General George Washington Acts to Determine Whether Peace with Great Britain Has Arrived and Whether the British Will at Last Evacuate New York

“It is more than probable that the Orders to Sir Guy Carleton by the last Packet, are decisive as to the Evacuation or holding N. York.”

 

Washington instructs Tallmadge: “What is the Genl Rumour—what their Movements or Operations—the State & No. of their Transports, and Ships of War—What the Number, State & Situation of their Troops—whether any Embarkation is meditated, & to what part, if any. And in General, any Information that may be useful to us in present Circumstances….Penetrate the Designs of our Enemy. If another Campaign is to be expected, the sooner we are ascertained of its Necessity the Better”

 

This letter led to Washington being informed by Tallmadge that “a general peace has actually taken place”, giving Washington his first news that peace was imminent

 

An extraordinarily rare letter of Washington relating to the peace that ended the American Revolution

 

After Cornwallis surrendered to George Washington at Yorktown on October 19, 1781, it became clear to many in Great Britain that the war was draining the nation to no purpose, and ought to be ended. The year 1782 saw the approach of peace. U.S. diplomat Benjamin Franklin rejected initial peace overtures from Great Britain for a settlement that would provide the thirteen states with some measure of autonomy within the British Empire. He insisted on British recognition of American independence and refused to consider a peace separate from France, America’s staunch ally. Franklin did agree, however, to negotiations with the British for an end to the war. Joined by John Adams and John Jay, Franklin engaged the British in formal negotiations beginning on September 27, 1782. Two months of hard bargaining resulted in preliminary articles of peace in which the British accepted American independence and boundaries, resolved the difficult issues of fishing rights on the Newfoundland banks and prewar debts owed British creditors, promised restitution of property lost during the war by Americans loyal to the British cause, and provided for the evacuation of British forces from the United States. The preliminary articles signed in Paris on November 30, 1782, were only effective when Britain and France signed a similar treaty, which French Foreign Minister Vergennes quickly negotiated. France signed preliminary articles of peace with Great Britain on January 20, 1783.

With the original preliminary agreement signed in November 1782, it was clear that the end of the war was coming and that a cessation of hostilities was the appropriate course. But tangible steps had to be taken to implement the peace treaty. The first official act between the former belligerent nations would be resumption of trade and the free movement of vessels in areas that had formerly been the scene of hostilities. This would be accomplished by exchanging ships’ passports to vessels that needed protection until the news of the armistice was generally known, and whose owners/merchants were anxious to race their cargo to newly opened ports. These passports were exchanged in February. King George III issued a proclamation of cessation of hostilities on February 14, and Franklin followed this a similar proclamation on February 20.

It took four to eight weeks to travel by ship from England to America in the 1700s, with six weeks being about average. In all likelihood, Washington had either not yet received news of the King’s proclamation by March 25, or just heard of it in rudimentary form. So, on that date, George Washington and the Continental Army were faced with two realities. The first was that peace talks were known to have resulted in a preliminary agreement; and perhaps they were aware of talk of a cessation of hostilities. Even the former alone gave hope to many that the war was effectively over. On the other hand, the second was that the British had not evacuated New York nor anywhere else in contention, and there was no certainty that the peace talks would actually end the war. To let their guard down based on hope would, Washington thought, be a dangerous move. He was also interested in knowing whether the British were taking measures consistent with peace, or doing war business as usual. So much hinged on that.

In 1778, a young cavalry officer named Benjamin Tallmadge established a small group of trustworthy men and women in New York known as the Culper Spy Ring. Tallmadge’s homegrown network would become the most effective of any intelligence-gathering operation on either side during the Revolution. When Washington needed intelligence, and fast, he turned to Tallmadge, his spymaster. And he needed it now – March 1783 – more than ever. He wrote Tallmadge asking him to determine British activities and intentions, and whether they were consistent with war or peace.

The Sir Guy Carleton mentioned was Commander-in-Chief of British forces from 1782 to the conclusion of the Revolutionary War. He was based in New York. The packet was a ship from England, which Washington hoped would bring news of the status of the peace and actions to implement it.

Letter signed, Head Quarters, 25th March 1783, to Tallmadge. “It is more than probable that the Orders to Sir Guy Carleton by the last Packet, are decisive as to the Evacuation or holding N. York. As it is important to our Operations to have as early knowledge of this Determination as possible—and having great dependence on your Channel of Intelligence, I am anxious to have you exert your most diligent Endeavours, to obtain all the Information you can, of what is passing in N. York since the Arrival of the Packet—What is the Genl Rumour—what their Movements or Operations—the State & No. of their Transports, and Ships of War—What the Number, State & Situation of their Troops—whether any Embarkation is meditated, & to what part, if any. And in General, any Information that may be useful to us in present Circumstances.

“The present anxious incertitude as to a general Pacification, renders our watchful Observations of more importance than common; that we may if possible be able to penetrate the Designs of our Enemy. If another Campaign is to be expected, the sooner we are ascertained of its Necessity the Better—that our preparations may be prosecuted with Vigor. The more frequent & the more particular your Communications are, the more agreeable will they prove.” Water damage and deterioration along the edges and not affecting signature.

Guy Carleton wrote Washington on April 6, not even two weeks later, acknowledging the official news of peace and making peace arrangements.

The formal peace treaty– the Treaty of Paris – was signed on September 3, 1783. But that was not the end of the conflict. Although diplomats signed the treaty in September 1783, Congress was required to ratify the document and return it to Great Britain within six months. That ratification would not take place until January 1784. British ratification would not occur until April 9, 1784, and the ratified versions were exchanged in Paris on May 12, 1784. The British Army departed from New York on November 25, 1783.

This letter, with Washington’s detailed instructions designed to ferret out the true intentions of the British and the reality of the peace, and to have his troops prepared if they proved duplicitous, shows Washington at his best: thorough, skeptical, cautious, and proactive. It also shows his frame of mind as to what information he considered crucial, and how he communicated his desires to Tallmadge. All in all, this is one of the best Washington letters we have ever carried.

This is an extraordinary rarity. Over the decades, we have had two letters of Washington to Tallmadge, though none from 1783 relating to the peace. Moreover, a search of public sale records going back 40 years fails to turn up any from this time period with this subject matter having reached the marketplace.