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199-600: The Nova Constellatio patterns were the culmination of two years of work on the part of Robert Morris , the Founding Father credited with financing the Revolutionary War . Morris was unanimously elected the Nation’s first Superintendent of Finance in 1781; on February 21 of the following year, Congress passed the following resolution: The financier’s plan, developed with his assistant, Gouverneur Morris ,

398-403: A homosocial or even homosexual relationship. Biographer Gregory D. Massey amongst others, by contrast, dismisses all such speculation as unsubstantiated, describing their friendship as purely platonic camaraderie instead and placing their correspondence in the context of the flowery diction of the time. While on Washington's staff, Hamilton long sought command and a return to active combat. As

597-654: A national bank . Despite the opposition of Madison and other Southern leaders, Congress approved the establishment of the First Bank of the United States in 1791. While Morris served in Congress, a new political elite emerged in Philadelphia. These new leaders generally respected Morris, but most did not look to him for leadership. With Morris playing little active role, they called a convention that revised

796-840: A whiskey tax . He opposed American entanglement with the succession of unstable French Revolutionary governments and advocated in support of the Jay Treaty under which the U.S. resumed friendly trade relations with the British Empire . He also persuaded Congress to establish the Revenue Cutter Service . Hamilton's views became the basis for the Federalist Party , which was opposed by the Democratic-Republican Party led by Thomas Jefferson . Hamilton and other Federalists supported

995-606: A boycott of British goods. In Philadelphia, Willing, Charles Thomson , and John Dickinson took the lead in calling for a congress of all the colonies to coordinate a response to British tax policies. Morris was not elected to the First Continental Congress , which convened in Philadelphia in August 1774, but he frequently met with the congressional delegates and befriended colonial leaders such as George Washington and John Jay . Morris generally sympathized with

1194-637: A claim for damages done to a brewery by the Englishmen who held it during the military occupation of New York. He pleaded for the mayor's court to interpret state law consistent with the 1783 Treaty of Paris, which had ended the Revolutionary War. In 1784, Hamilton founded the Bank of New York . Long dissatisfied with the Articles of Confederation as too weak to be effective, Hamilton played

1393-712: A convention in Philadelphia in May 1787 to amend the Articles. The Pennsylvania state legislature sent a delegation consisting of Morris, James Wilson, Gouverneur Morris, George Clymer , Thomas Mifflin , Jared Ingersoll , and Ben Franklin to the Philadelphia Convention . With the exception of Franklin (who avoided aligning with either political faction in Pennsylvania), all of the Pennsylvania delegates were closely aligned with Morris's Republican faction,

1592-823: A delegate from New York to the Congress of the Confederation in Philadelphia . He resigned to practice law and founded the Bank of New York . In 1786, Hamilton led the Annapolis Convention to replace the Articles of Confederation with the Constitution of the United States , which he helped ratify by writing 51 of the 85 installments of The Federalist Papers . As a trusted member of President Washington's first cabinet , Hamilton served as

1791-553: A descendant of longtime Secretary of Congress, Charles Thomson . From this point forward, Morris’s coins would be called the Nova Constellatios . Twenty-five years would pass before another of Morris’s coins would be found. A second silver 500-Unit piece was uncovered in 1870; however, this specimen lacked the NOVA CONSTELLATIO legend. Collectors dubbed this coin the “Type-2”, because its design differed from

1990-416: A different group of disgruntled soldiers from Lancaster, Pennsylvania , sent Congress a petition demanding their back pay. When they began to march toward Philadelphia , Congress charged Hamilton and two others with intercepting the mob. Hamilton requested militia from Pennsylvania's Supreme Executive Council, but was turned down. Hamilton instructed Assistant Secretary of War William Jackson to intercept

2189-683: A disastrous choice for managing American privateers in Europe, as Thomas engaged in binge drinking and mismanaged funds. In October 1776, at the urging of Morris and Benjamin Franklin, Congress authorized the appointment of two envoys charged with seeking a formal treaty of alliance with France; ultimately, Benjamin Franklin and Arthur Lee were appointed as those envoys. Along with Silas Deane, Franklin would help to greatly expand arms shipments from France and Spain , but Lee proved to be completely incompetent in his efforts to gain support from Prussia and

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2388-549: A drop-off in American trade, caused in part by British naval operations. In December 1782, shortly after the apparent defeat of the proposed amendment to allow the national government to levy a tariff, General Alexander McDougall led a delegation that presented a petition for immediate payment on behalf of the Continental Army. While Morris helped temporarily defuse the crisis by offering the soldiers one month's pay,

2587-622: A duel . In the July 11, 1804, duel in Weehawken, New Jersey , Burr shot Hamilton in the stomach. Hamilton was immediately transported to the home of William Bayard Jr. in Greenwich Village for medical attention, but succumbed to his wounds the following day. Scholars generally regard Hamilton as an astute and intellectually brilliant administrator, politician, and financier who was sometimes impetuous. His ideas are credited with laying

2786-543: A factor in his life. After the Pennsylvania legislature stripped the Bank of North America of its charter, Morris won election to the state legislature and helped restore the bank's charter. Meanwhile, the United States suffered a sustained recession after the end of the Revolutionary War, caused by the lingering debt burden and new restrictions on trade imposed by the European powers. Some members of Congress, including those on

2985-404: A field command. Washington continued to demur, citing the need to appoint men of higher rank. This continued until early July 1781, when Hamilton submitted a letter to Washington with his commission enclosed, "thus tacitly threatening to resign if he didn't get his desired command." On July 31, Washington relented and assigned Hamilton as commander of a battalion of light infantry companies of

3184-448: A group of Dutch land speculators. These early successes encouraged Morris to pursue greater profits through increasingly large and risky land acquisitions. On March 7, 1791, Morris obtained title to a lot from John Dickinson and wife; on March 9, 1793, the site was surveyed; it wasn't until 1794 he began construction of a mansion on Chestnut Street in Philadelphia designed by architect of Washington, D.C., Pierre Charles L'Enfant ; it

3383-503: A land company led by John Nicholson, the comptroller general of Pennsylvania, beginning a deep business partnership between Nicholson and Morris. Later in 1793, Morris, Nicholson, and James Greenleaf jointly purchased thousands of lots in the recently established District of Columbia . They subsequently purchased millions of acres in Pennsylvania, Kentucky, Virginia, Georgia, and the Carolinas; in each case, they went into debt to make

3582-598: A leader of the Nationalist faction, an informal group of American leaders who favored a stronger national government. He also had effective control over foreign affairs until Robert R. Livingston was appointed as Secretary of Foreign Affairs later in the year. In September 1781, Morris reluctantly agreed to serve as the Agent of Marine , giving him civilian leadership of the Continental Navy. Congress filled

3781-524: A lump-sum payment if Congress were unable to afford the half-salary pensions for life. Congress rejected the proposal. Several congressmen, including Hamilton, Robert Morris , and Gouverneur Morris , attempted to use the so-called Newburgh Conspiracy as leverage to secure support from the states and in Congress for funding of the national government. They encouraged MacDougall to continue his aggressive approach, implying unknown consequences if their demands were not met, and defeated proposals designed to end

3980-408: A major leadership role at the 1786 Annapolis Convention . He drafted its resolution for a constitutional convention, and in doing so brought one step closer to reality his longtime desire to have a more effectual, more financially self-sufficient federal government. As a member of the legislature of New York, Hamilton argued forcefully and at length in favor of a bill to recognize the sovereignty of

4179-433: A married woman of half-British and half- French Huguenot descent, and James A. Hamilton, a Scotsman who was the fourth son of Alexander Hamilton, the laird of Grange, Ayrshire . Rachel Lavien was married on Saint Croix . In 1750, Lavien left her husband and first son before travelling to Saint Kitts , where she met James Hamilton. Hamilton and Lavien moved together to Nevis, her birthplace, where she had inherited

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4378-551: A measure to provide pensions to Continental Army officers. He formed a close working relationship with Gouverneur Morris (no relation), a young New York congressman who shared many of Robert Morris's views. The following month, Morris returned with Congress to Philadelphia, which had been evacuated by the British. Morris did not resume his wide array of duties in Congress, seeking instead to wind down his projects so that he could focus on business. In late 1778, Morris won election to

4577-476: A mechanism for raising revenue, Congress repeatedly issued paper money , leading to rampant inflation. By 1781, the U.S. faced an unremitting financial crisis, which was underscored by the January 1781 Pennsylvania Line Mutiny , in which ten poorly fed, unpaid Continental Army regiments demanded better conditions from Congress. Though the mutiny was put down, it convinced Congress to implement reforms that created

4776-513: A mutiny by assuring the soldiers that they would eventually be paid. In the aftermath of the near-mutiny, Morris denied that he had played any role in fomenting insurrection. Nonetheless, most historians believe that Morris was one of three leaders of the " Newburgh Conspiracy , along with Alexander Hamilton and Gouverneur Morris. Jack N. Rakove emphasizes the leadership of Robert Morris. However, this conclusion overlooks several exculpatory facts: 1) Morris supplied $ 800,000 in his own notes to pay

