#Henry Trumbull

[napoleonic-sexyman-tournament]

Friends, enemies, comrades, Jacobins, Monarchist, Bonapartists, gather round. We have an important announcement:

The continent is beset with war. A tenacious general from Corsica has ignited conflict from Madrid to Moscow and made ancient dynasties tremble. Depending on your particular political leanings, this is either the triumph of a great man out of the chaos of The Terror, a betrayal of the values of the French Revolution, or the rule of the greatest upstart tyrant since Caesar.

But, our grand tournament is here to ask the most important question: Now that the flower of European nobility is arrayed on the battlefield in the sexiest uniforms that European history has yet produced (or indeed, may ever produce), who is the most fuckable?

The bracket is here: full bracket and just quadrant I

Want to nominate someone from the Western Hemisphere who was involved in the ever so sexy dismantling of the Spanish empire? (or the Portuguese or French American colonies as well) You can do it here

The People have created this list of nominees:

France:

Jean Lannes

Josephine de Beauharnais

Thérésa Tallien

Jean-Andoche Junot

Joseph Fouché

Charles Maurice de Talleyrand

Joachim Murat

Michel Ney

Jean-Baptiste Bernadotte (Charles XIV of Sweden)

Louis-Francois Lejeune

Pierre Jacques Étienne Cambrinne

Napoleon I

Marshal Louis-Gabriel Suchet

Jacques de Trobriand

Jean de dieu soult.

François-Étienne-Christophe Kellermann

17.Louis Davout

Pauline Bonaparte, Duchess of Guastalla

Eugène de Beauharnais

Jean-Baptiste Bessières

Antoine-Jean Gros

Jérôme Bonaparte

Andrea Masséna

Antoine Charles Louis de Lasalle

Germaine de Staël

Thomas-Alexandre Dumas

René de Traviere (The Purple Mask)

Claude Victor Perrin

Laurent de Gouvion Saint-Cyr

François Joseph Lefebvre

Major Andre Cotard (Hornblower Series)

Edouard Mortier

Hippolyte Charles

Nicolas Charles Oudinot

Emmanuel de Grouchy

Pierre-Charles Villeneuve

Géraud Duroc

Georges Pontmercy (Les Mis)

Auguste Frédéric Louis Viesse de Marmont

Juliette Récamier

Bon-Adrien Jeannot de Moncey

Louis-Alexandre Berthier

Étienne Jacques-Joseph-Alexandre Macdonald

Jean-Mathieu-Philibert Sérurier

Catherine Dominique de Pérignon

Guillaume Marie-Anne Brune

Jean-Baptiste Jourdan

Charles-Pierre Augereau

Auguste François-Marie de Colbert-Chabanais

England:

Richard Sharpe (The Sharpe Series)

Tom Pullings (Master and Commander)

Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington

Jonathan Strange (Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell)

Captain Jack Aubrey (Aubrey/Maturin books)

Horatio Hornblower (the Hornblower Books)

William Laurence (The Temeraire Series)

Henry Paget, 1st Marquess of Anglesey

Beau Brummell

Emma, Lady Hamilton

Benjamin Bathurst

Horatio Nelson

Admiral Edward Pellew

Sir Philip Bowes Vere Broke

Sidney Smith

Percy Smythe, 6th Viscount Strangford

George IV

Capt. Anthony Trumbull (The Pride and the Passion)

Barbara Childe (An Infamous Army)

Doctor Maturin (Aubrey/Maturin books)

William Pitt the Younger

Robert Stewart, 2nd Marquess of Londonderry (Lord Castlereagh)

George Canning

Scotland:

Thomas Cochrane

Colquhoun Grant

Ireland:

Arthur O'Connor

Thomas Russell

Robert Emmet

Austria:

Klemens von Metternich

Friedrich Bianchi, Duke of Casalanza

Franz I/II

Archduke Karl

Marie Louise

Franz Grillparzer

Wilhelmine von Biron

Poland:

Wincenty Krasiński

Józef Antoni Poniatowski

Józef Zajączek

Maria Walewska

Władysław Franciszek Jabłonowski

Adam Jerzy Czartoryski

Antoni Amilkar Kosiński

Zofia Czartoryska-Zamoyska

Stanislaw Kurcyusz

Russia:

Alexander I Pavlovich

Alexander Andreevich Durov

Prince Andrei (War and Peace)

Pyotr Bagration

Mikhail Miloradovich

Levin August von Bennigsen

Pavel Stroganov

Empress Elizabeth Alexeievna

Karl Wilhelm von Toll

Dmitri Kuruta

Alexander Alexeevich Tuchkov

Barclay de Tolly

Fyodor Grigorevich Gogel

Ekaterina Pavlovna Bagration

Ippolit Kuragin (War and Peace)

Prussia:

Louise von Mecklenburg-Strelitz

Gebard von Blücher

Carl von Clausewitz

Frederick William III

Gerhard von Scharnhorst

Louis Ferdinand of Prussia

Friederike of Mecklenburg-Strelitz

Alexander von Humboldt

Dorothea von Biron

The Netherlands:

Ida St Elme

Wiliam, Prince of Orange

The Papal States:

Pius VII

Portugal:

João Severiano Maciel da Costa

Spain:

Juan Martín Díez

José de Palafox

Inês Bilbatua (Goya's Ghosts)

Haiti:

Alexandre Pétion

Sardinia:

Vittorio Emanuele I

Lombardy:

Alessandro Manzoni

Denmark:

Frederik VI

Sweden:

Gustav IV Adolph

[ollieoliveoboelo22]

Benjamin Tallmadge is a Pretty Boy

Because I have nothing better to do with my time, I have tracked down as many quotes mentioning Tallmadge's appearance. These come from months of research, and I know I definitely missed a few. I'm not trying to start another TURN sexy man war, I just have to share these because some of them are funny.

