, polite, and natural in his manner. He was never known to utter a word which could wound the self-respect of his subalterns, but, on the contrary, he tried to the utmost of his power to increase the dignity of their position. Only once did I see him out of temper, and that was with his young brother, whom he overheard asking me very politely to hold his horse for him for a minute. 'For whom do you take my aides-de-camp?' he cried with an angry gesture. His ordinary expression was one of benevolence; he was very generous, and he often secretly gave me from twenty-five to fifty louis d'or for emigrants who had returned home in poverty. Later, after the Restoration, I often heard the very people he had helped speak of him as M. Berthier without any title. He really was also the most indefatigable person I knew, and when I one day congratulated Count Daru on his wonderful power of sustaining fatigue and doing without sleep, he said to me, 'The Prince of Neuchatel is even stronger than I am; I never spent more than nine days and nights without going to bed, but Berthier has been in the saddle for thirteen days and nights at a stretch.' The Prince had never given much time to the study of literature, as his way of expressing himself sometimes betrayed, but he was a very good geometrician, and had worked hard at mathematics when a boy, and his orders, whether verbal or written, were always couched in terms so lucid and simple that a very few words sufficed to describe the most complicated manoeuvres of an army. If circumstances had not made General Berthier a great warrior and a model chief of the staff, he would certainly have distinguished himself as an engineer. He was also a very good draughtsman, and several things he showed me proved that he had considerable talent for the graphic arts.

Few men had been more fortunate throughout their military careers than Prince Berthier. I often heard him congratulate himself on having served France in all four quarters of the globe. He made his debut in the War of Independence in America, and returned home with very pleasant memories, for he became the personal friend of Rochambeau and Lafayette, under whom he served with the French contingent. He told me that of all the decorations he had received during his successful career, he had been most flattered at getting the little Cross of the Order of the Cincinnati. It was given to him by Washington and the American Senate when he was but thirty years old, a short time before he received from the King of France the Cross of St. Louis for the same services. As I have already related, I was with the Army of the North during Napoleon's brilliant campaign in Italy, which went far to eclipse our successes on the Rhine, and I often heard the marvellous feats of arms of Bonaparte attributed to the initiative of the young General Berthier. Whether it were jealousy or genuine conviction which led to the spreading of this report I do not know, but I fully shared in the opinion expressed when in 1800 Berthier, then Minister of War, took me as his aide-de-camp. I soon changed my mind on the subject after seeing the two men together, both so richly but so differently gifted, aiding each other with their counsel. It was the First Consul who inaugurated every plan, improvised the means for carrying it out, and by imbuing all with his own zeal made everything possible. It was General Berthier who, the plan of the chief once conceived, identified himself thoroughly with it, divided and subdivided the work to be done, assigning to each one the particular task by fulfilling which he was to cooperate with every other member of the army, smoothing down difficulties, providing for every contingency. His anxious solicitude, which kept him ever on the alert, his undaunted cooperation, were never relaxed until success was achieved. The glory which accrued to Berthier, though secondary, was yet considerable, but he was so modest that his aim was always rather to detract from his own merits, and to get the Commander-in-Chief to bestow his rewards on his comrades in arms. Of course, however, his fellow officers were too often jealous of him, and tried as hard to bring themselves into notice as he did to avoid calling attention to himself. Many of them were indeed ungrateful enough to accuse him of incapacity, because in 1809 he was not imprudent enough, as were so many of his fellow officers, to risk the loss of everything and to act in opposition to the wishes of Napoleon. But he was nobly avenged, for, in spite of all that his detractors could say, he was fully appreciated by the Emperor, and on the fatal field of Waterloo, when waiting in vain for Grouchy's corps to come up. Napoleon exclaimed, 'If Berthier were here, my orders would have been carried out, and I should have escaped this misfortune.' But I am anticipating dates, and must return to my subject.

