John Armstrong Junior

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John Armstrong

John Armstrong Jr. (born November 25, 1758 in Carlisle , Province of Pennsylvania , † April 1, 1843 in Red Hook , New York ) was an American soldier and politician . He was a delegate to the Continental Congress , Senator from New York, and Secretary of War .

John Jr. was the son of John Armstrong Sr. and Rebecca (Lyon) Armstrong. After finishing school in Carlisle, he studied at the College of New Jersey (now Princeton University ). He suspended his studies at Princeton in 1775 and returned to Pennsylvania to join the struggle for American independence .

American War of Independence

The young Armstrong joined the Pennsylvania Militia regiment, but became an advisor to General Hugh Mercer in the Continental Army the following year . In this role he carried the wounded and dying General Mercer off the field at the Battle of Princeton . After the general died on January 12, 1777, Armstrong became an advisor to General Horatio Gates . He stayed with Gates until the Battle of Saratoga , when he resigned because of health problems. In 1782 Gates asked him to come back. Armstrong joined Gates' General Staff as his advisor with the rank of major, which he held until the end of the war.

Newburgh letters

Armstrong was drawn into the Newburgh conspiracy during the encampment with Gates near Newburgh, New York . He is widely believed to be the author of two anonymous letters addressed to the camp officers. The first (dated March 10, 1783) was titled "An Address to the Officers" and called for a meeting to discuss arrears and other dissatisfactions with Congress. An action plan should also be drawn up. After General Washington ordered the dissolution of the meeting and asked for a smaller one on March 15, a second letter appeared claiming Washington supported their actions.

Washington successfully defused this protest without a mutiny . While some recognized Armstrong's role in the later correspondence, there was never any official act linking him to the anonymous letters.

After the revolution

Armstrong returned home in Carlisle in 1783 and became known as the adjutant general of the Pennsylvania militia. He served as Secretary of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania under Presidents Dickinson and Franklin . Between 1787 and 1788 he was a delegate from Pennsylvania to the Continental Congress. Congress offered to make him "Chief Justice" of the Northwest Territory . He turned down this, as well as all other state offices that were offered to him in the following two years.

In 1789 Armstrong married Alida Livingston from New York, sister of Robert R. Livingston (1746-1813). He moved to New York and took up gentleman life on a farm bought by his family in Dutchess County, New York .

Armstrong returned to political life in August 1800 when John Laurance resigned from the US Senate. He ran as a Jefferson Republican in the vote and was elected for a term that ended in 1802. That year he was re-elected for a full term, but only served in that office until February 5, 1802, when he resigned.

Armstrong returned to the Senate in 1804 when Theodorus Bailey resigned and served only four months in that position when President Thomas Jefferson appointed him diplomatic representative in France. He served in this position until 1810. In the meantime, he also represented the United States at the Spanish court (1806).

When the British-American war broke out, Armstrong was called to serve in the military. He was appointed brigadier general to defend the port of New York. Then in 1813 President James Madison named him Secretary of War . Fort Armstrong in Illinois , built during his tenure, was named after him. Armstrong made a number of valuable changes in the armed forces, but was forced to resign in September 1814 after being accused of failing to effectively control the Washington fire in August.

Next life

Armstrong returned to his farm and withdrew into private life. He published a number of historical, biographical and some works on agriculture. He died on April 1, 1843 at home in Red Hook and was buried in the Rhinebeck cemetery.

Armstrong Farm in Dutchess County still exists (now owned by the Livingstons family).

literature

  • Carl E. Skeen: John Armstrong, Jr., 1758-1843. A biography . Syracuse Univ. Press, 1982. ISBN 0-8156-2242-2 .

Web links

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personal data
SURNAME Armstrong, John Jr.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American soldier and politician
DATE OF BIRTH November 25, 1758
PLACE OF BIRTH Carlisle , Province of Pennsylvania
DATE OF DEATH April 1, 1843
Place of death Red Hook , New York