"Tallmadge is one of the most attractive and dashing figures of our revolutionary history… A sketch of him by Colonel Trumbull, shows, under the plumed helmet of the Dragoon, a high-bred sensitive face, clear-eyed, confident and gallant.” -The History of the Town of Litchfield, Connecticut by Alain Campbell White. Page 86

"The picturesque figure of Col. Tallmadge directs attention to him in particular. Henry Ward Beecher wrote of him: ‘How well do we remember the stately gait of the venerable Colonel of Revolutionary memory!’… Col. L. W. Wessells has also left us a boy's impression of him: ‘When a small boy, I have often seen him on horseback, a remarkably handsome figure and splendid horseman.’” White, Pages 135-136

“When Lyman Beecher came to Litchfield in March, 1810, he was entertained by the leading members of the parish. ‘Colonel Tallmadge has just arrived from [Washington],’ Beecher wrote to his wife, ‘to spend a few days. I was invited to take tea with him, and had an agreeable evening. He is over six feet in height, and large in proportion; in countenance and bearing resembling Washington. He is polite and acquainted with men, and his wife and daughters are pious and accomplished.’” -Benjamin Tallmadge by Charles Swain Hall. Page 262

" Col. William Smith Livingston possessed great physical strength, and with Col. Benjamin Tallmadge, had the reputation of being the handsomest man in the Revolutionary Army. They were second cousins” - The Talmadge, Tallmadge, and Talmage genealogy. Page 88

"His person was rather above the ordinary stature, well proportioned, dignified and commanding. His step even in last years was firm and elastic, his body erect, and his whole carriage possessed a military dignity, in which was combined the model of both the soldier and the gentleman.” - Sermon on Tallmadge's funeral. Found in Memoir of Colonel Benjamin Tallmadge edited by Henry Phelps Johnston. Page 145

“Tallmadge a bold and dashing officer, would run what today would be called a department of military intelligence. Tallmadge, according to one of his soldiers, ‘was a large, strong, and powerful man and rode a large bay horse which he took from the British. He was a brave officer, and there was no flinch in him. He was a man of few words, but decided and energetic, and what he was to the purpose.’” - George Washington, Spymaster by Thomas Allen. Pages 50-52

“He [Tallmadge] was over six feet in height, and large in proportion; in countenance and bearing resembling Washington, with whom he was a favorite.” - The autobiography of Lyman Beecher. Page 148

“In 1810 the spirit of '76 was not seriously dimin ished, and many of the principal actors in the stirring scenes of the Revolutionary struggle were still alive. Colonel Tallmadge, one of the most dashing and able cavalry officers of the army." - A biography of Rev. Henry Ward Beecher. Page 35

“A young, handsome officer, attired in a dashing dragoon’s uniform, renowned for his combat exploits, Tallmadge was highly popular with the young women of Patriot disposition.” - General Washington's Commando by Richard Welch

“Tallmadge’s interests in women extended far beyond the issue of their education. Affable, good-looking and flirtatious, he had a keen eye for female beauty, and was attractive to and attracted by many young women, whose names, or descriptions, appear frequently in his letters.” ^ I don't have page numbers for these two because kindle is weird

“Benjamin Tallmadge, a gallant young major whose curls always seemed to be escaping beneath his sharp dragoon helmet, was still rather green, but his keenest of mind was apparent to everyone who met him.” - George Washington’s Secret Six, by Brian Kilmeade. Page 35.

In addition, are several novels and historical fiction that include Tallmadge and also call him pretty. I'm only going to put one here, but there are a few.

“Benjamin Tallmadge. A youth of seventeen years, six feet one inch in height, strong and well built.… His face was attractive” - Brinton Eliot: From Yale to Yorktown by James Farmer. Page 16.

And here are the links to Internet Archive

https://archive.org/details/historyoftownofl1920whit/page/86/mode/1up

https://archive.org/details/benjamintallmadg0000char/page/262/mode/2up?q=six

https://archive.org/details/talmadgetallmadg00intalm/page/88/mode/2up

https://archive.org/details/memoirofcolonelb027409mbp/page/n239/mode/2up

https://archive.org/details/georgewashington00alle_0/page/50/mode/1up

https://archive.org/details/johnharvardlibra0000barb/page/148/mode/1up?q=Tallmadge

https://archive.org/details/biographyofrevhe00beecuoft/page/35/mode/1up

[offender42085]

Post 1148

Gavin Roberts, Ohio inmate A804386, born 2005, incarceration intake November 2023 at age 18, scheduled for release November 2047

Murder, Robbery

In November 2023, nearly a year after the shooting death of Brice Hilton, family and loved ones wore pink shirts bearing the Pennsylvania man’s smiling face to court to learn the fate of his murderer. 

From the courtroom gallery, they watched as Gavin Roberts was sentenced to serve between 42 and 47 1/2 years to life in prison for Hilton’s Nov. 19, 2022, murder.

