by Chris DeRose
The French admiral, Comte de Grasse, signaled his intention to take his fleet to the Chesapeake Bay. Throughout the war, the British had used their naval superiority to devastating effect. They had blocked trade, captured ships, and easily moved their forces from one part of the continent to the other, while the Americans were run ragged following them on foot. But now the French navy had leveled the playing field. And with a British encampment divided by a river and facing the bay on the east, the maritime aspect of this final showdown would be crucial.
Spain, meanwhile, used the opportunity of the pending battle in Virginia to attack British possessions—in Gibraltar and Minorca. Madison was livid, and more determined than ever not to retreat from the Mississippi. “Yet we are to reward her with a cession of what constitutes the finest part of America,” he argued sarcastically.44
As chairman of the Committee on Retaliation, Madison devised a solution to end the atrocities against civilians. The committee produced a resolution that British officers held as prisoners of war would answer with their lives. The Department of War was ordered to put to death as many officers as they judged necessary “on the first authentic notice of the burning of any town or village.”45
Monroe made one final attempt to rejoin the war. He wanted to serve in Virginia’s militia, in order to “play a small part in bringing about the event we all so anxiously wish for.” Governor Nelson, however, told him that the militia was fully officered.
With the invasion of Virginia came the closure of the courts and the cessation of all legal proceedings. Monroe, it seemed, could be neither a warrior nor a lawyer. His fallback plan was to sail aboard a vessel leaving November 10 or 12, headed for France—to continue his education in Europe. He asked Jefferson for letters of introduction to Franklin, Adams, and Jay, serving as ministers in Europe. He also asked for advice about where to live. Since leaving Richmond at the time of the British invasion of that city, Monroe had led “a very sedentary life upon a small estate I have in King George,” reading every single book recommended him by Jefferson.
While in Europe, Monroe hoped to acquire a broad education in the liberal arts, not just the law: “This if not profitable will be agreeable for surely these acquirements qualify a man not only for public office,” but also give him the opportunity to entertain himself46—as when he had spent the horrific winter at Valley Forge reading poetry.
Jefferson was happy to make the introductions. He also encouraged Monroe to learn as many things as he could while abroad: “They may be of use to you when you shall become a parliamentary man, which for my country and not for your sake, I shall wish to see you.” In this exchange, Monroe and Jefferson shared their optimism about the coming fight at York Town.
On October 5, Virginia’s Governor Nelson wrote his delegates in Congress from the “Camp before York.” On the north side of the river, at Gloucester, the British troops under Banastre Tarleton were attacked, and Tarleton himself was dismounted and wounded. A major was killed, along with fifty other men.47 And on the south side of the river, near the town of York, on October 19, the battle of York Town commenced.
The following day, the governor sent the Virginia delegates in Congress the best news in memory. “It is with infinite pleasure I congratulate you on the reduction of York and Gloucester, and the capture of the whole British army under Cornwallis.… This blow, I think, must be a decisive one, it being out of the power of G.B. to replace such a number of good troops.”48
The normally reserved Madison was ecstatic. “If these severe doses of ill fortune do not cool the frenzy and relax the pride of Britain, it would seem as if heaven had in reality abandoned her to her folly and her fate.”49
Cornwallis, feigning sickness, had his subordinate, General Charles O’Hara, lead the defeated party in surrender. The English incredulously approached the victors, their “slow and solemn” steps accompanied by a tune that tradition holds to be “The World Turned Upside Down.” There could not have been a more fitting soundtrack.
O’Hara apologized for Cornwallis’s absence to General Washington, who politely directed him to his own subordinate, General Benjamin Lincoln, for further instructions. And the British soldiers laid down their arms, purportedly to the steady, martial drumbeat and the fife playing a song that captured the feelings of everyone on that great field of battle.
If buttercups buzz’d after the bee,
If boats were on land, churches on sea,
If ponies rode men and if grass ate the cows,
And cats should be chased into holes by the mouse,
If the mamas sold their babies
To the gypsies for half a crown;
If summer were spring and the other way round,
Then all the world would be upside down.
Chapter Four
THE IN-BETWEEN DAYS
“Is it to be peace or war?”
—JACQUELIN AMBLER
In the telling, the story of how the Americans won their independence seems to end on the fields of York Town. But the period from York Town to the official peace was longer than two years. Washington’s astounding victory brought on a stalemate, not peace.
During that stalemate, the fatal weaknesses of the Continental government under the Articles of Confederation were laid bare. Congress had responsibility, but no authority. It could not force the states to pay requisitions, so it could not meet the country’s needs, much less pay down its debts. This period would see Congress unable to enforce its own rules for membership—and federal foreign policy frustrated by the sheriff of Chester County, Pennsylvania. It would also see Congress itself flee Philadelphia to escape from a mob of soldiers demanding their back pay. The issues that emerged in this strange and disjointed period of stalemate would eventually forge a political alliance between Madison and Monroe, then break that alliance, and ultimately shape the U.S. Constitution and Bill of Rights.