4975-591: A native of England but from principle am American in this dispute." While his partner, Thomas Willing, served in various governmental positions, Morris declined to serve in any public office other than that of port warden (a position he shared with six other individuals), and he generally let Willing act as the public face of the firm. In early 1774, in response to the Intolerable Acts , many colonists in British North America began calling for

5174-434: A new constitution for the United States. Morris rarely spoke during the convention, but the constitution produced by the convention reflected many of his ideas. Morris and his allies helped ensure that Pennsylvania ratified the new constitution, and the document was ratified by the requisite number of states by the end of 1788. The Pennsylvania legislature subsequently elected Morris as one of its two inaugural representatives in

5373-610: A new state constitutional convention frustrated by Joseph Reed and others, Morris and James Wilson founded the Republican Society, a political club devoted to implementing a new state constitution. The Republican Society favored a bicameral legislature, a state executive with veto power, an independent judiciary, and an end to loyalty oaths to the state government. Other prominent Pennsylvanians, including Wilson, Benjamin Rush , Thomas Mifflin , and Charles Thomson, supported

5572-447: A plain edge and the other engraved. In 1979, the 5-Unit piece, also bearing the legend, was discovered in Europe. The final currently known piece, a third 100-Unit coin, first appeared in a 1991 auction from Stack's. Little is known about its provenance, and it is the only piece not currently certified by a third party grading service. Robert Morris (financier) Robert Morris Jr. (January 20, 1734 – May 8, 1806)

5771-514: A reflection of Republican strength in the state legislature. Many of Morris's Nationalist allies from other states, including Hamilton, James Madison , John Dickinson, and Washington, would also attend the convention. With Franklin ill, Morris opened the proceedings of the Philadelphia Convention on May 25. His motion to nominate Washington as chairman of the convention was backed by a unanimous vote. Morris consistently attended

5970-595: A seaside lot in town from her father. While their mother was living, Alexander and James Jr. received individual tutoring and classes in a private school led by a Jewish headmistress. Alexander supplemented his education with a family library of 34 books. James Hamilton later abandoned Rachel Lavien and their two sons, allegedly to "spar[e] [her] a charge of bigamy ...after finding out that her first husband intend[ed] to divorce her under Danish law on grounds of adultery and desertion." Lavien then moved with her two children to Saint Croix, where she supported them by managing

6169-421: A significant proportion of the debt it represented 45 ". Holker's partners will therefore suffer considerable losses and they will fight for years to obtain compensation, in vain. Chaumont, on the verge of ruin, will have to request a decree preventing its French creditors from seizing its assets. After his resignation, Holker faced two challenges: settling his accounts with Robert Morris and bouncing back to absorb

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6368-740: A small store in Christiansted . Lavien contracted yellow fever and died on February 19, 1768, leaving Hamilton orphaned. Lavien's death may have had a severe emotional impact on Hamilton. In probate court , Lavien's "first husband seized her estate" and obtained the few valuables that she had owned, including some household silver. Many items were auctioned off, but a friend purchased the family's books and returned them to Hamilton. The brothers were briefly taken in by their cousin Peter Lytton. However, Lytton took his own life in July 1769, leaving his property to his mistress and their son, and

6567-480: A stimulant to the economy. Hamilton divided the debt into national and state, and further divided the national debt into foreign and domestic debt. While there was agreement on how to handle the foreign debt, especially with France, there was not with regards to the national debt held by domestic creditors. During the Revolutionary War, affluent citizens had invested in bonds, and war veterans had been paid with promissory notes and IOUs that plummeted in price during

6766-421: A successor for Morris, Congress established the three-member Board of Treasury, consisting of Arthur Lee, William Livingston , and Samuel Osgood . In 1778–1779 Morris had attempted to strengthen out the accounts of the old Commercial Committee but had to give it up; he stated in answer to Paine "the accounts of Willing and Morris with the committee had been partially settled, but were still partially open, because

6965-658: A supply of new slaves to compensate for the ongoing labor shortage. While Morris was a junior partner in the firm and Willing was pursuing a political career, Willing, Morris & Co. co-signed a petition calling for the repeal of Pennsylvania's tariff on imported slaves. In 1762, approximately 200 slaves were imported into Philadelphia, at the height of Pennsylvania's involvement in the Atlantic slave trade ; most were brought in by Rhode Island merchants Mark Anthony DeWolf , Aaron Lopez , and Jacob Rivera . As part of their commercial operations, Willing, Morris & Co. engaged in

7164-642: A younger half-brother, Thomas, whom Morris's father had sired out of wedlock shortly before his own death. Thomas eventually became a partner in Morris's shipping firm. Mary's brother, William White , was ordained as an Episcopal priest and served as the Senate chaplain . In 1781, Morris purchased a home on Market Street that was two blocks north of Independence Hall , the seat of the Second Continental Congress. He gained clear title to

7363-479: Is a want of power in Congress ... the confederation itself is defective and requires to be altered; it is neither fit for war, nor peace." While on Washington's staff, Hamilton had become frustrated with the decentralized nature of the wartime Continental Congress, particularly its dependence upon the states for voluntary financial support that was not often forthcoming. Under the Articles of Confederation , Congress had no power to collect taxes or to demand money from

7562-513: Is the first written description of the monetary system ultimately adopted by the United States, clearly illustrating the historical importance of Morris's patterns. There are records of seven coins associated with Morris's plan: After being returned to Congress, the coins were dispersed. In the mid-1840s, the 1,000-unit and 500-Unit piece from the set bearing the Legend NOVA CONSTELLATIO (A NEW CONSTELLATION) were discovered by

7761-654: The American revolutionary cause , though an anonymous one. He then served as an artillery officer in the American Revolutionary War , where he saw military action against the British in the New York and New Jersey campaign , served for years as an aide to General George Washington , and helped secure American victory at the climactic Siege of Yorktown . After the Revolutionary War, Hamilton served as

7960-533: The Anglican Christ Church , which was also attended by Benjamin Franklin , Thomas Willing, and other leading citizens of Philadelphia. The Morris household employed several domestic workers and retained several slaves. In addition to the children he had with Mary White, Morris fathered a daughter, Polly, out of wedlock around 1763. Morris supported Polly financially and remained in contact with her throughout her adult life. Morris also supported

8159-525: The Battle of Harlem Heights shortly after, and at the Battle of White Plains a month later. At the Battle of Trenton , the company was stationed at the high point of Trenton at the intersection of present-day Warren and Broad streets to keep the Hessians pinned in their Trenton barracks. Hamilton participated in the Battle of Princeton on January 3, 1777. After an initial setback, Washington rallied

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8358-512: The Continental Army under General George Washington , enabling, with the help of frequent collaborator Haym Salomon , the decisive victory in the Battle of Yorktown . Morris also reformed government contracting and established the Bank of North America , the first congressionally chartered national bank to operate in the United States. Morris believed that the national government would be unable to achieve financial stability without

8557-601: The Delaware and Schuylkill Canal Company chartered April 10, 1792. Morris was president of both companies; he was also involved with a steam engine company and launched a hot air balloon from his garden on Market Street. He had the first iron rolling mill in America. His icehouse was the model for one Washington installed at Mount Vernon. He backed the new Chestnut Street Theater and had a greenhouse where his staff cultivated lemon trees. In early 1793, Morris purchased shares in

8756-732: The Erie Triangle . Along with an agent of the Holland Land Company, Aaron Burr , Robert Morris, and other individual and institutional investors, he formed the Pennsylvania Population Company. This front organization purchased all 390 parcels of land in the Erie Triangle. Nicholson was impeached in 1794 for his role in the company. However, Morris severely overextended himself financially. He had borrowed to speculate in real estate in

8955-572: The Habsburg monarchy . In early December 1776, Washington's army was forced to retreat across the Delaware River and into Pennsylvania, and most members of Congress temporarily left Philadelphia. Morris was one of few delegates to remain in the city, and Congress appointed Morris and two other delegates to "execute Continental business" in its absence. Morris frequently corresponded with Washington, and he provided supplies that helped enable

9154-628: The Haitian Revolution , and Hamilton helped draft the constitution of Haiti . After resigning as Secretary of the Treasury, Hamilton resumed his legal and business activities. He was a leader in the abolition of the international slave trade . In the Quasi-War , Hamilton called for mobilization against France , and President John Adams appointed him major general. The army , however, did not see combat. Outraged by Adams' response to

9353-636: The Model Treaty , which was designed to serve as a template for relations with foreign countries. Unlike Britain's mercantile trade policies, the Model Treaty emphasized the importance of free trade . In March 1776, after the death of Samuel Ward , Morris was named as the chairman of the Secret Committee of Trade. He established a network of agents, based in both the colonies and various foreign ports, charged with procuring supplies for

9552-587: The Phelps and Gorham Purchase in western New York. He realized a substantial profit the following year when he sold the land to The Pulteney Association , a group of British land speculators led by Sir William Johnstone Pulteney . Morris used the money from this sale to purchase the remainder of the Phelps and Gorham Purchase, then turned around and sold much of that land to the Holland Land Company ,

