A Crisis of Peace

Fraunces Tavern Museum

In March 1783, as negotiations to end the Revolution were well underway, an anonymous letter circulated through the Continental Army's camp near Newburgh, New York. It called for the officers to meet--outside the chain of command--and act boldly to strong arm Congress to deliver on their long overdue pay and desperately needed pensions. But was the letter the officers’ idea alone? Or were they put up to it by politicians in Philadelphia eager to grow the power of the central government? And how far were the angry officers willing to go? Replace General Washington? March on Congress? In this lecture, recorded September 24, 2020, David Head takes a fresh look at the episode--known as the Newburgh Conspiracy--and asks whether a plot was really in the works and where the danger of the moment really lay.