- The Writings of George Washington.
- 1780.
- To Governor Reed.
- To Major Lee.
- To Major-general Heath.
- To the President of Congress.
- To Major-general Greene. Instructions.
- To George Mason. 1
- To Major-general Gates.
- To the Board of War.
- To the Marquis De Lafayette.
- To Abner Nash, Governor of North Carolina.
- To Robert Carter Nicholas.
- To the President of Congress.
- To Major-general Greene.
- To William Fitzhugh.
- To Governor Jefferson.
- To Major-general Heath. [private.]
- To John Sullivan, In Congress. 1
- To Sir Henry Clinton.
- To John Sullivan, In Congress.
- To the President of Congress.
- To the Marquis De Lafayette.
- To Gouverneur Morris.
- To Count De Rochambeau.
- To Major-general Lincoln.
- To Major-general Greene.
- To the Marquis De Lafayette.
- To Count De Rochambeau and the Chevalier De Ternay.
- To Governor Trumbull.
- To John Sullivan, In Congress.
- To the President of Congress.
- To Benjamin Franklin, Minister Plenipotentiary At the Court of Versailles.
- To Lieutenant-colonel David Humphreys. 1 Instructions.
- To James Duane.
- To the Marquis De Lafayette.
- To Governor Jefferson.
- 1781.
- To the President of Congress.
- To Brigadier-general Wayne.
- To the New England States.
- To the President of Congress.
- To Brigadier-general Wayne.
- To Major-general Greene.
- To Major-general St. Clair.
- To Lieutenant-colonel John Laurens. 2
- To the President of Congress.
- To Mrs. Sarah Bache. 2
- To Count De Rochambeau.
- To the Executives of the States. 1
- To the Officer Commanding the British Fleet At New York.
- To the Commissioners For Redressing the Grievances of the New Jersey Line.
- To Major-general Howe.
- To Robert R. Livingston.
- To the President of Congress.
- To Major-general St. Clair.
- To John Sullivan, In Congress.
- To Governor Jefferson.
- To Mrs. Francis, Mrs. Hillegas, Mrs. Clarkson, Mrs. Bache, and Mrs. Blair.
- To Count De Rochambeau.
- To Brigadier-general Knox. Private Instructions.
- To the President of Congress.
- To Abraham Skinner.
- To the Marquis De Lafayette. Instructions.
- To Elbridge Gerry.
- To Governor Jefferson.
- To Governor Trumbull.
- To Major-general St. Clair.
- To Major-general Parsons.
- To the Chevalier Destouches.
- To Count De Rochambeau.
- To Governor Clinton.
- To the Marquis De Lafayette.
- To John Mathews, In Congress.
- To the President of Congress.
- To Major-general Lincoln.
- To the Marquis De Lafayette.
- To John Park Custis.
- To the Marquis De Lafayette.
- To Governor Hancock.
- To Benjamin Harrison.
- To Major-general Heath.
- To William Fitzhugh.
- To Major-general Armstrong.
- To Benjamin Harrison. 1
- To the Board of War.
- To Major-general Lincoln.
- To the Marquis De Lafayette.
- To Count Rochambeau.
- To the President of Congress.
- To Colonel John Laurens, At Paris.
- To Count De Rochambeau.
- To the Marquis De Lafayette.
- To the President of Congress.
- To Major-general Greene.
- To the Marquis De Lafayette.
- To the Marquis De Lafayette.
- To the Marquis De Lafayette.
- To Lieutenant-colonel Alexander Hamilton.
- To Count De Rochambeau.
- To Major Benjamin Tallmadge.
- To Lund Washington, At Mount Vernon.
- To the Marquis De Lafayette.
- To the President of Congress.
- To John Sullivan, In Congress.
- To Philip Schuyler.
- To the President of Congress.
- Substance of a Conference Between General Washington and Count De Rochambeau At Weathersfield, 22 May, 1781. 2
- To the Chevalier De La Luzerne.
- Circular Letter to the States.
- To the President of Congress.
- To John Sullivan, In Congress.
- To Major-general Greene.
- To Count De Rochambeau.
- To the President of Congress.
- To John Mathews, In Congress.
- To Governor Jefferson.
- To Colonel William Crawford.
- To Count De Rochambeau.