9751-580: The Potomac River ; until construction of that capital was completed, Philadelphia would serve as the nation's temporary capital. With the backing of all four leaders, the Compromise of 1790 , as it became known, was approved by Congress. That same year, Morris and Maclay helped secure Pennsylvania's control of the Erie Triangle , which provided the state with access to the Great Lakes . In

9950-464: The Revolutionary cause before the war began, although he did not approve of mob reprisals against Loyalists . On May 10, 1775, Hamilton won credit for saving his college's president, Loyalist Myles Cooper , from an angry mob by speaking to the crowd long enough to allow Cooper to escape. Hamilton was forced to discontinue his studies before graduating when the college closed its doors during

10149-524: The Southern theater of the war, while leaving a large force garrisoned at New York City . In August 1781, Morris met with General Washington and the comte de Rochambeau , who were planning a joint Franco-American operation against the British forces. Morris redirected government funds to purchase supplies for Washington's march against British forces in Virginia, and he pleaded with state governments and

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10348-616: The Superintendent of Finance of the United States , becoming known as the "Financier of the Revolution." Along with Alexander Hamilton and Albert Gallatin , he is widely regarded as one of the founders of the financial system of the United States. Born in Liverpool , Morris was brought to North America by his father when he was 13 years old, quickly becoming a partner in a successful shipping firm based in Philadelphia . In

10547-547: The convention held to debate ratification of the Constitution. Due to a dispute with a business partner, Morris did not attend the ratification convention, which voted to ratify the Constitution in December 1787. By the end of 1788, the Constitution had been ratified by enough states to take effect. In September 1788, the Pennsylvania legislature elected Robert Morris and William Maclay , both of whom were aligned with

10746-467: The "Minister of Injustice", he submitted his resignation in early 1783, but Hamilton and other Nationalists convinced him to stay in office. As of January 1, 1783, the public debt was $ 42 million of which 18.77 percent was foreign debt and 81.23 percent was owned at home. In a report to the President of Congress Morris wrote: of which The rest being unliquidated debts, etc., interest. At roughly

10945-510: The "Republican" faction that sought alterations to the Pennsylvania Constitution . Facing a difficult financial situation in the ongoing Revolutionary War , in 1781 Congress established the position of Superintendent of Finance to oversee financial matters. Morris accepted appointment as Superintendent of Finance and also served as Agent of Marine, from which he controlled the Continental Navy. He helped provide supplies to

11144-514: The 1st and 2nd New York Regiments and two provisional companies from Connecticut. In the planning for the assault on Yorktown , Hamilton was given command of three battalions , which were to fight in conjunction with the allied French troops in taking Redoubts No. 9 and No. 10 of the British fortifications at Yorktown. Hamilton and his battalions took Redoubt No. 10 with bayonets in a nighttime action, as planned. The French also suffered heavy casualties and took Redoubt No. 9. These actions forced

11343-560: The Articles had been proposed by Thomas Burke , in February 1781, to give Congress the power to collect a five percent impost, or duty on all imports, but this required ratification by all states; securing its passage as law proved impossible after it was rejected by Rhode Island in November 1782. James Madison joined Hamilton in influencing Congress to send a delegation to persuade Rhode Island to change its mind. Their report recommending

11542-565: The Board of Treasury, continued to favor amendments to the Articles of Confederation, but the states still refused to authorize major changes to the Articles. In 1786, Morris was one of five Pennsylvania delegates selected to attend the Annapolis Convention , where delegates discussed ways to reform the Articles of Confederation. Though Morris ultimately declined to attend the convention, the delegates convinced Congress to authorize

11741-564: The British occupation of New York City. In 1775, after the first engagement of American patriot troops with the British at Lexington and Concord , Hamilton and other King's College students joined a New York volunteer militia company called the Corsicans , whose name reflected the Corsican Republic that was suppressed six years earlier and young American patriots regarded as a model to be emulated. Hamilton drilled with

11940-417: The British surrender of an entire army at Yorktown, marking the de facto end of the war, although small battles continued for two more years until the signing of the Treaty of Paris and the departure of the last British troops. After Yorktown, Hamilton returned to New York City and resigned his commission in March 1782. He passed the bar in July after six months of self-directed education and, in October,

12139-405: The Confederation. In response, the war veterans sold the securities to speculators for as little as fifteen to twenty cents on the dollar. Hamilton felt the money from the bonds should not go to the soldiers who had shown little faith in the country's future, but the speculators that had bought the bonds from the soldiers. The process of attempting to track down the original bondholders along with

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12338-415: The Congressional set’s 500-Unit piece. In 2017, the designation for this piece was officially changed to "Plain Obverse" in A Guide Book of United States Coins 2017: The Official Red Book , when forensic evidence demonstrated that it was struck prior to the example from the set that was sent to Congress. By 1900, two types of 100-unit coins were found. Both bear the NOVA CONSTELLATIO inscription, but one has

12537-406: The Continental Army troops and led them in a successful charge against the British forces. After making a brief stand, the British fell back, some leaving Princeton , and others taking up refuge in Nassau Hall . Hamilton transported three cannons to the hall, and had them fire upon the building as others rushed the front door and broke it down. The British subsequently put a white flag outside one of

12736-465: The Continental victory at the Battle of Trenton . After the Continental Army was defeated in the September 1777 Battle of Brandywine , Congress fled west from Philadelphia; Morris and his family went to live at the estate they had recently purchased in Manheim, Pennsylvania . Morris obtained a leave of absence in late 1777, but he spent much of his time defending himself against attacks regarding alleged mismanagement and financial improprieties levied by

12935-493: The Continental war effort. In late February 1776, Americans learned that the British Parliament had passed the Prohibitory Act , which declared that all American shipping was subject to seizure by British ships. Unlike many other congressional leaders, Morris continued to hope for reconciliation with Britain, since he believed that all-out war still lacked the strong support of a majority of Americans and would prove financially ruinous. In June 1776, due largely to frustration with

13134-404: The Federalists, as the state's first representatives in the United States Senate . In the country's first presidential election , Washington was elected as the President of the United States . Washington offered the position of Secretary of the Treasury to Morris, but Morris declined the offer, instead suggesting Alexander Hamilton for the position. In the Senate, Morris pressed for many of

13333-399: The Freeman’s Journal, attacking Morris. Blaming Morris had all the ear-marks of an early misinformation campaign designed to shift the blame for a failed and unpopular mutiny. Frustrated by his defeat in the tariff battle and the failure of states to provide adequate funding, Morris thought he was being forced to run up debts that the states were unwilling to pay. Writing that he would not be

13532-407: The French government for further funding, with the final $ 20,000 needed coming from Morris's longtime collaborator, Haym Salomon . At the October 1781 Battle of Yorktown , Washington forced the surrender of the British army under the command of General Cornwallis . After the Battle of Yorktown, Britain essentially abandoned its campaign on land, but the naval war continued as Britain sought to cut

13731-411: The Hamilton brothers were subsequently separated. James Jr. apprenticed with a local carpenter, while Alexander was given a home by Thomas Stevens, a merchant from Nevis. Hamilton became a clerk at Beekman and Cruger, a local import-export firm that traded with the Province of New York and New England . Despite being only a teenager, Hamilton proved capable enough as a trader to be left in charge of

13930-403: The Irish-born Hercules Mulligan , brother of a trader known to Hamilton's benefactors, who assisted Hamilton in selling cargo that was used to pay for his education and support. Later that year, in preparation for college, Hamilton began to fill gaps in his education at the Elizabethtown Academy , a preparatory school run by Francis Barber in Elizabeth, New Jersey . While there, he came under

14129-400: The Measures of Congress and The Farmer Refuted . Seabury essentially tried to provoke fear in the colonies with an objective of preventing the colonies from uniting against the British. Hamilton published two additional pieces attacking the Quebec Act , and may have also authored the 15 anonymous installments of "The Monitor" for Holt's New York Journal . Hamilton was a supporter of

14328-429: The Nationalist faction, and they all cooperated to enhance the power of the national government. In mid-1782, Congress established standing committees to provide oversight to the executive departments; Morris supported the congressional reorganization, but to his dismay, his longtime foe Arthur Lee became the chairman of the committee overseeing the finance department. Morris pursued an array of reforms designed to boost

14527-547: The New York delegation, Lansing and Yates, had already withdrawn, Hamilton was the only New York signer to the United States Constitution. He then took a highly active part in the successful campaign for the document's ratification in New York in 1788, which was a crucial step in its national ratification. He first used the popularity of the Constitution by the masses to compel George Clinton to sign, but

14726-472: The Public Credit , which Hamilton submitted in 1790. Hamilton proposed to fully fund all federal debts and assume all state debts, and to pay for those debts by issuing new federal bonds. Hamilton argued that these measures would restore confidence in public credit and help to revitalize the economy, but opponents attacked his proposals as unfairly beneficial to the speculators who had purchased many of

14925-545: The Republican Society's goals, but Morris became the de facto leader of the faction that became known as the Republicans. Meanwhile, those who favored maintaining the state constitution became known as the Constitutionalists. Due to rising inflation , in mid-1779 the Constitutionalists established a committee to implement price controls ; numerous Philadelphia merchants were arrested for allegedly violating