On that day, Hilton, 37, and his then-pregnant fiancee, Blair Legg, had driven to Ohio to purchase a cellphone from Roberts for Hilton’s son’s birthday.

Instead, Roberts, armed with a .38 Special revolver and a potato inside an iPhone box, shot Hilton multiple times before robbing his lifeless body of $220. 

Before sentencing was handed down by Trumbull County Common Pleas Judge Cynthia W. Rice, Legg and Hilton’s mother, LaSonia Moorer-Henry gave victim impact statements. 

Roberts looked at the floor throughout both speeches, standing just feet from them. 

Roberts was convicted of murder after a Trumbull County jury deliberated only two hours following a one-and-a-half-day trial, finding Roberts guilty of aggravated murder and aggravated robbery, both with firearms specifications. 

He was found not guilty of an additional murder count that carried a precalculated and design factor, and not guilty of aggravated burglary.

Assistant Prosecutor Christopher Becker said because Roberts was only 17 at the time of his crime, he would be eligible for parole after serving 25 years because of Ohio legislation set in 2021 that restricts sentencing for teen offenders. 

“I think it’s very unfair. This is a classic type of case of why Senate Bill 256 should be reversed by the legislature, and they should take that off the books because it’s the classic case of someone who deserves more than getting a parole hearing at 25 years,” Becker said.

4j

[bignaz8]

REMEMBER FORT GRISWOLD!!

This was a rallying cry during the Battle of Yorktown, the final struggle of the American Revolution. What is Fort Griswold? What horrors happened on September 6th, 1781 to earn the respect of the troops? It is also personal to my family, as my wife has a direct ancestral family connection to this conflict.

Let's examine the events leading up to the Battle of Fort Griswold, also known as the Battle of Groton Heights. After turning coat, Benedict Arnold received a commission as a brigadier general in the British army as part of the deal that he made in order to betray his country.

In August 1781, George Washington decided to shift forces in order to attack the army of Lt. Gen. Lord Charles Cornwallis in Virginia. Washington began pulling troops from the New York area. Lt. Gen. Sir Henry Clinton, the British commander-in-chief in America, realized on September 2 that Washington’s tactics had deceived him, leaving him unable to mobilize quickly enough to help Cornwallis. Further, there was still a significant force of Continentals facing him in front of New York, and Clinton did not feel that he could detach troops to reinforce Cornwallis as a result.

Instead, Clinton decided to launch a raid into Connecticut in the hope of forcing Washington to respond. Clinton intended that this be a raid, but he also recognized that New London on the Thames River could be used as a permanent base of operations into the interior of New England. Clinton appointed Arnold to command the raid because he was from Connecticut and knew the terrain.

Arnold commanded about 1,700 British solders, divided into two battalions. Lt. Col. Edmund Eyre commanded a battalion consisting of the 40th and 54th Regiments of Foot and Cortland Skinner’s New Jersey Volunteers, a Loyalist unit. Arnold himself commanded the other battalion, made up of the 38th Regiment of Foot and various Loyalist units, including the Loyal American Regiment and Arnold’s American Legion. Arnold also had about 100 Hessian Jägers, and three six-pound guns. This was a formidable force anchored by the three Regular regiments.

Arnold and his command sailed from New York City on September 4. The British fleet anchored about 30 miles west of New London to make its final preparations, and then sailed for New London late on September 5, hoping to make a nighttime landing. Fortunately for the defenders of New London, the winds did not favor Arnold’s plan, and the British force did not arrive until daylight on September 6.

Rufus Avery, a Continental officer stationed at Fort Griswold, on the opposite side of the Thames River, and positioned on commanding high ground, witnessed the arrival of the British:

“… about three o’clock in the morning, as soon as I had daylight so as to see the fleet, it appeared a short distance below the lighthouse. The fleet consisted of thirty-two vessels…. I immediately sent word to Captain William Latham, who commanded [Fort Griswold], and who was not far distant. He very soon came to the fort, and saw the enemy’s fleet, and immediately sent a notice to Col. William Ledyard, who was commander of the harbor, Fort Griswold, and Fort Trumbull.”

43-year-old Lt. Col. William Ledyard commanded Forts Griswold and Trumbull. Ledyard, a Connecticut militia officer, quickly sent a messenger to notify Gov. Jonathan Trumbull and to muster troops. He then went to Fort Griswold to assume command of its defenses. The fort’s guns fired twice to signal the enemy approach, and a British ship answered with a third shot, changing the meaning of the signal to suggest the arrival of a victorious friend, thereby confusing the local militia commanders and delaying the mustering and deployment of their troops.

Fort Griswold began being constructed in late 1775 in response to the outbreak of hostilities. It was completed in 1778, and was known as “Groton Fort.” It sits atop a high hill and could bombard any ship attempting to enter the Thames River or the town of New London. Approximately 165 Connecticut militiamen manned its defenses, organized into two companies, and a detachment of the 8th Regiment of Connecticut Militia. Ledyard and his soldiers faced a stern task—they were badly outnumbered by veteran British troops including Regulars of some of the best regiments in Clinton’s army.