- To Governor Clinton.
- To President Reed.
- To Count De Rochambeau.
- To Major-general Lincoln. Instructions.
- To the President of Congress.
- To the Marquis De Lafayette.
- To the Superintendent of Finance.
- To Major-general Lord Stirling. Instructions.
- To Richard Henry Lee 1 .
- Questions and Replies.
- To Brigadier-general Waterbury.
- To Thomas Mckean, President of Congress. 1
- To John Parke Custis.
- To Major-general Greene.
- To the Marquis De Lafayette.
- To the President of Congress.
- Circular Letter to States.
- To the Superintendent of Finance.
- To the President of Congress.
- To the Marquis De Lafayette.
- To the Count De Grasse. 2
- To the Superintendent of Finance.
- To Major-general Heath. Instructions.
- To Robert Morris and Richard Peters. 1
- Circular Letter to the States.
- To the Superintendent of Finance.
- To the Marquis De Lafayette.
- To the President of Congress.
- To the Count De Grasse.
- To Major-general St. Clair.
- Questions and Answers.
- To the Count De Grasse.
- To the President of Congress.
- To the Count De Grasse.
- To Major-general Greene.
- To Don Francisco Rendon. 3
- To the President of Congress.
- To the President of Congress.
- To Lord Cornwallis.
- To the President of Congress.
- To the Count De Grasse.
- To David Ross.
- To the President of Congress.
- To the Count De Grasse.
- To Major-general St. Clair. Instructions.
- To Major-general Lincoln. Instructions.
- To the President of Congress.
- To the Marquis De Lafayette.
- To the President of Congress.
- To Benjamin Dulany.
- To George Plater, President of the Senate, and Thomas Cockey Dey, Speaker of the House of Delegates, of Maryland.
- To Governor Trumbull.
- To James Mchenry.
- To Major-general Greene.
- To the President of Congress.
- 1782.
- To Thomas Chittenden, Vermont. 2
- To the Marquis De Lafayette, At Paris.
- To Colonel Christian Febiger.
- Circular Letter to the States.
- Circular Letter to States. 1
- To Major-general Schuyler.
- To the Count De Rochambeau.
- To the President of Congress.
- To Lieutenant-colonel John Laurens. 2
- To the President of Congress.
- To Major-general Heath.
- Circular to the Eastern and Middle States.
- To Brigadier-general William Irvine. Instructions.
- To Brigadier-general Knox and Gouverneur Morris. Instructions.
- To James Mchenry.
- To Major-general Greene.
- To Brigadier-general Knox and Gouverneur Morris, At Elizabethtown.
- To Colonel Matthias Ogden. Instructions.
- To the General Officers.
- To John Lewis (fredericksburg).
- To the General and Field Officers of the Army.
- To Bartholomew Dandridge.
- To Sir Henry Clinton.
- To Major-general Greene.
- To the Secretary At War.
- To the Chevalier De La Luzerne.
- To the President of Congress.
- Plan of Campaign.
TO COUNT DE ROCHAMBEAU.
Head Quarters,New Windsor,
30 April, 1781.
Sir,
I assure your Excellency, that I feel extreme pain at the occasion of that part of your letter of the 26th instant, which relates to an intercepted letter of mine published by the enemy. I am unhappy that an accident should have put it in their power to give to the world any thing from me, which may contain an implication the least disagreeable to you, or to the Chevalier Destouches. I assure you sincerely, that I have no copy of the original letter in my possession, so that I am unable by a comparison to determine how far the publication may be just. The enemy have fabricated whole letters for me, and even a series of letters; and it is not improbable they may have given a different turn to some of my expressions in the present instance. It would however be disingenous in me not to acknowledge, that I believe the general import to be true. The copy, however, which your Excellency has sent to me, differs in some respects from that which the enemy has published, as you will perceive by the enclosed Gazette. Whatever construction it may bear, I beg your Excellency will consider the letter to a private friend, a gentleman who has the direction of my concerns at home, totally unconnected with public affairs, and on whose discretion I could absolutely rely. No idea of the same kind has ever gone to any public body.