15124-570: The Rhode Island negotiations. While Hamilton was in Congress, discontented soldiers began to pose a danger to the young United States. Most of the army was then posted at Newburgh, New York . Those in the army were funding much of their own supplies, and they had not been paid in eight months. Furthermore, after Valley Forge , the Continental officers had been promised in May 1778 a pension of half their pay when they were discharged. By

15323-663: The Secret Committee of Trade, which handled the procurement of supplies, the Committee of Correspondence , which handled foreign affairs, and the Marine Committee, which oversaw the Continental Navy . Morris was a leading member of Congress until he resigned in 1778. Out of office, Morris refocused on his merchant career and won election to the Pennsylvania Assembly , where he became a leader of

15522-586: The Senate, as well as covering military matters and taxation. The papers first appeared in The Independent Journal on October 27, 1787. Hamilton wrote the first paper signed as Publius , and all of the subsequent papers were signed under the name. Jay wrote the next four papers to elaborate on the confederation's weakness and the need for unity against foreign aggression and against splitting into rival confederacies, and, except for No. 64 ,

15721-488: The State of Vermont , against numerous objections to its constitutionality and policy. Consideration of the bill was deferred to a later date. From 1787 to 1789, Hamilton exchanged letters with Nathaniel Chipman , a lawyer representing Vermont. After the Constitution of the United States went into effect, Hamilton said, "One of the first subjects of deliberation with the new Congress will be the independence of Kentucky, for which

15920-566: The United States Senate. Morris declined Washington's offer to serve as the nation's first Treasury Secretary , instead suggesting Alexander Hamilton for the position. In the Senate, Morris supported Hamilton's economic program and aligned with the Federalist Party . During and after his service in the Senate, Morris went deeply into debt through speculating on land, leading into the Panic of 1796–1797 . Unable to pay his creditors, he

16119-478: The United States off from its sources of trade. Months after the Battle of Yorktown, Morris issued the "Report on Public Credit," an ambitious economic plan calling for the full payment of the country's war debt through new revenue measures. It included a head tax on slaves in the various states, but above all, he pushed for a federal tariff of five percent on all imported goods, which would require an amendment to

16318-565: The adjournment of the House in September 1789, they requested Hamilton to make a report on suggestions to improve the public credit by January 1790. Hamilton had written to Morris as early as 1781, that fixing the public credit will win their objective of independence. The sources that Hamilton used ranged from Frenchmen such as Jacques Necker and Montesquieu to British writers such as Hume , Hobbes , and Malachy Postlethwayt . While writing

16517-481: The aftermath of the French and Indian War , Morris joined with other merchants in opposing British tax policies such as the 1765 Stamp Act . By 1775 he was the richest man in America. After the outbreak of the American Revolutionary War , he helped procure arms and ammunition for the revolutionary cause, and in late 1775 he was chosen as a delegate to the Second Continental Congress. As a member of Congress, he served on

16716-409: The army were not satisfied. Hamilton wrote Washington to suggest that Hamilton covertly "take direction" of the officers' efforts to secure redress, to secure continental funding but keep the army within the limits of moderation. Washington wrote Hamilton back, declining to introduce the army. After the crisis had ended, Washington warned of the dangers of using the army as leverage to gain support for

16915-454: The bank provided a boost to Morris's popularity, and in October 1780, he won election to the state legislature. William Bingham , rumored to be the richest man in America after the Revolutionary War , purchased 9.5% of the available shares of the Bank of North America. The greatest share, however, 63.3%, was purchased on behalf of the United States government by Robert Morris, using a gift in

17114-492: The beginning of his bankruptcy began with the failure of John Warder & Co. of Dublin and Donald and Burton of London in the spring of 1793. Morris was deeply involved in land speculation, especially after the Revolutionary War; (See Phelps and Gorham Purchase of 1791 above); on April 22, 1794, Morris entered into an association called the Asylum Company with John Nicholson, [who had served as Comptroller-General of

17313-552: The boycott. In April 1775, the American Revolutionary War broke out following the Battles of Lexington and Concord . Shortly thereafter, the Second Continental Congress began meeting in Philadelphia , and Congress appointed George Washington to command the Continental Army . The Pennsylvania Provincial Assembly established the twenty-five member Committee of Safety to supervise defenses, and Morris

17512-617: The chief supplier of gunpowder to the Continental Army. Morris became increasingly focused on political affairs rather than business, and in October 1775 he won election to the Pennsylvania Provincial Assembly. Later in the year, the Provincial Assembly elected Morris as a delegate to Congress. In Congress, Morris aligned with the less radical faction of delegates that protested British policies but continued to favor reconciliation with Britain. He

17711-720: The city after the riot, and popular anger at merchants resulted in Morris's defeat in his campaign for re-election to the state legislature. Out of public office for the first time since the start of the American Revolution, Morris focused on expanding his shipping business. He partnered with several out-of-state businessmen, including Jonathan Hudson of Maryland and Carter Braxton and Benjamin Harrison of Virginia, to form what biographer Charles Rappleye calls "the first national conglomerate ." In these trading ventures, Morris often provided financing and oversight but left

17910-629: The college and placing it on firm financial footing. In 1787, Hamilton served as assemblyman from New York County in the New York State Legislature and was chosen as a delegate at the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia by his father-in-law Philip Schuyler . Even though Hamilton had been a leader in calling for a new Constitutional Convention, his direct influence at the Convention itself

18109-410: The committee's orders, but Morris avoided imprisonment and emerged as a leading opponent of the committee. The price control committee proved ineffective and disbanded in September, but the following month a mob rioted and seized several Republican leaders. Morris and other Republicans sheltered at James Wilson's house, where they were rescued by Reed and a detachment of the Continental Army. Wilson fled

18308-516: The company before classes in the graveyard of nearby St. Paul's Chapel . He studied military history and tactics on his own and was soon recommended for promotion. Under fire from HMS Asia , and with support from Hercules Mulligan and the Sons of Liberty , he led his newly renamed unit the "Hearts of Oak" on a successful raid for British cannons in the Battery . The seizure of the cannons resulted in

18507-411: The constitution (No. 23–36), and discussed the Senate and executive and judicial branches (No. 65–85). Hamilton and Madison worked to describe the anarchic state of the confederation (No. 15–22), and the two have been described as not being significantly different in thought during this time period—in contrast to their stark opposition later in life. Subtle differences appeared with the two when discussing

18706-526: The convention which, rather than amending the Articles, was intended to supplant the Articles as the new Constitution of the United States . Morris was one of just six individuals to sign both the Declaration of Independence and the United States Constitution. Rather than seeking to block the new constitution, Congress simply forwarded it to each state to debate ratification. Morris's Republican faction, along with Federalist groups in other states, sought

18905-472: The convention, Hamilton made a speech proposing a president-for-life; it had no effect upon the deliberations of the convention. He proposed to have an elected president and elected senators who would serve for life, contingent upon "good behavior" and subject to removal for corruption or abuse; this idea contributed later to the hostile view of Hamilton as a monarchist sympathizer, held by James Madison. According to Madison's notes, Hamilton said in regards to

19104-485: The crisis without establishing general taxation: that the states assume the debt to the army, or that an impost be established dedicated to the sole purpose of paying that debt. Hamilton suggested using the Army's claims to prevail upon the states for the proposed national funding system. The Morrises and Hamilton contacted General Henry Knox to suggest he and the officers defy civil authority, at least by not disbanding if

19303-403: The crisis, Hamilton opposed his reelection campaign . Jefferson and Aaron Burr tied for the presidency in the electoral college and, despite philosophical differences, Hamilton endorsed Jefferson over Burr, whom he found unprincipled. When Burr ran for governor of New York in 1804 , Hamilton again campaigned against him, arguing that he was unworthy. Taking offense, Burr challenged Hamilton to

19502-484: The dangerous and secretive nature of a committee charged with obtaining contraband goods made it difficult for the committee to establish competitive bidding procedures for procurement contracts. In addition to his service on the Secret Committee of Trade, Morris was also appointed to the Marine Committee, which oversaw the Continental Navy , and the Committee of Secret Correspondence , which oversaw efforts to establish relations with foreign powers. From his position on

19701-403: The delegation argued the national government needed not just some level of financial autonomy, but also the ability to make laws that superseded those of the individual states. Hamilton transmitted a letter arguing that Congress already had the power to tax, since it had the power to fix the sums due from the several states; but Virginia's rescission of its own ratification of this amendment ended

19900-466: The departments of war, marine, finance, and foreign affairs, each of which would be led by a departmental executive. By a unanimous vote, Congress selected Morris as the Superintendent of Finance . Morris accepted appointment as the Superintendent of Finance in May 1781, and he appointed Gouverneur Morris as his deputy. Morris soon emerged as the key economic official in the country and became

20099-665: The depreciations suffered and finally decide that Holker owes Morris the very symbolic sum of 1500 Pennsylvania pounds. In 1787, Morris was sued in Virginia by Carter Braxton for £28,257; the lawsuit continued for eight years before commissioners were appointed, then Morris appealed. Finally, Virginia's Court of Appeals led by Edmund Pendleton decided mostly in favor of Braxton before Morris was forced into bankruptcy by his own continued land speculations (although Morris as late as 1800 believed he should have won £20,000). Morris became increasingly fixated on land speculation, reaching his first major real estate deal in 1790 when he acquired much of