No one served the Emperor with more loyal devotion from 1795 to 1814 than the Prince of Wagram, and whilst I was with him not a day passed without my noting some fresh proof of his devotion to his master, which was indeed a perfect religion with him.' He was entirely without self-seeking, and yielded to his chief an affectionate and unfailing obedience often most touching in its patience and resignation. Though of medium height only, Berthier had a well-formed athletic figure, and his hair was thick and curly. He was an ardent lover of the chase, as eager in it as in war, and the Emperor, who knew how to appreciate all his good qualities, made him his Master of the Hounds. Such was the warrior under whom I was fortunate enough to serve for twelve years, going to him as a captain and leaving him as a general with many a decoration, a well-filled purse, a heart full of gratitude to him and, what I valued far more than all my honours, many happy memories of the time I had been with him. These memoirs are still a delight to me in my old age, and give me strength to look forward to the future

#louis francois lejeune #louis-francois lejeune #marshal berthier #louis alexandre berthier #napoleonic #I might have posted this before in parts #also tumblr kept malfunctioning during this post sdfjukhgksdfujhg

9 notes · View notes

marq-de-laf · 3 years

Quote

Cornwallis was not with is army. Pleading illness, he had sent his men out to surrender with General Charles O'Hara at their head. O'Hara made it obvious that they wished to be regarded as surrendering to the French and not to the Americans. Turning to Lafayette's friend Mathieu Dumas, one of Rochambeau's aides assigned to escort him, O'Hara asked where Rochambeau was. On receiving an answer, he started toward the French general. Both Dumas and Rochambeau reminded O'Hara that Washington was the commander-in-chief of the allied army. O'Hara turned to Washington with much embarrassment in his countenance. Washington indicated that he was to take further orders from General Lincoln, who had had to surrender his own army at Charleston. Lincoln led the British and Hessians through the lines of their conquerors. They kept their eyes turned towards the French ranks, until Lafayette, resenting their studied disregard, ordered his drum-major to strike up 'Yankee Doodle.' The band's blare made them turn their eyes toward his side of the line.

Lafayette In America by Louis Gottschalk, The Siege of Yorktown, pg. 326.

🎶 The Yankee Doodle incident. 🎶

#Marquis de Lafayette #Lafayette #Lafayette In America #Louis Gottschalk #Battle of Yorktown #pg. 326 #Charles Cornwallis #Charles O'Hara #Mathieu Dumas #Comte de Rochambeau #George Washington #Benjamin Lincoln #Yankee Doodle

56 notes · View notes

joachimnapoleon · 3 years

Text

Berthier Appreciation Post

Today (20 November) is Berthier's birthday, so a little tribute to my favorite under-appreciated Administrative Cyborg is in order.

So in no particular order whatsoever, here is a list of reasons why I have such a soft spot for Louis-Alexandre Berthier.

-He was something of a child prodigy and was formally appointed a topographical engineer in the army on 1 January 1766. Berthier was born in 1753. He wasn't yet thirteen when he became an engineer. His military service couldn't be considered "official" until his sixteenth birthday, which was when he received his lieutenant's commission. By the age of 26 he had served not only as an engineer, but as an infantry lieutenant, a cavalry captain, and then as a staff officer.

-In 1780 he went to America with his brother Charles to participate in the American war for independence. This was not only his first real experience with upper-echelon staff work (under General Rochambeau), but also his first combat experience (a skirmish with English dragoons on 19 July 1781; Berthier's horse was killed from under him, but Berthier killed his assailant and was cited afterwards by his commander for distinguishing himself).

-His god-tier organizing capabilities. His staff, one biographer writes, "ran with the precision of a Neuchâtel pendulum clock." He was able, at any given moment, to provide Napoleon with up-to-date figures for any division, brigade, or regiment in the Grande Armée. He created an elaborate filing system that was capable of fitting in a single coach, which biographer Andrew Roberts describes as "one of the edifices upon which the [Austerlitz] campaign was based." He perfected a personal cabinet system initially invented by Desaix, to which Napoleon would frequently go in order to view the maps with which troop positions were displayed with colored pins. Berthier mastered the maps of every theater of war, coordinating the movements of the various corps of the Grande Armée in such a manner as to ensure against potential logjams on the same road. Writes Las Cases, "The Emperor, on his campaigns, had Berthier in his car. It was during the journey that the Emperor, going through the order books and status reports, decided on his plans and ordered his maneuvers. Berthier carried out the orders and the various details with admirable regularity, precision and promptness."

-Though most known for his work as chief-of-staff, he still displayed courage on the battlefield when the time came. He led a cavalry charge at Rivoli on 14 January 1797, and also distinguished himself at Montebello; his biographer Rauber writes that Montebello was "his battle as much as Lannes's." He also suffered a wound to the arm at Marengo.