York Town did prove fatal to further military conquests by the British and signal the end of major fighting. But there were significant issues to be resolved. The British were still firmly in control of significant parts of the country, including the cities of Charleston and New York. Washington had planned on retaking these cities by siege. But the departure of the French navy, which had been instrumental at York Town, frustrated that ambition, even if the unstable American government could have financed such an effort. It was as though two boxers in a ring suddenly lost the ability to strike each other. James Monroe’s political career would commence in these in-between days, with America suspended between war and peace. James Madison, in Congress, would spend this time in increasingly futile efforts to make the government under the Articles of Confederation adequate to the needs of an independent country.
Edmund Pendleton, the Virginia elder statesman Madison frequently corresponded with while in Congress, wrote him with the results of the legislative elections back home. There would be many “new members, amongst others are Monroe and John Mercer, formerly officers, since fellow students in the law and said to be clever.”1
The twenty-four-year-old Monroe would represent King George County in the upcoming 1782 session of the House of Delegates. He had used General Washington’s strong letter of recommendation, which had failed to get him a command in the Virginia military, in his first campaign for office. Monroe wrote Washington his thanks: “The introduction you gave me some time since to this state for the purpose of attaining some military appointment to place me in the service of my country... although it failed in that instance has availed me in another line.”2 There is no telling whether Washington approved of Monroe’s repurposing his letter, or if he raised an eyebrow at his own unwitting endorsement of Monroe’s bid for office.
In Richmond, Monroe avoided the temptations that might be pitfalls to a young legislator. He rented a house with a friend and ventured to town only when business required, otherwise spending his time buried in books.3 Monroe’s remarkable war record, his successful study of the law under Jefferson, and t
he words of praise from Washington had been sufficient to initiate his service in government. His plans to visit Europe had fallen through again when the ship he had planned to travel on cancelled the journey, but a voyage of a different sort had commenced with high tides and fair winds.
As Monroe’s political career was just beginning in Richmond, Madison was still struggling with the recalcitrant Mississippi problem in Congress. Madison chaired a committee that authored a report on Jay’s negotiations with Spain. The Spanish had been warned in September of 1781 that if they waited until the “vicissitudes, dangers, and difficulties of a distressing war” has passed, America would never relinquish its claims to the Mississippi.4 “The surrender of the navigation of the Mississippi was meant as the price of the advantages promised by an early and intimate alliance with the Spanish monarchy.”5 It was unthinkable to Madison that the Mississippi should be ceded to Spain now.
The government’s system of finance was still an absolute wreck, with nobody even certain how bad things were. As a first step toward making sense of the mess, Madison successfully passed a motion ordering the Superintendent of Finance to determine the debts owed by the United States and to report to Congress every six months on money borrowed and bills of credit issued during that period.6 Madison also passed a resolution charging the Superintendent to send the state legislatures “a representation of the alarming prospects which their neglect to comply with the . . . requisitions of Congress has produced.” As of May 20, the states had contributed $5,500 dollars in 1782, one-fourth of what was necessary to fund government operations for a single day.7 Congress sent delegations to personally lobby legislatures for funding.8
Madison also presented a motion asking states to send their representatives: “Business of the greatest consequence is often delayed or retarded for want of sufficient representation in Congress.”9
He had been away from home for over two years. “It has at no time been more difficult for me to fix my probable return to Virginia,” Madison wrote his father. “Anxious as I am to visit my friends, as long as I sustain a public trust, I shall feel a principle which is superior to it.”10 The times were filled with rumors of more war. Thirty British ships arrived in New York, their purpose unknown.
Though there was not yet peace, life in various quarters of America began to return to normal. Assisting in Virginia’s post-war transition was James Monroe who, after a short time in the legislature, was appointed to the Council of State in June of 1782. He would again credit Washington’s letter of recommendation for his appointment. Because the beloved general thought highly of him, others were predisposed to do so as well.
One of the great difficulties faced by states in 1782 was the need to maintain soldiers in readiness in case peace negotiations failed. The Commissioner of War for Virginia requested two hundred men from the Montgomery and Washington County Militia. The Council also authorized the sale of all public bacon, though the proceeds would still not provide enough for the state’s soldiers to eat.11 The state’s lead mines, which had been torn apart to rush materials to the munitions factories, would soon be unusable unless repaired.12
Virginians were terrified that war might be renewed, and many felt their state would again be the central theatre of action. Governor Benjamin Harrison13 wanted to be able to call on four thousand soldiers at a moment’s notice and needed support for the troops stationed at York Town.
Ordinary matters of businesses also needed tending to. As the legislature returned to business as usual, clemency was recommended for soldiers accused of manslaughter, as well as for a twelve-year-old boy convicted of grand larceny. The Council and governor also oversaw the issuing of professional licenses. Ironically, one of the first items of business before the Council after Monroe joined it was a recommendation that the governor grant him a law license, in light of his successful examinations. 14
Despite his success in politics, Monroe was still agitating for adventure. He began a correspondence with George Rogers Clark, commander of the Virginia forces in the Northwest Territory who had routed the British in the West during the revolution. “[I] have some thoughts of turning my attention toward your quarter and perhaps sometime hence removing there myself,” Monroe wrote.15 As a veteran, he was entitled to a certain acreage of the Western lands.