20298-402: The details to his partners. With national finances in tatters, Morris led a group of merchants in creating the Bank of Pennsylvania , which provided funding for the purchase of supplies by the Continental Army. The bank did not engage in the full range of modern banking activities, but it did accept deposits and provide a potential model for monetary reforms at the national level. The success of

20497-488: The early 1780s, due to the structure of the government under the Articles of Confederation, it had no power to tax to either raise revenue or pay its soldiers. In 1782, after several months without pay, a group of officers organized to send a delegation to lobby Congress, led by Captain Alexander McDougall. The officers had three demands: the army's pay, their own pensions, and commutation of those pensions into

20696-529: The early 1790s, the country became increasingly polarized between the Democratic-Republican Party , led by Jefferson and Madison, and the Federalist Party , led by Hamilton. Though Morris was less focused on politics after the Compromise of 1790, he supported most of Hamilton's policies and aligned with the Federalist Party. Morris especially supported Hamilton's proposal for the establishment of

20895-417: The economy; many of the reforms were inspired by the laissez-faire economic ideas of Adam Smith . Shortly after taking office, he convinced Congress to establish the Bank of North America , the first bank to operate in the United States. Such a bank had been discussed in the months prior to Morris's appointment, but the bank itself was organized along lines laid out by Robert Morris and Gouverneur Morris. It

21094-438: The estate in 1785 and made it his primary residence. In 1790, President George Washington accepted Morris's offer to make the house his primary residence; Morris and his family subsequently moved to a smaller, neighboring property. By the 1790s, Morris had become close friends with Washington, and he and his wife were regular fixtures at state events thrown by the president. The President's House , as it became known, served as

21293-409: The executive, "The English model was the only good one on this subject. The hereditary interest of the king was so interwoven with that of the nation, and his personal emoluments so great, that he was placed above the danger of being corrupted from abroad... Let one executive be appointed for life who dares execute his powers." Hamilton argued, "And let me observe that an executive is less dangerous to

21492-685: The field of battle nor do I wish to see them live in tyranny". After the Declaration of Independence was issued, Morris continued to supervise and coordinate efforts to secure arms and ammunition and export American goods. His strategy focused on using ships from New England to export tobacco and other goods from the Southern states to Europe and the islands of the Caribbean, then using the capital obtained from those exports to purchase military supplies from Europe. British spies and warships often frustrated his plans, and many American ships were captured in

21691-406: The financial risk of buying government bonds that most experts thought would never be redeemed. He argued that liberty and property security were inseparable, and that the government should honor the contracts, as they formed the basis of public and private morality. To Hamilton, the proper handling of the government debt would also allow America to borrow at affordable interest rates and would also be

21890-540: The firm for five months in 1771 while the owner was at sea. He remained an avid reader, and later developed an interest in writing and a life outside Saint Croix. He wrote a detailed letter to his father regarding a hurricane that devastated Christiansted on August 30, 1772. The Presbyterian Reverend Hugh Knox, a tutor and mentor to Hamilton, submitted the letter for publication in the Royal Danish-American Gazette. Biographer Ron Chernow found

22089-586: The firm traded with India, the Levant , the West Indies , Spanish Cuba , Spain, and Italy. The firm's business of import, export, and general agency made it one of the most prosperous in Pennsylvania. In 1784, Morris, with other investors, underwrote the voyage of the ship Empress of China , the first American vessel to visit the Chinese mainland. Morris's partnership with Willing was established just after

22288-410: The first U.S. Secretary of the Treasury . He envisioned a central government led by an energetic president, a strong national defense, and an industrial economy. He successfully argued that the implied powers of the Constitution provided the legal authority to fund the national debt , assume the states' debts, and create the First Bank of the United States , which was funded by a tariff on imports and

22487-519: The form of a loan from France and a loan from Netherlands . This had the effect of capitalizing the bank with large deposits of gold and silver coin and bills of exchange . He then issued new paper currency backed by this supply. In the midst of the American Revolutionary War, U.S. government finances fell into a poor state as Congress lacked the power to raise revenue and the states largely refused to furnish funding. Without

22686-699: The foundation for American government and finance. British historian Paul Johnson stated that Hamilton was a "genius—the only one of the Founding Fathers fully entitled to that accolade—and he had the elusive, indefinable characteristics of genius." Hamilton was born and spent the early part of his childhood in Charlestown, the capital of Nevis in the British Leeward Islands . Hamilton and his older brother, James Jr., were born out of wedlock to Rachel Lavien ( née Faucette),

22885-420: The funds that they owed to Congress. Writing to the state governors, Morris argued that it was "high time to reliever ourselves from the infamy we have already sustained, and to rescue and restore the national credit. This can only be done by solid revenue." By late 1782, all of the states but Rhode Island had agreed to back an amendment allowing the tariff, but that was enough to block the amendment. Though he

23084-553: The future Constitution of the United States, including a strong federal government with the ability to collect taxes and raise an army. It also included the separation of powers into the legislative , executive , and judicial branches. Hamilton resigned from Congress in 1783. When the British left New York in 1783 , he practiced there in partnership with Richard Harison . He specialized in defending Tories and British subjects, as in Rutgers v. Waddington , in which he defeated

23283-406: The government's debt certificates. Morris supported Hamilton's economic proposals, but the two differed on the site of the federal capital, as Hamilton wanted to keep it in New York. In June 1790, Secretary of State Thomas Jefferson convinced Morris, Hamilton, and Madison to agree to a compromise in which the federal government assumed state debts, while a new federal capital would be established on

23482-636: The ideas of revolution and liberty. During the convention, Hamilton constructed a draft for the Constitution based on the convention debates, but he never presented it. This draft had most of the features of the actual Constitution. In this draft, the Senate was to be elected in proportion to the population, being two-fifths the size of the House, and the president and senators were to be elected through complex multistage elections, in which chosen electors would elect smaller bodies of electors; they would hold office for life, but were removable for misconduct. The president would have an absolute veto. The Supreme Court

23681-506: The impression that New York would not be accepted into the Union. During the state convention, New Hampshire and Virginia becoming the ninth and tenth states to ratify the Constitution, respectively, had ensured any adjournment would not happen and a compromise would have to be reached. Hamilton's arguments used for the ratifications were largely iterations of work from The Federalist Papers , and Smith eventually went for ratification, though it

23880-530: The influence of William Livingston , a local leading intellectual and revolutionary with whom he lived for a time. Hamilton entered Mulligan's alma mater King's College , now Columbia University , in New York City, in the autumn of 1773 as a private student, while again boarding with Mulligan until officially matriculating in May 1774. His college roommate and lifelong friend Robert Troup spoke glowingly of Hamilton's clarity in concisely explaining

24079-437: The issuing of a new currency, referred to as "Morris notes," backed by Morris's own funds. Morris also convinced Congress to allow him to purchase all supplies for the Continental Army, and Congress required states to furnish funding rather than supplying goods like flour or meat. By 1781, the Revolutionary War had become a stalemate between Britain and the United States. The British had concentrated their military operations in

24278-491: The last of the executive positions in November, when Benjamin Lincoln accepted appointment as Secretary of War . Along with General Washington and Continental Congress secretary Charles Thomson, the three executives served as the leaders of the de facto first national executive branch in U.S. history; Morris assumed an unofficial role as the leading department secretary. All three executives, as well as Washington, aligned with

24477-565: The late 1780s after a business partner mistakenly refused to honor bills issued by Morris, causing him to default on a loan. In 1784 Morris was part of a syndicate that backed the sailing of the Empress of China (1783) for the China trade.(In 1787 Morris also sent the ex-warship Alliance to Canton China as part of the China Trade). As part of the effort to repay France for loans that financed

24676-571: The latter committee, Morris helped arrange for the appointment of Silas Deane as Congress's representative to France; Deane was charged with procuring supplies and securing a formal alliance with France. Throughout 1776, Morris would emerge as a key figure on the Marine Committee; Rappleye describes him as the "de facto commander" of the Continental Navy. Morris favored a naval strategy of attacking Britain's "defenseless places" in an effort to divide Britain's numerically superior fleet. Along with Franklin, Dickinson, and John Adams , Morris helped draft

24875-673: The letter astounding because "for all its bombastic excesses, it does seem wondrous [that a] self-educated clerk could write with such verve and gusto" and that a teenage boy produced an apocalyptic "fire-and-brimstone sermon" viewing the hurricane as a "divine rebuke to human vanity and pomposity." The essay impressed community leaders, who collected a fund to send Hamilton to the North American colonies for his education. In October 1772, Hamilton arrived by ship in Boston and proceeded from there to New York City, where he took lodgings with

25074-462: The liberties of the people when in office during life than for seven years. It may be said this constitutes as an elective monarchy ... But by making the executive subject to impeachment, the term 'monarchy' cannot apply ..." In his notes of the convention, Madison interpreted Hamilton's proposal as claiming power for the "rich and well born". Madison's perspective all but isolated Hamilton from his fellow delegates and others who felt they did not reflect