A British officer described Fort Griswold’s defenses:

“The fort was an oblong square, with bastions at opposite angles, its longest side fronting the river in a north-west and southeast direction. Its walls were of stone,and were ten or twelve feet high on the lower side, and surrounded by a ditch. On the wall were pickets, projecting over twelve feet; above this was a parapet with embrasures, and within a platform for cannon, and a step to mount upon, to shoot over the parapet with small arms. In the south-west bastion was a flag-staff, and in the side near the opposite angle, was the gate, in front of which was a triangular

breast-work to protect the gate; and to the right of this was a redoubt, with a three-pounder in it, which was about 120 yards from the gate. Between the fort and the river was another battery, with a covered way, but which could not be used in this attack, as the enemy appeared in a different quarter today.”

Six-pound cannons bristled from the western side of the fort, overlooking the Thames. The northern side by the main entrance was level and played a major role in the coming battle.

At sunrise on September 6, British troops landed on both sides of the mouth of the Thames River. Arnold’s battalion of 800 men occupied New London with no resistance. The 23 soldiers manning Fort Trumbull on the New London side of the river fired a single volley, spiked their guns, and then fled across the river to Fort Griswold. Shapley lost 7 men wounded while Arnold’s troops sustained four or five casualties. After chasing off the defenders of Fort Trumbull, Arnold’s troops entered the town and began destroying supplies and naval stores. Parts of the town were spared, but when a storehouse that contained a large supply of gunpowder was set ablaze, the resulting explosion triggered a huge fire that consumed 143 buildings in New London.

Lt. Col. Edmund Eyre’s battalion of 800 Regulars and Loyalists landed on the east bank of the Thames River, facing tangled woodlands and swamps. The New Jersey Loyalists, in fact, had so much difficulty moving the artillery that they did not participate in the assault on Fort Griswold.

Eyre sent a Captain Beckwith to the fort under a flag of truce to demand its surrender. Ledyard called a council of war and consulted with his officers. The Americans believed that a large force of militiamen would answer the call, and that this augmented force could defend the fort. Ledyard responded by sending an American flag to meet the British flag bearer. The American told Beckwith, “Colonel Ledyard will maintain the fort to its last extremity.” Displeased by the response, Eyre sent a second flag, threatening no quarter if the militia did not surrender. Ledyard gave the same response even though some of the Americans suggested that they should leave the fort and fight outside instead.

Arnold ordered Eyre to assault the fort, assuming that it would be taken easily. Once he reached a hill that allowed him to see the entire fort, Arnold realized that the stout fort would not fall easily. Arnold tried to recall Eyre, but it was too late. The British assault was about to begin in earnest.

Eyre split his force. Some moved to the southern side of the fort while others went around the east side to the northern face. A diversionary force feinted toward the western side. Naval captain Elias Halsey, an experienced artillerist, manned the main cannon on the eastern face of the front as Eyre’s troops approached Ledyard ordered his men to hold their fire until the first British detachment arrived at a point that gave his men the best opportunity to kill as many as possible. As the British moved to assault the fort, Halsey pulled the lanyard on his 18-pounder loaded with grapeshot. Twenty British solders fell to the ground, either dead or suffering from ghastly wounds from being torn apart by the grapeshot. Halsey’s well-aimed shot tore a gaping hole in the British line, but the well-disciplined Regulars closed ranks and filled that gap, continuing their advance.

Sgt. Stephen Hempstead of Ledyard’s command recounted, “When the answer to their demand had been returned … the enemy were soon in motion, and marched with great rapidity, in a solid column … they rushed furiously and simultaneously to the assault of the southwest bastion and the opposite sides.”

The large force of British soldiers moved on the southwest bastion under heavy fire from the fort’s defenders. The British officers goaded their men on toward the ramparts of the fort, even though their men were suffering heavily at the hands of the defenders. Colonel Eyre fell mortally wounded, and was carried from the field.

Maj. William Montgomery of the 40th Regiment of Foot was now the senior British officer. He led his men forward in solid column formation, and advanced on the east side of the fort. Montgomery ordered an attack on the eastern redoubt. Ledyard’s Nutmeg State men stoutly resisted, inflicting heavy losses on the British attackers. The Regulars attempted to scale the 12-foot high ramparts, but were cut down. As the men of the 40th Regiment poured over the top of the walls, defender Jordan Freeman, an African-American free man formerly owned by Colonel Ledyard, killed Montgomery with a long pike. The enraged Regulars then killed Freeman to avenge the death of their commander.

The concentrated fire of the British Regulars cut the fort’s main flag from its stand, which the British soldiers construed as the flag being struck in surrendering the fort. Thinking they had won the day, the rushed the main gate of the fort, only to receive a thunderous volley of shot and shell. The enraged Regulars tried to open the fort’s main gates to allow the rest of their comrades to enter, but a sheet of musket fire cut many of them down—supposedly, the first man to try to open the gate was killed instantly by a musket ball to the brain. Some of the British troops forced the gate open, and the Regulars poured into the fort.

Despite losing their two highest-ranking officers in the assault on the fort, the British carried the day. However, their successful assault now set the stage for the tragedy that followed.

With British soldiers pouring into the fort, Colonel Ledyard ordered a ceasefire and prepared to surrender Fort Griswold to the victorious British. However, the British disregarded the ceasefire and continued pouring fire into the American garrison, killing or wounding nearly all of the fort’s defenders. “I believe there was not less than five or six hundred men of the enemy on the parade in the fort,” claimed American soldier Rufus Avery. “They killed and wounded nearly every man in the fort as quick as they could.”