When I say, that I believe the general import of the publication to be true, I mean it in this sense, that there did appear to me a degree of delay in executing the enterprise suggested by me, with the causes of which I was not well apprized, and an idea of this kind was probably expressed in my letter to Mr. Washington. As to the apparent insinuation, that the first expedition had been preferred to the one proposed by me, I could not have intended to convey it, in its fullest latitude, because it would have been unjust. I could not but have recollected, that my formal proposal did not reach you till after the departure of the first squadron, though the suggestion of it was previous. My letter however was written in haste, and might have been inaccurately expressed. I have lately learnt, (though not officially,) that the cause of the delay I have alluded to was a want of supplies for the fleet. Impressed with a real esteem for and confidence in the Chevalier Destouches, I heard this circumstance with satisfaction.
With this explanation, I leave the matter to his candor and to yours, and flatter myself it will make no impressions inconsistent with an entire persuasion of my sincere esteem and attachment. I have the honor to be, with perfect respect, &c.
After quoting the extract from the letter to Lund Washington, Count de Rochambeau said:
“If this was really written by your Excellency, I shall beg leave to observe, that the result of this reflection would seem to be, that we have had here the choice of two expeditions proposed, and that we have preferred the less to a more considerable undertaking, which your Excellency desired. If such is the meaning, I beg your Excellency to call to mind, that the line-of-battle ship and the two frigates went out of Newport on the 9th of February, on a demand made by Congress and the State of Virginia to the Chevalier Destouches; that your letter, with the plan for the going out of the whole fleet with a detachment of one thousand Frenchmen to act conjointly with the Marquis de Lafayette, bears date the 15th; that I did not receive it till the 19th; that, having given an instant communication of it to M. Destouches, I had the honor on the 20th to send his answer to your Excellency; and that, no later than the day after the gale of wind, which weakened the British fleet towards the end of January, by the loss of the Culloden, I offered all the land forces that could possibly be transported by the navy, and have not ceased to do it since. I shall not mention to you the reasons, that delayed the departure of M. Destouches’s squadron, because they do not come under my cognizance. I only state these facts to call to your mind these dates, which I beg you to verify by your correspondence, that you may be entirely persuaded, that there will never be the least delay in what concerns the troops whom I command, in the execution of your orders, as soon as I shall receive them.”—MS. Letter, April 26th.
The following is an extract from the instructions sent by the Minister of War to Count de Rochambeau, dated Versailles, March 7th.
“1. It is the intention of his Majesty, that you do not abandon Rhode Island, if the squadron destined to act in concert with you for its defence cannot retire to Boston without hazard, or before it shall be relieved from its defensive position at Rhode Island by a superior naval force.
“2. I will inform you, that, in the month of July or August, the superior naval force of which you have just received notice, will withdraw the squadron of M. de Barras from the harbour of Rhode Island; and you will carefully reserve to yourself the knowledge of this arrangement, which may be accelerated.
“3. If, by unforeseen events, or any cause whatever, the army of Washington should be broken up and dispersed, it is the intention of the King, that, under these circumstances, you should decline acceding to any orders or requests of that general to penetrate into the interior of the continent; as in that case it would be prudent to reserve yourself, and to retire to the Antilles if possible, or to St. Domingo, according to the season.
“4. If, on the contrary, the American army remains in its present state, and yet without being able to undertake any combined operation with the squadron; and if this latter should attempt any other enterprise, where the concurrence of a certain number of land forces would be required, the King leaves it in your power to furnish them, provided that the plan be concerted with the American general.
“5. Should there be an opportunity for the squadron at Rhode Island to act independently of the American army, you are aware that the naval forces of the King should concur in all operations, which are considered advantageous to the common cause.
“6. You are also aware, that, as long as the King’s troops occupy Rhode Island, the transports destined to receive the troops are to be kept there; when, on the contrary, the army under your command shall penetrate into the country, and the squadron abandons Rhode Island, this squadron will proceed to Boston, and take with it the transports, that have been retained.
“7. If, from the different causes mentioned, you should remain in your position at Rhode Island, and a superior naval force of the King should withdraw the squadron which is in that port, I give you notice, that the Count de Grasse has orders to leave with you two vessels to defend the port, and the transports necessary for your army.”
In M. de Rochambeau’s reply to the above, he expressed himself entirely satisfied. See a further explanation in the note appended to the letter to General Schuyler, March 23d; and in the letter to the Marquis de Lafayette, April 22d.
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