25273-909: The list of Holker's associates (occasional or regular) is given in a note to volume 7. It is edifying: on the French side, Le Ray de Chaumont of course, Sabatier and Després, La Caze and Mallet, the bankers Le Couteulx and Ferdinand Grand; the authors have just forgotten Holker senior, Antoine Garvey and Baudard de Saint-James , associate in Sabatier's business. On the American side, three of the founding fathers , John Langdon , Thomas Fitzsimons and of course Robert Morris, Simeon and Barnabas Deane, brothers of Silas Deane, William Duer, who will be discussed again, Matthew Ridley , Mark Pringle, Jonathan Williams Sr. and Jr 40 , Stacey Hepburn, William Smith (en) , of Baltimore, Benjamin Harrison V , of Virginia 41 . Special mention for Philadelphia merchant Thomas Fitzsimons, one of

25472-529: The losses he had suffered. In January 1784 Morris submitted accounts, but the settlement would stumble over the claim for compensation for the depreciation suffered by Holker. Relations between the two partners deteriorated rapidly and Holker wanted to appeal to the courts. This dispute was not anecdotal, because it would lead to a deterioration in Franco-American relations , the French side noting Morris's stiffening and becoming increasingly concerned about

25671-401: The meeting of the convention, but rarely spoke after the first day, instead allowing lawyers and others more experienced with the law to debate various issues. His primary goals, including a provision ensuring the federal government had the power to lay tariffs and taxes, were shared by the vast majority of delegates at the convention. On September 17, Morris signed the final document produced by

25870-485: The men. Jackson was unsuccessful. The mob arrived in Philadelphia, and the soldiers proceeded to harangue Congress for their pay. Hamilton argued that Congress ought to adjourn to Princeton, New Jersey . Congress agreed, and relocated there. Frustrated with the weakness of the central government, Hamilton while in Princeton, drafted a call to revise the Articles of Confederation. This resolution contained many features of

26069-437: The midst of trading operations. In response, Morris authorized American envoys in Europe to commission privateers to attack British shipping, and he arranged for an agent, William Bingham , to pay for repairs to American privateers on the French island of Martinique . Due to the lucrative nature of privateering, Morris also started outfitting his own privateers. Another agent of Morris's, his half-brother Thomas Morris, proved

26268-528: The moderate faction of Pennsylvania leaders that included Morris, a convention of delegates from across Pennsylvania began meeting to draft a new constitution and establish a new state government. At the same time, Congress was debating whether to formally declare independence from Britain. By early July 1776, Pennsylvania's delegation was the lone congressional delegation opposed to declaring independence. Morris refused to vote for independence, but he and another Pennsylvania delegate agreed to excuse themselves from

26467-707: The national funding plan. On March 15, Washington defused the Newburgh situation by addressing the officers personally. Congress ordered the Army officially disbanded in April 1783. In the same month, Congress passed a new measure for a 25-year impost—which Hamilton voted against —that again required the consent of all the states; it also approved a commutation of the officers' pensions to five years of full pay. Rhode Island again opposed these provisions, and Hamilton's robust assertions of national prerogatives in his previous letter were widely held to be excessive. In June 1783,

26666-408: The necessity of standing armies. In 1789, Washington—who had become the first president of the United States —appointed Hamilton to be his cabinet's Secretary of the Treasury on the advice of Robert Morris , Washington's initial pick. On September 11, 1789, Hamilton was nominated and confirmed in the Senate and sworn in the same day as the first United States Secretary of the Treasury . Before

26865-415: The new government’s precarious financial situation, Congress did not put Morris’s plan into effect; however, Morris's decimal innovation was not lost on two of the Founding Fathers who examined Morris’s pattern coins: Alexander Hamilton and Thomas Jefferson , the primary architects of the U.S. Dollar . Both men became champions of the decimal concept after examining Morris’s coins. While Thomas Jefferson

27064-503: The new national capital, District of Columbia , but signed a contract with a syndicate of Philadelphia investors to take over his obligations there. After that, he took the options to purchase over 6,000,000 acres (24,000 km ) in the rural south. Unfortunately for Morris, that syndicate reneged on their commitment, leaving him once again liable, but this time with more exposure. Alexander Hamilton Alexander Hamilton (January 11, 1755 or 1757  – July 12, 1804)

27263-472: The new tax. Facing colonial resistance, Parliament repealed the tax, but it later implemented other policies designed to generate tax revenue from the colonies. During the decade after the imposition of the Stamp Act, Morris would frequently join with other merchants in protesting many of Parliament's taxation policies. Writing to a friend about his objections to British tax policies, Morris stated that "I am

27462-538: The notes. After a mutiny over pay broke out in Pennsylvania, Congress voted to leave Philadelphia and establish a provincial capital in Princeton, New Jersey ; the mutiny dissipated shortly thereafter. Nationalists were devastated by this turn of events, and Hamilton resigned from Congress in mid-1783 after his proposal for convention to revise the Articles of Confederation was ignored. In November 1784, Morris resigned from his government positions. Rather than finding

27661-626: The oldest son of Charles Willing who was two years older than Morris and who, like Morris, had split his life between England and British North America. Charles Willing died in 1754, and in 1757 Thomas made Morris a full partner in the newly renamed firm of Willing Morris & Company. Morris's shipping firm was just one of many such firms operating in Philadelphia, but Willing, Morris & Co. pursued several innovative strategies. The firm pooled with other shipping firms to insure vessels, aggressively expanded trade with India, and underwrote government projects through bonds and promissory notes. Ships of

27860-613: The outbreak of the French and Indian War , which hindered the usual supply of indentured servants from the British Isles to Pennsylvania. Many potential servants had been conscripted by the British Army to fight in Continental Europe , and a significant portion of the servants already in Pennsylvania were nearing the ends of their contracts. As such, there was a rapidly increasing demand in Pennsylvania for

28059-402: The owner took the ship and all the slaves to Jamaica . This was the last time Willing, Morris & Co. was involved in slave trade, though Morris continued to own slaves until 1797. In early 1769, at age 35, Morris married 20-year-old Mary White, the daughter of a wealthy and prestigious lawyer and landholder. Mary gave birth to the couple's first of seven children in December 1769. (One son

28258-420: The participants, wrote the majority of the essays, and oversaw the publication. During the project, each person was responsible for their areas of expertise. Jay covered foreign relations. Madison covered the history of republics and confederacies, along with the anatomy of the new government. Hamilton covered the branches of government most pertinent to him: the executive and judicial branches, with some aspects of

28457-647: The patriots' case against the British in what is credited as Hamilton's first public appearance on July 6, 1773. As King's College students, Hamilton, Troup, and four other undergraduates formed an unnamed literary society that is regarded as a precursor of the Philolexian Society . In 1774, Church of England clergyman Samuel Seabury published a series of pamphlets promoting the Loyalist cause and Hamilton responded anonymously to it, with his first published political writings, A Full Vindication of

28656-468: The petition reflected widespread unhappiness in the Continental Army at the continued lack of pay. Some Nationalists, including Gouverneur Morris, believed that only the discontent of the army could force the adoption of the amendment authorizing Congress to impose a tariff. In March, Colonel Walter Stewart delivered the "Newburgh Address," in which he urged members of the Continental Army to rise up against Congress and demand payment. Washington prevented

28855-599: The position of the delegates who favored the reform of British policies but were unwilling to fully break with Britain. In September 1774, the First Continental Congress voted to create the Continental Association , an agreement to enforce a boycott against British goods beginning in December; it also advised each colony to establish committees to enforce the boycott. Morris was elected to the Philadelphia committee charged with enforcing

29054-514: The power to levy taxes and tariffs , but he was unable to convince all thirteen states to agree to an amendment to the Articles of Confederation. Frustrated by the weakness of the national government, Morris resigned as Superintendent of Finance in 1784. Morris was elected to the American Philosophical Society in 1786. In 1787, Morris was selected as a delegate to the Philadelphia Convention , which wrote and proposed

29253-559: The pro-slavery allies of Henry Laurens , the president of the Continental Congress . Due to his leave of absence, Morris did not play a large role in drafting the Articles of Confederation , which would be the first constitution of the United States, but he signed the document in March 1778. As some states objected to the Articles, it would not enter into force until 1781. Morris returned to Congress in May 1778 to vote for

29452-470: The purchases, with the intent of quickly reselling the land to realize a profit. Morris and his partners struggled to re-sell their lands, and Greenleaf dropped out from the partnership in 1795. Morris realized a profit by selling his lots in the District of Columbia in 1796, but he and Nicholson still owed their creditors approximately $ 12 million (about $ 215 million in 2023). By Morris's own admission

29651-642: The rank of lieutenant colonel . Washington believed that "Aides de camp are persons in whom entire confidence must be placed and it requires men of abilities to execute the duties with propriety and dispatch." Hamilton served four years as Washington's chief staff aide. He handled letters to the Continental Congress , state governors, and the most powerful generals of the Continental Army . He drafted many of Washington's orders and letters under Washington's direction, and he eventually issued orders on Washington's behalf over his own signature. Hamilton