Maj. Stephen Bromfield, the ranking British officer after Montgomery fell, called out, “Who commands this fort?” Ledyard stepped forward and responded, “I did, sir, but you do now.” Another American, Jonathan Rathbun, watched Bromfield run Ledyard through the heart and lungs with Ledyard’s own sword:

“…the wretch who murdered him [Ledyard], exclaimed, as he came near, “Who commands this fort?” Ledyard handsomely replied, “I did, but you do now,” at the same moment handing him his sword, which the unfeeling villain buried in his breast! Oh, the

hellish spite and madness of a man that will murder a reasonable and noble-hearted officer, in the act of submitting and surrendering!”

Another African-American soldier, Lambo Latham, avenged Ledyard’s death by killing the British officer responsible for Ledyard’s death.

Ledyard fell, and those nearest to him tried to support the dying colonel. Capt. Peter Richards, seriously wounded, but still on his feet, held Ledyard while others moved forward to try to avenge their fallen commander. The British cut them all down with their bayonets, with some receiving as many as 30 stab wounds.

In the meantime, on the southwest side of the fort, some of the Regulars turned one of the fort’s cannons on its defenders and opened fire, killing Capt. Adam Sharpley and another officer.

“Never was a scene of more brutal wanton carnage witnessed than now took place,” recalled American Stephen Hempstead. “The enemy were still firing upon us… [until] they discovered they were in danger of being blown up.” Rufus Avery believed that the attack was called off due to the chance that further musket fire might set off the fort’s powder magazine.” Hempstead noted, “After the massacre, they plundered us of everything we had, and left us literally naked.”

Horrified by the carnage around him, a British officer demanded that the butchery end. “Stop! Stop!” yelled the officer. “In the name of heaven I say stop! My soul cannot bear it!” The officers soon regained control of their men, and the slaughter soon ended.

The best explanation for the massacre of the fort’s defenders by the British was an angry reaction to the casualties taken by them after the fort’s colors were shot down, leading the British to believe that the fort had surrendered. Furious at the continued resistance after the supposed surrender, the British punished the American defenders in an atrocity.

They killed and wounded every man they possibly could… one mad looking fellow put his bayonet to my side, swearing “by Jesus he would skipper me!” I looked him earnestly in the face and eyes, and begged him to have mercy… he put his bayonet three times into me… I think no scene ever exceeded this for continued and barbarous massacre after surrender. (Rufus Avery’s account of the storming of Fort Griswold by British regulars, September 6th 1781).

American casualties were appalling: 85 killed, 35 wounded and paroled, 28 taken prisoner, 13 escaped, 1 captured and released (12 year old William Latham, Jr.). Total: 162. British losses numbered 48 killed and 145 wounded.

An American named F. M. Calkins reported that American dead were loaded into a cart and were carried away from the fort:

“About twenty soldiers wee then employed to drag this wagon down the hill, to a safe distance from the expected explosion. From the brow of the ridge on which the fort stood, to the brink of the river, was a rapid descent of one hundred rods, uninterrupted

except by the roughens of the surface, and by scattered rocks, brushes, and stumps of

trees. The weight of the wagon after it had begun to move, pressing heavily upon the soldiers, they let go their hold, and darting aside, left it to its own impetus. On it went, with accelerated velocity, surmounting every impediment, till near the foot of the hill,

when it came against the trunk of a large apple-tree, with a force that caused it to recoil and sway round. This arrested its course, but gave a sudden access of torture to the sufferers. The violence of the shock is said to have caused instant death to some of them;

others fainted, and two or three were thrown out to the ground. The enemy, after a time, gathered up the bleeding men, and carried them into a house near by, belonging to Ensign Avery, who was himself one of the party in the wagon. The house had been previously set on fire, but they extinguished the flames, and left the wounded men there on parole, taking as hostage for them, Ebenezer Ledyard, brother of the commander of the fort.”

The British lit a trail of gunpowder that they hoped would destroy Fort Griswold’s magazine, but a daring militiaman entered the fort and extinguished the fire, leaving the fort intact. The British then loaded their prisoners onto their ships and withdrew, leaving chaos in their aftermath.

This was the final major battle in the northern theater of the American Revolution. General Clinton praised Arnold’s “spirited conduct”, but also complained about the high casualty rate suffered by Arnold’s forces—about a quarter of the troops sent to attack Fort Griswold became casualties. A British observer likened the fight for Fort Griswold to the debacle at Bunker Hill. Many British soldiers blamed Arnold for the losses at Fort Griswold, even though he was not present on the battlefield. Arnold next proposed a raid on Philadelphia, but Cornwallis’ surrender at Yorktown the next month ended the active fighting of the American Revolution.

Today, Fort Griswold is a Connecticut state park. The fort’s earthen works are well maintained. There are monuments to both Montgomery and Ledyard within the boundaries of the fort. The site of the former barracks located in the fort is marked. Large gates bear the names of all of the American defenders who fell defending Fort Griswold. The Groton Monument, erected in 1830, towers 130 feet over the battlefield in commemoration of the fort’s gallant defenders, and a plaque affixed to the monument provides:

THIS MONUMENT WAS ERECTED UNDER THE PATRONAGE OF THE STATE OF CONNECTICUT, A.D. 1830, AND IN THE 55TH YEAR OF THE INDEPENDENCE OF THE U.S.A. IN MEMORY OF THE BRAVE PATRIOTS, WHO FELL IN THE MASSACRE AT FORT GRISWOLD, NEAR THIS SPOT, ON THE 6TH OF SEPT. A.D. 1781, WHEN THE BRITISH, UNDER THE COMMAND OF THE TRAITOR, BENEDICT ARNOLD, BURNT THE TOWNS OF NEW LONDON AND GROTON, AND SPREAD DESOLATION AND WOE THROUGHOUT THIS REGION.