In the meantime, Monroe and the Council agreed to send 150 soldiers with ten days’ provisions to Fort Pitt after receiving a letter from Congress with intelligence that the fort was about to be attacked and would be lost unless immediately reinforced.16 The fort was reinforced, a British spy witnessed its reinforcement, and the attack was called off.17 Instead the British turned to Hanna’s Town, which they completely leveled.18 The governor and Council also handled relations with Indian tribes and granted the Catawba Nation food, clothing, and gunpowder after receiving their delegation.19 Money was authorized for treaties with other Indian tribes as well.20
Like the rest of America, the Council was looking for propitious signs from the other side of the Atlantic. They scoured the king’s speech to the mayor of London for clues to the intentions of the British government. Monroe had not given up on his dream of traveling to Europe. He fancied the idea of employment with the American delegation there after the peace, perhaps as an aide to Jefferson, who would likely be one of the new ambassadors.
As Monroe was feeling his way, trying to chart a successful course in public life, he wrote to Jefferson seeking his advice “upon every subject of consequence.”21 He also wrote his friend John Mercer who had entered the legislature with him and was now serving in Congress: “You are young and reputation is only to be acquired by filling with ability those offices in which the public place you.” He mentioned one of Mercer’s colleagues, a man they both saw as a role model. “Mr. Madison I think hath acquired... reputation by a constant and laborious attendance upon Congress.”
Monroe had already begun to learn some of the hard lessons of politics. He continued in his letter to Mercer, “I must here observe that political connections are but slender ties between men, that they commence mutually in a respect for talents and the opinion of the public . . . that these connections will rather be strengthened than weakened by the same cause. It is not to these connections that we are to look for the good offices of friendship: in an intercourse with the world the heart is steeled with insensibility . . . those who had been educated together have a different kind of tie and more natural claim to the good offices of each other and with but few here have you or myself connections of this kind.”22
Meanwhile in Philadelphia, Madison was attempting to organize the dysfunctional federal government. He and John Witherspoon, his college president now serving alongside him in Congress, worked to establish five committees of five members each to oversee finance, foreign affairs, war, marine, and post office departments.23 With his proposed impost still not passed by the states, Madison moved successfully to instruct John Adams to procure a loan in Europe. Adams was ultimately able to obtain one from the Dutch for five million guilders at 5 percent interest.24
The difficulties of trans-Atlantic travel meant at least a two-month delay learning about developments in Europe. British negotiator Henry Grenville had arrived in Paris authorized to treat with all belligerents. It was rumored that the king would agree to independence, but nobody could be certain.
The British abandoned Savannah. It was believed they would leave Charleston next.25
And the civic institutions of the new republic began to take shape. Madison continued to develop as a statesman. He learned of Commonwealth v. Canton, a court case in Virginia that posed a unique question: Did a state court have the power to invalidate an act it judged to be unconstitutional? The House of Delegates had attempted to issue a pardon for three prisoners, but the Virginia Senate had not concurred. The prisoners claimed that the House had given them their freedom. The Court of Appeals, including Judges George Wythe and Edmund Pendleton, determined that it could, in fact, reverse the action of the House of
Delegates as unconstitutional—setting a legal precedent that would be crucial for the future of constitutional government in America.26
Congress’s financial state worsened, and the Rhode Island legislature adjourned without even considering the impost proposed by Madison and recommended by Congress. In response, Congress sent a delegation to try and reason with them. The Rhode Island representatives responded to Congress with a list of objections. They claimed that the tax would weigh hardest on commercial states, that the tax collectors would be employees of the federal government unaccountable to Rhode Island, and that the tax itself would represent a “danger to public liberty” from the power of the federal government.27
So long as Rhode Island took this position, the unanimous consent required to amend the Articles would never be attained. A state with a population of barely fifty thousand would have veto power over the affairs of a continent of nearly 2.4 million people.28 The possibility that the states would support the federal government with requisitions was nil. Pennsylvania was insisting that its requisitions be directed toward Pennsylvania creditors of the national government.
In November of 1782, a letter appeared in the Boston Gazette revealing the secret loan obtained by Adams in Europe.29 This leak sealed the fate of the impost. Congress was relying on the dire financial situation to walk the impost over the finish line in Rhode Island and Georgia. The revelation of the foreign loans completely undercut the urgency of the moment. According to the Gazette, the sender of the letter was a resident of Providence. The congressional delegation from Rhode Island fell under immediate suspicion.
Madison was assigned to the committee that investigated the matter. They instructed the Secretary of Foreign Affairs to write the Governor of Rhode Island to inquire into the source of the leak. The investigation was cut short, however, when Congressman David Howell confessed on the floor of the Congress. Howell offered a vigorous defense, claiming that his duty was to Rhode Island alone and that the investigation and this debate were improper. His colleagues were outraged. Those that did not abuse him or challenge him to duels froze him out. His situation was untenable, and Howell returned for a time to Rhode Island.