-His almost superhuman indefatigability. He could stay awake for days at a time if need be, when his work was particularly pressing. "Berthier could keep his head clear after twelve hours of taking dictation," writes Andrew Roberts, "on one occasion in 1809 he was summoned no fewer than seventeen times in a single night." (Keep in mind he was well into middle age by this point.) He worked tirelessly and without complaint, and expected the same of all his staff. Another biographer writes, "He demanded, and obtained, that everybody work according to the rules he had set himself. It is said that he never conceded anything with grace, but that what he refused was refused with harshness. But there is another side to the Berthier: the good-humored man, more often than not laughing off any adversity."

-He endured the Russian campaign and its brutal retreat at the age of fifty-nine, and still held up better than men who were decades younger than himself. To his wife, he wrote on 21 December 1812 that "I have rheumatic pains in my right arm for the first time. My gout is still leaving me alone. I suffer a lot from the excessive cold, but I am still the one who puts up with things best in the army." It was only around January of 1813 that his health finally began to dwindle to the point where Napoleon finally gave him permission to return to Paris. He had written to his wife on New Year's Eve in Königsberg that "I am very weary, to tell you the truth: but I still keep up my morale and my energy.... You have expressed your views on my remaining with the army: as for me, mon amie, my health needs a rest.... I want to get to know my children, and make them love me. For the sweetest joy of life, especially when one grows old, is to be loved. Today, I enter my sixtieth year: you see what a dashing husband you have!"

-He was one of the least ambitious of the marshals. Though Napoleon heaped honors and titles on him, Berthier never actively sought any of them. He was generally apolitical throughout his life; his primary driving factor was a sense of duty. His biographer Charles Raeuber writes that Berthier "never pretended to be anything else but Napoleon's servant."

-He put up with so much abuse from Napoleon it's not even funny. He was essentially the primary scapegoat for everything that went wrong on a campaign. Most of the time, Berthier was able to shrug off Napoleon's cutting remarks, often burying himself in his work as a coping mechanism. But eventually the abuse took its toll. As Napoleon's moods grew ever more sour over the years, Berthier came in for increasingly cruel treatment; his relationship with Napoleon eventually became so bad during the 1812 campaign that Berthier stopped taking his meals with the Emperor when he could. At one point, Napoleon's secretary Méneval found Berthier "alone at his table with his head buried in his hands. On being asked what distressed him, he burst out with quite unusual vehemence: 'What is the good of giving me an income of 1,500,000 francs, a fine house in Paris, and a magnificent estate, to inflict on me the tortures of Tantalus? I am being killed with hard work. An ordinary soldier is happier than I.'"

-He had a certain talent for diplomacy and a wonderful knack for "softening the blow," so to speak, when it came to relaying Napoleon's displeasure towards unruly subordinates. His missive to Bernadotte in the aftermath of the latter's failure to support Davout at Auerstadt is a perfect example: "However upset the Emperor might be, he did not want to speak to you because, recalling your long services [to him], he was worried he might torment you, and the consideration he has for you, has decided him to keep silent." This particular talent of Berthier's was especially useful with some of the more sensitive marshals (like Murat), with whom Napoleon's harsher remarks were often counterproductive.

-His legendary ménage à trois. He fell head over heels in love while in Italy with a married woman, Giuseppa Carcona, the Marchioness of Visconti. During the following campaign in Egypt, he carried her portrait with him, and would erect a separate tent in which he would set up the portrait surrounded by candles; this tent was off-limits to everyone except the one person whom Berthier couldn't stop from entering it: Napoleon, who delighted in violating the sanctity of Berthier's shrine to Mme Visconti. Later on, Napoleon strong-armed Berthier into marrying; shortly after the marriage, Mme Visconti's husband died, and Berthier mourned what might have been. But he wasn't to be deterred. Somehow he managed to persuade both his wife and Mme Visconti to share a home together with him. And the two women actually became good friends.

More praise for Berthier:

"When all is said and done, Berthier remains the outstanding chief of staff of modern and contemporary times, a professional of the very first order, a highly talented executive, and a powerful worker, endowed with an exceptional sense for grasping the essentials in any given situation."--Biographer Charles Raeuber

"The man who should surely be studied, if not emulated, by every aspiring staff officer."--Biographer S.J. Watson

"No one else could have replaced him." --Napoleon

Works cited:

Raeuber, Charles. Duty and Discipline: Berthier, in Napoleon’s Marshals, edited by David Chandler.

Roberts, Andrews. Napoleon: A Life

Watson, S.J. By Command of the Emperor: A Life of Marshal Berthier

#Louis-Alexandre Berthier #Napoleon #Napoleon Bonaparte #Napoleon's marshals #Napoleonic wars #today in history #administrative cyborg #history #19th century

134 notes · View notes