There is a small museum nearby that includes artifacts and a detailed diorama and model of the British assault on Fort Griswold. It is well worth the visit. One can also hike up the spiral staircase of the 130 foot obelisk to view the fort and battlefield through the small windows at its pinnacle. (I did this in the hot and humid summer and was very thankful to be back on the ground).

The Battle of Groton Heights is largely overlooked and forgotten today but was nevertheless an important battle, representing the final significant combat in the northern theater of the Revolutionary War. It also represents the only battle where Benedict Arnold faced his fellow countrymen.

The militia were farmers and fishermen that left their homes to defend their new country to become patriots. I was honored and humbled to visit this historical site in 2016. It is a great reminder of the ultimate sacrifices made to attain our freedoms.

REMEMBER FORT GRISWOLD!!

[yr-obedt-cicero]

I've been reading over your posts about Hamilton's relationships with other Federalists of the time. What about Nicholas Fish? He came from an old New York family, he studied alongside Troup & Hamilton, served with Ham at Yorktown (he even made Trumbull's painting!), remained close to him the rest of his life, became the first Adjutant General of New York, may or may not have broken a girl's heart, and continued a line of illustrious Fishes. But beyond that...? Crickets.

Fish's and Hamilton's relationship seems to be one of the lesser known of Hamilton's notable friendships. Not much is known about their friendship due to only four letters of correspondence surviving (Likely burned by Fish for privacy), but they seemed to have had a life long friendship. And even after Hamilton's death, Fish remembered him as an honorable and beloved friend.

Nicholas Fish (1758-1833) was born into a relatively wealthy, New York, family. He attended Princeton but left before graduating to start studying law at King's College (Columbia University) through the office of John Morin Scott in New York. There he became interested in the organization of the Sons of Liberty (They were a loosely organized, clandestine - sometimes violent - political organization active in the colonies founded to advance the rights of the colonists and to fight taxation by the British government). Fish lived in New York City until 1774, then spent about a year in New Jersey before returning to New York in 1775.

During Hamilton's first months at King's, he and fellow classmate, Robert Troup, formed a club that gathered weekly for debating, writing, and speaking skills. The other members were; Fish, Edward Stevens, and Samuel and Henry Nicoll. Who were all relatively Hamilton's first and closests companions. The debates usually evolved around topics surrounding the brewing revolution, like monarchy and democracy. He also joined the volunteer militia group, The Hearts of Oak (Originally coined The Corsicans), alongside Hamilton and Troup. The students drilled before classes each morning in the churchyard of nearby St. Paul's Chapel. Their drillmaster was Edward Fleming, who had despite having served in a British regiment and married into the prominent De Peyster family but was still warmly attached to the American side. Fish once recalled;

Immediately after the Battle of Lexington, [Alexander Hamilton] attached himself to one of the uniform companies of militia then forming for the defence of the country by the patriotic young men of this city under the command of Captain Fleming, in which he devoted much time, attending regularly all the parades and performing tours of duty with promptitude and zeal.

Source — Alexander Hamilton, by Ron Chernow

In 1776 Fish was appointed by Brigadier General Scott aide-de-camp on his staff. On the 21st of August, 1776, Fish was appointed major of the 2nd New York Regiment. He served as a division inspector under Baron von Steuben in 1778. According to Fish, Hamilton had a direct hand in prodding Marquis de Lafayette to advocate bringing a French army to America. Before Admiral Jean Baptiste d’Estaing came with his fleet in July 1778, Hamilton encouraged Lafayette with ideas like having a French ground force with Lafayette as its commander. “The United States are under infinite obligations to [Lafayette] beyond what is known,” Hamilton told Fish later, “not only for his valour and good conduct as major general of our army, but for his good offices and infliuence in our behalf with the court of France. The French army now here [...] would not have been in this country but through his means.” [x]

He participated in the battles of Saratoga and Monmouth, in Sullivan's expedition against the Native Americans in 1779, and in the Virginia and Yorktown campaigns, in which he served for a time on the staff of Lafayette. Fish had shared a tent with Hamilton at Yorktown and recalled Hamilton bursting in gleefully after visiting Washington, hearing that he had won the coveted assignment, Hamilton hugged the surprised Major, shouting; “We have it! We have it!” [x] Although the two mostly went their separate ways during the war, Hamilton appointed Fish as his second-in-command. He commanded Hamilton's New York Battalion in the Assault on Redoubt 10 when Hamilton was given overall command of three battalions led by Gimat, Fish, and Laurens. To which, Hamilton was quite pleased about, writing to Eliza in August; “Major Fish is with me. I prize him both as a friend as an officer.” [x]

He is portrayed in the painting of the Surrender Of Lord Cornwallis, by Trumbull, standing behind Hamilton, Laurens, and Stuart.