29850-433: The ratification of the new federal Constitution. The Constitutionalists, who saw the new federal constitution as a threat to state sovereignty, joined with Anti-Federalists in other states in seeking to prevent the ratification of the Constitution. In elections held in October and November 1787, Morris's Federalist allies retained control of the state legislature and won a majority of the elections held to select delegates for

30049-453: The reassuring words of the authorities, they convinced themselves that the currency would rise, while Morris, for his own account, did the exact opposite: he did not keep any cash and invested it as soon as he had some in goods: he thus avoided losses linked to currency depreciation. The blow of the club is delivered in March 1780 : "Congress officially devalued "old emission" currency at a ratio of forty to one of species, thereby repudiating

30248-517: The recently approved Articles of Confederation. Such an amendment would greatly strengthen the power of the national government, but the amendment process required the consent of each state, and many states were reluctant to alter the balance of power between the states and the national government. The Articles gave Congress the sole power to conduct foreign policy, but the states retained all power over funding; Congress had no independent power to raise funds, and lacked any mechanism to force states provide

30447-497: The repayment of debts contracted by the United States . The interests of a foreign government which was both ally and creditor expanded the dispute from the private realm into the public arena. Holker consulted Thomas Fitzsimons and the latter explained to him that arbitration was preferable. This arbitration would be entrusted to five Philadelphia merchants, including Fitzsimons himself; he would have to wait five years for it. The verdict ofApril 1789exonerate Morris from any liability for

30646-437: The report he also sought out suggestions from contemporaries such as John Witherspoon and Madison. Although they agreed on additional taxes such as distilleries and duties on imported liquors and land taxes, Madison feared that the securities from the government debt would fall into foreign hands. In the report, Hamilton felt that the securities should be paid at full value to their legitimate owners, including those who took

30845-668: The residence of the president until 1800, when President John Adams moved to the White House in Washington, D.C. In 1765, the Parliament of Great Britain imposed the Stamp Act , a tax on transactions involving paper that proved widely unpopular in British North America. In one of his first major political acts, Morris joined with several other merchants in pressuring British agent John Hughes to refrain from collecting

31044-490: The return of the nation's capital to Philadelphia and the federal assumption of state debts. Morris defeated Maclay's proposal to establish the capital in Pennsylvania at a site on the Susquehanna River west of Philadelphia, but James Madison defeated Morris's attempt to establish the capital just outside of Philadelphia. Morris's 1781 "Report On Public Credit" supplied the basis for Hamilton's First Report on

31243-483: The same policies he had sought as Superintendent of Finance: a federal tariff, a national bank, a federal mint, and the funding of the national debt. Congress agreed to implement the Tariff of 1789 , which created a uniform impost on goods carried by foreign ships into American ports, but many other issues lingered into 1790. Among those issues were the site of the national capital and the fate of state debts. Morris sought

31442-437: The same time, Morris and others in Philadelphia learned that the United States and Britain had signed a preliminary peace agreement, bringing an unofficial end to the Revolutionary War. Congress approved a furlough of the Continental Army soldiers, subject to recall in case hostilities broke out once again. Morris distributed "Morris notes" to the remaining soldiers, but many soldiers departed for their homes rather than waiting for

31641-604: The same time, he was appointed general agent of the Royal Navy of France and in this capacity had to manage the logistics and finances of the French expeditionary force) . In early 1780, they became partners in William Turnbull and Co. Turnbull had worked for the secret Pennsylvania Committee of Commerce and would manage operations on their behalf.In the monumental edition of the Robert Morris Papers ,

31840-528: The shipping and banking firm of Philadelphia merchant Charles Willing . In 1750, Robert Morris Sr. died from an infected wound, leaving much of his substantial estate to his son. Morris impressed Willing and rose from a teenage trainee to become a key agent in Willing's firm. Morris traveled to Caribbean ports to expand the firm's business, and he gained a knowledge of trading and the various currencies used to exchange goods. He also befriended Thomas Willing ,

32039-605: The slave trade. The firm advertised slave sales and directed company ships to purchase slaves from Africa to sell in British North America . One of the first ships the firm purchased, Nancy , was used to make two voyages to Africa to purchase slaves; the first voyage occurred in 1762, and resulted in the sale of approximately 170 slaves purchased from the Gold Coast in Wilmington, North Carolina . Though it

32238-484: The soldiers in an effort to avoid discontent in the Army, 2) The address was written by Major Armstrong, General Gate's aide-de-camp, both of whom were anti-Morris partisans, 3) Armstrong went on to become a favorite of the Constitutionalists of Pennsylvania, who later made him their Clerk of the Assembly, 4) Morris's most bitter enemy, Arthur Lee, promoted articles published by anonymous partisans (probably Lee himself) in

32437-469: The southern states will be anxious. The northern will be glad to send a counterpoise in Vermont." Vermont was admitted to the Union in 1791. In 1788, he was awarded a Master of Arts degree from his alma mater , the former King's College, now reconstituted as Columbia College. It was during this post-war period that Hamilton served on the college's board of trustees , playing a part in the reopening of

32636-466: The state assembly as part of a slate of candidates that favored reforming the Pennsylvania constitution; he resigned from Congress to take up his seat. After Morris left Congress, Henry Laurens , Thomas Paine , and some other members of Congress continued their false attacks on him for allegedly using his position in Congress for his own financial benefit, but in early 1779 a congressional committee cleared Morris of all charges. With their plans to call

32835-408: The state constitution that included many of the alterations that Morris had long favored, including a bicameral legislature, a state governor with the power to veto bills, and a judiciary with life tenure. Morris refocused on his trading concerns after leaving office as Superintendent of Finance, seeking especially to expand his role in the tobacco trade. He began suffering from financial problems in

33034-467: The state of Pennsylvania from 1782 to 1794] to purchase 1,000,000 acres of Pennsylvania land besides land they already had title to in Luzerne County ; Northumberland County and Northampton County . [This was not the first partnership Morris and Nicholson were involved in; in 1792, Nicholson had negotiated the purchase from the federal government of the 202,000-acre (820 km ) tract known as

33233-465: The states. This lack of a stable source of funding had made it difficult for the Continental Army both to obtain its necessary provisions and to pay its soldiers. During the war, and for some time after, Congress obtained what funds it could from subsidies from the King of France, European loans, and aid requested from the several states, which were often unable or unwilling to contribute. An amendment to

33432-464: The transactions could not be closed up." The Treasury Board elected in 1794-1795 those old accounts were brought to a settlement—a June 1796 entry in the Treasury debt against Morris for $ 93,312.63. Morris would explain in 1800 in debtors' prison that in fact the debt was due not just to himself but also his partners John Ross and Thomas Willing . After leaving office, Morris once again devoted himself to business, but state and federal politics remained

33631-505: The unit being re-designated an artillery company. Through his connections with influential New York patriots, including Alexander McDougall and John Jay , Hamilton raised the New York Provincial Company of Artillery of 60 men in 1776, and was elected captain . The company took part in the campaign of 1776 in and around New York City; as rearguard of the Continental Army's retreat up Manhattan, serving at

33830-512: The very few Catholic signatories of the Constitution , appreciated for his wisdom by both Holker and Morris and who would serve as arbitrator in their disputes.. In fact, Holker's French partners fell into a double trap: lured by their yield, they invested part of the transferred funds in Congressional loan certificates that yielded 6% 43 , 44 , without realizing that these state funds would be transformed into junk bonds , and, strengthened by

34029-514: The vote on independence, thereby giving the pro-independence movement a majority in the Pennsylvania delegation. With Morris absent, all congressional delegations voted to pass a resolution declaring independence on July 2, and the United States formally declared independence on July 4, 1776. Despite his opposition to independence, and much to Morris's surprise, the Pennsylvania constitutional convention voted to keep Morris in Congress; he

34228-461: The war drew nearer to an end, he knew that opportunities for military glory were diminishing. On February 15, 1781, Hamilton was reprimanded by Washington after a minor misunderstanding. Although Washington quickly tried to mend their relationship, Hamilton insisted on leaving his staff. He officially left in March, and settled with his new wife Elizabeth Schuyler close to Washington's headquarters. He continued to repeatedly ask Washington and others for

34427-437: The war, Morris contracted to supply 20,000 hogsheads of tobacco annually to France beginning in 1785. Shortly after these contracts were signed, Ambassador Thomas Jefferson took it upon himself to interfere with these arrangements, bringing about the collapse of the tobacco market. Financier James Swan on July 9, 1795, managed to do something Morris had been unable to do: the entire U.S. National debt to France of US$ 2,024,899

34626-718: The windows; 194 British soldiers walked out of the building and laid down their arms, ending the battle in an American victory. While being stationed in Morristown, New Jersey , from December 1779 to March 1780, Hamilton met Elizabeth Schuyler , a daughter of General Philip Schuyler and Catherine Van Rensselaer . They married on December 14, 1780, at the Schuyler Mansion in Albany, New York . They had eight children, Philip , Angelica , Alexander , James , John , William , Eliza , and another Philip . Hamilton