In the March of 1782, Hamilton and Eliza would have been trying to settle down in their first real home together in Albany, leaving the Schuyler Mansion where they had initially lived after Hamilton resigned from war. Hamilton wrote to Fish saying; “Send my horses by return of the bearer, unless they should be in too bad plight to travel. In this case, be so good as to put them out where they will be taken care of, and at the same time will not cost much for keeping.” [x]

In 1786, Fish was appointed Adjutant general of New York State, which he held for many years. Fish was also part of the Manumission Society, where many familiar faces were as well; Troup, Hamilton, Hercules Mulligan, William Livingston, John Rodgers, John Mason, James Duane, John Jay, and William Duer. The founding of the Manumission Society and antislavery societies in other states in the 1780s represented a hopeful moment in American race relations, right before the Constitutional Convention and the new federal government created such an overriding need for concord that even debating the divisive slavery issue could no longer be tolerated.

In 1794, he was appointed by Washington supervisor of the Federal revenue in New York City. In August, when the Hamiltons' then youngest son, John Church Hamilton, had fallen worryingly ill but started to recover—Hamilton sent his wife and child to New York City, where they remained under the watchful care Fish and Elisha Boudinot;

If you have not already left Albany write to me the precise day you will certainly leave it; so that I may meet you at New Ark. When you get to New York apply to Col Fish to make an arrangement for carrying you & the Child to New Ark & when there, go to Mr. Boudinot’s till I come.

Source — Alexander Hamilton to Elizabeth Hamilton, [August 21, 1794]

July 18, 1795, Hamilton was publicly criticized over his defense of the Jay Treaty at a meeting in New York. Hamilton tried to intervene in an argument between Commodore James Nicholson - who had smeared Hamilton months earlier - and Federalist lawyer, Josiah Ogden Hoffman. Nicholson was one of Hamilton's most prominent critics, and the two had long-standing political disagreements. When Hamilton came between the quarrel, Nicholson then allegedly called Hamilton an “Abettor of Tories” and accused him of declining a previous challenge to duel. “No man could affirm that with truth,” Hamilton retorted, and he “pledged himself to convince Mr. Nicholson of his mistake” by calling him to a duel at a more suitable time and place. [x] With Fish having drafted as his second, on the 20th he delivered the challenge letter to Nicholson;

The unprovoked rudeness and insult which I experienced from You on Saturday leaves me no option but that of a meeting with You, the object of which You will readily understand. I propose to You for the purpose Pawlus Hook as the place and monday next eleven o’clock as the time. I should not fix so remote a day but that I am charged with trusts for other persons which will previously require attention on my part. My friend Col. Fish who is to deliver You this will accompany me.

Source — Alexander Hamilton to James Nicholson, [July 10, 1795]

Nicholson immediately scratched out a reply, accepting the duel with that he would “certainly not decline your invitation” and asking that it take place the next morning; “The publicity of the affair & the unusual visit of your friend have however unfortunately occasioned an alarm in my family & may produce an inquiry—you will therefore perceive that my situation will be rendered extremely disagreeable unless our interview takes place before that time. I have therefore to intreat that it may not be postponed longer than tomorrow Morning.” [x] Eventually, on the 26th, after Hamilton and Nicholson had gone through three drafts of apologies (Hamilton being the one who wrote them for Nicholson's review), Nicholson signed a declaration apologizing for his conduct;

Mr. Nicholson declares that the warmth of the expressions which he recollects to have used to Mr. Hamilton proceeded from a misapprehension of the nature of his interposition in the altercation between Mr. Hoffman & Mr. Nicholson that as to the suggestion alleged to have been made by Mr. Nicholson namely that Mr. Hamilton had declined a former interview he does not recollect and is not conscious of having made it, neither did he intend the imputation which it would seem to imply and that if he did make the suggestion he regrets the pain which it must have occasioned to Mr. Hamilton.

Source — Drafts of Apology Required from James Nicholson, [25–26 July 1795]

The seconds representing Hamilton and Nicholson were DeWitt Clinton, Nicholas Fish, Rufus King, Brockholst Livingston. Once Nicholson and Hamilton agreed on the apology, they signed off on the following statement, thus ending the challenge in a “satisfactory and honorable way”.

In 1803, Fish married Elizabeth Stuyvesant (1775–1854), the daughter of Petrus Stuyvesant and Margaret Stuyvesant. They had five children together. On two separate occasions, Fish ran for United States Congress, and was unsuccessful. Losing to Samuel L. Mitchill in 1804 and Gurdon S. Mumford in 1806. In the week preceding Hamilton's mortal duel, Hamilton invited seventy people to the Grange for a lavish ball that included John Trumbull, Robert Troup, Fish, and William Short, Jefferson’s onetime secretary in Paris. John Church Hamilton recalls the event in his biographies of his father;

To reciprocate the attentions of his friends in a manner which, though novel here, he believed would most gratify, he gave, in the season of flowers and early fruits, a fete champetre. All that could please the modest taste of those simple days of wise frugality, was present. At distant points in the several copses were heard by sauntering groups the sounds of the horn and the clarionet, while his mansion was joyous with dances and repasts. On one of the piazzas were beheld some of his earliest, nearest friends, tracing the distant outlines of the variegated landscape of hill and dale, ocean and rivers; Hamilton standing by, chatting with Colonels Fish and Troup. Never was the fascination of his manner more remarked; gay or grave, as was the chanced topic, like the light and shade of a fine painting.