34825-465: Was Congressman Thomas Morris , whose wife was related to the Livingston and Van Rensselaer New York political families). Morris and his family lived on Front Street in Philadelphia and maintained a second home, known as "The Hills," on the Schuylkill River to the northwest of the city. He later purchased another rural manor, which he named Morrisville , that was located across the Delaware River from Trenton, New Jersey . The Morrises worshiped at

35024-415: Was ambitious: he hoped to unite the fledgling Nation with a monetary unit that would allow for easy conversion from British, Spanish, Portuguese, or State currencies to U.S. funds. More importantly, Morris’s proposal would be the first system of coinage in Western Europe or the Americas to use decimal accounting – an innovation that has been adopted by every nation on earth in the last two centuries. Due to

35223-440: Was an American military officer, statesman, and Founding Father who served as the first U.S. secretary of the treasury from 1789 to 1795 during George Washington's presidency . Born out of wedlock in Charlestown, Nevis , Hamilton was orphaned as a child and taken in by a prosperous merchant. He pursued his education in New York City where, despite his young age, he was a prolific and widely read pamphleteer advocating for

35422-461: Was an English-born American merchant, investor and politician who was one of the Founding Fathers of the United States . He served as a member of the Pennsylvania legislature, the Second Continental Congress , and the United States Senate , and was one of only two people who signed the Declaration of Independence , the Articles of Confederation , and the United States Constitution (The other being Roger Sherman ). From 1781 to 1784, he served as

35621-478: Was appointed to the Secret Committee of Trade, which supervised the procurement of arms and ammunition. As the revolutionary government lacked an executive branch or a civil service, the committees of Congress handled all government business. Biographer Charles Rappleye writes that the committee "handled its contracts in a clubby, often incestuous manner" that may have unfairly benefited politically connected merchants, including Morris. However, Rappleye also notes that

35820-449: Was appointed to the committee. Morris became part of the core group of members that directed the committee and served as the committee's chairman when Benjamin Franklin was absent. Charged with obtaining gunpowder , Morris arranged a large-scale smuggling operation to avoid British laws designed to prevent arms and ammunition from being imported into the colonies. Due to his success at smuggling gunpowder for Pennsylvania, Morris also became

36019-435: Was confined in the Prune Street debtors' apartment adjacent to Walnut Street Prison from 1798 to 1801. After being released from prison, he lived a quiet, private life in a modest home in Philadelphia until his death in 1806. Morris was born in Liverpool, England, on January 20, 1734. His parents were Robert Morris Sr., an agent for a shipping firm, and Elizabeth Murphet; biographer Charles Rappleye concludes that Morris

36218-475: Was established as a private institution governed by its investors but was subject to inspection by the Superintendent of Finance. The bank would take the national government's deposits, provide loans to Congress, and issue banknotes . Morris hoped that the bank would help finance the war, stabilize the nation's currency, and bring the country together under one unified monetary policy. As the bank would take some time to begin functioning, in 1781 Morris presided over

36417-436: Was frustrated in the tariff battle, Morris continued to implement and propose other economic reforms. In January 1782, after receiving its charter from Congress, the Bank of North America commenced operations, and the bank's currency soon achieved wide circulation. Morris sought the establishment of a national mint to provide for a single coinage throughout the United States and proposed the first decimal currency , but Congress

36616-437: Was in possession of the Nova Constellatio coins, he wrote a report entitled “Notes on the Establishment of a Money Unit and of Coinage for the United States”; in it, Jefferson concluded: The Financier, therefore, in his report, well proposes that our Coins should be in decimal proportions to one another. If we adopt the Dollar for our Unit, we should strike four coins, one of gold, two of silver, and one of copper, viz.: This

36815-421: Was invited to become an aide to Continental Army general William Alexander, Lord Stirling , and another general, perhaps Nathanael Greene or Alexander McDougall . He declined these invitations, believing his best chance for improving his station in life was glory on the Revolutionary War 's battlefields. Hamilton eventually received an invitation he felt he could not refuse: to serve as Washington's aide with

37014-495: Was involved in a wide variety of high-level duties, including intelligence , diplomacy , and negotiation with senior army officers as Washington's emissary. During the Revolutionary War, Hamilton became the close friend of several fellow officers. His letters to the Marquis de Lafayette and to John Laurens , employing the sentimental literary conventions of the late 18th century and alluding to Greek history and mythology, have been read by Jonathan Ned Katz as revelatory of

37213-537: Was licensed to argue cases before the Supreme Court of New York . He also accepted an offer from Robert Morris to become receiver of continental taxes for the New York state . Hamilton was appointed in July 1782 to the Congress of the Confederation as a New York representative for the term beginning in November 1782. Before his appointment to Congress in 1782, Hamilton was already sharing his criticisms of Congress. He expressed these criticisms in his letter to James Duane dated September 3, 1780: "The fundamental defect

37412-403: Was more out of necessity than Hamilton's rhetoric. The vote in the state convention was ratified 30 to 27, on July 26, 1788. Hamilton recruited John Jay and James Madison to write The Federalist Papers , a series of essays, to defend the proposed Constitution. He made the largest contribution to that effort, writing 51 of the 85 essays published. Hamilton supervised the entire project, enlisted

37611-450: Was not further involved. Hamilton's highlights included discussion that although republics have been culpable for disorders in the past, advances in the "science of politics" had fostered principles that ensured that those abuses could be prevented, such as the division of powers, legislative checks and balances, an independent judiciary, and legislators that were represented by electors (No. 7–9). Hamilton also wrote an extensive defense of

37810-458: Was paid in full. The United States no longer owed money to foreign governments, although it continued to owe money to private investors both in the United States and in Europe. This allowed the young United States to place itself on a sound financial footing. FromJuly 1778 to January 1780, Morris was agent, normally paid on commission for John Holker (French consul general for the four states of Delaware , Pennsylvania, New York and New Jersey . At

38009-486: Was probably born out of wedlock . Until he reached the age of thirteen, Morris was raised by his maternal grandmother in England. In 1747, Morris immigrated to Oxford, Maryland , where his father had prospered in the tobacco trade. Two years later, Morris's father sent him to Philadelphia, then the most populous city in British North America , where Morris lived under the care of his father's friend, Charles Greenway. Greenway arranged for Morris to become an apprentice at

38208-447: Was profitable, this voyage did not make a large profit, and a second slave-trading voyage by Nancy resulted in her capture by French privateers . Willing, Morris & Co. also handled two slave auctions for other importers of slaves, offering 23 slaves for sale. Three years later, the firm advertised 17 slaves for sale who were brought from Africa onboard the slave ship Marquis de Granby . The slaves were not sold in Philadelphia, as

38407-442: Was quite limited. Governor George Clinton 's faction in the New York legislature had chosen New York's other two delegates, John Lansing Jr. and Robert Yates , and both of them opposed Hamilton's goal of a strong national government. Thus, whenever the other two members of the New York delegation were present, they decided New York's vote, to ensure that there were no major alterations to the Articles of Confederation. Early in

38606-429: Was the lone anti-independence delegate from Pennsylvania to retain his position. In August, Morris signed the Declaration of Independence despite having abstained. In explaining his decision, he stated, "I am not one of those politicians that run testy when my own plans are not adopted. I think it is the duty of a good citizen to follow when he cannot lead." He also stated, "while I do not wish to see my countrymen die on

38805-401: Was to have immediate jurisdiction over all lawsuits involving the United States, and state governors were to be appointed by the federal government. At the end of the convention, Hamilton was still not content with the final Constitution, but signed it anyway as a vast improvement over the Articles of Confederation, and urged his fellow delegates to do so also. Since the other two members of

39004-478: Was to occupy an entire block between Chestnut Street and Walnut Street on the western edge of Philadelphia. The structure was of red brick and marble lining. Besides Land Speculation, Morris founded several canal companies: [Similar to the Potomac Company ], two Pennsylvania canal companies were set up to try to link the produce of the western lands with the eastern markets; they were the Schuylkill and Susquehanna Navigation Company chartered September 29, 1791, and

39203-495: Was unable to pay the soldiers of the Continental Army. The chief issue, aside from the unwillingness of the states to amend the Articles of Confederation, was the unwillingness of the states to supply adequate funding; many states refused to furnish any funds at all. The Bank of North America provided some loans, but eventually refused to furnish more funds until previous loans were paid off. Morris's efforts were further complicated by France's reluctance to extend more loans, as well as

39402-453: Was unsuccessful. The state convention in Poughkeepsie in June 1788 pitted Hamilton, Jay, James Duane , Robert Livingston , and Richard Morris against the Clintonian faction led by Melancton Smith , Lansing, Yates, and Gilbert Livingston . Clinton's faction wanted to amend the Constitution, while maintaining the state's right to secede if their attempts failed, and members of Hamilton's faction were against any conditional ratification, under

39601-445: Was unwilling to back this project. He appointed several receivers, including Alexander Hamilton , to help circulate banknotes, report on the prices of goods, and perform other functions in places throughout the United States. He also reformed government procurement of supplies, saving money by placing the onus for the storage and transport of supplies on government contractors. Even after implementing several financial reforms, Morris

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