Source — Life of Alexander Hamilton, by John Church Hamilton · 1879

When the coming duel began to approach, on the 9th of July, Hamilton drafted his will at his last Manhattan town house. He named John B. Church, Fish, and Nathaniel Pendleton as executors;

In the Name of God Amen! I Alexander Hamilton of the City of New York Counsellor at Law do make this my last Will and Testament as follows. First I appoint John B Church Nicholas Fish and Nathaniel Pendleton of the City aforesaid Esquires to be Executors and Trustees of this my Will and I devise to them their heirs and Assigns, as joint Tenants and not as Tenants in common, All my Estate real and personal whatsoever and wheresoever upon Trust at their discretion to sell and dispose of the same, at such time and times in such manner and upon such terms as they the Survivors and Survivor shall think fit and out of the proceeds to pay all the Debts which I shall owe at the time of my decease, in whole, if the fund shall be sufficient, proportionally, if it shall be insufficient, and the residue, if any there shall be to pay and deliver to my excellent and dear Wife Elizabeth Hamilton.

Source — Last Will and Testament of Alexander Hamilton, [July 9, 1804]

Four years after Hamilton's death, Fish named his only son after his old college friend; Hamilton Fish (1808–1893), who served as New York Governor, United States Senator, and who married Julia Ursin Niemcewiez Kean (1816–1887).

Then again, Fish also twice ran unsuccessfully for Lieutenant Governor of New York. In 1810, he was the Federalist candidate, but lost to incumbent John Broome. Broome subsequently died one month into his term in August 1810. Fish ran in a special election for Lieutenant Governor in 1811 to fill the vacancy created by Broome's death, but lost to the then-mayor of New York City, DeWitt Clinton. During the War of 1812, Fish served as a member of the City Committee of Defense.

When Eliza was interviewing all the men that fought besides Hamilton to preserve his memory, Fish wrote a lengthy reminiscent letter to her in 1822, which I transcribed here (For whatever reason Tumblr keeps bugging out everytime I try to write it here).

Fish died in 1833, and was buried in the churchyard of St. Mark's Church in-the-Bowery in New York City.

Hope this helps.

[countyflagchampionship]

Congratulations to the counties advancing to round 5!

AK 

Anchorage, Juneau

AL

Cleburne

AR

Searcy

AZ

Maricopa, Yavapai

CA

Santa Cruz, El Dorado, Ventura, Monterey, Mariposa, Calaveras, Orange

CO

La Plata

FL

Palm Beach, Okaloosa, Monroe

GA

Fulton, Floyd

HI 

Maui

IA

Black Hawk, Polk, Henry, Hardin

IL 

Moultrie, Peoria, Cook, McHenry

LA 

St Bernard, St Tammany, Bossier, Jefferson, Cameron

MA

Barnstable, Berkshire

MD

Cecil, Montgomery, Frederick

ME

Androscoggin, Washington

MI 

Wexford, Ottawa

MN

Aitkin

MO 

St Louis

MS 

Adams

MT 

Silver Bow

NC 

Person, Tyrrell, Hoke, Northampton

NE 

Saline, Buffalo, Saunders

NJ 

Somerset, Essex

NM 

Otero, Doña Ana, Socorro, Colfax

NV 

Eureka, White Pine, Lincoln, Douglas, Clark

NY 

Westchester, Rockland, Nassau, Saint Lawrence, Chemung, Chenango, Wyoming, Warren, Richmond, Livingston, Greene

OH

Lucas, Licking, Coshocton, Lake, Pickaway, Ross, Seneca, Trumbull, Jackson, Mercer, Brown

OK 

Payne

OR 

Linn

PA

Potter, Lancaster, Carbon

SC 

Florence

TN 

Johnson, Houston, Cumberland

TX

Dallas, Goliad, Lipscomb, McMullen, Llano, Ochiltree, Jones

UT

Summit

VA

James City, Charlotte, Southampton, Charles City, Wise, Warren, Alleghany

WA

Snohomish, Whitman, Pend Oreille, Chelan, Cowlitz, Grays Harbor, Kittitas, Skamania, Yakima, Clallam, Klickitat, Thurston, Whatcom, Asotin

WI

Fond du Lac

WY

Big Horn, Converse, Park

[brookstonalmanac]

Birthdays 4.8

Beer Birthdays

Thomas Dawes (1785)

Henry Lembeck (1826)

John F. Betz (1831)

Marc Sorini (1966)

Five Favorite Birthdays

Gautama Buddha; spiritual leader (563)

Steve Howe; rock guitarist (1947)

Barbara Kingsolver; writer (1955)

David Rittenhouse; astronomer, mathematician, inventor (1732)

Katee Sackhoff; actor (1980)

Famous Birthdays

Patricia Arquette; actor (1968)

Adrian Boult; orchestra conductor (1889)

Jacques Brel; singer, songwriter (1929)

Melvin Calvin; chemist (1911)

Ilka Chase; actor (1905)

Harvey William Cushing; neurosurgeon (1869)

Ponce de Leon; Spanish explorer (1460)

El Greco; Greek artist (1614)

George Fisher; cartoonist (1923)

Betty Ford; first lady (1918)

Shecky Greene; comedian (1926)

John Havlicek; Boston Celtics F/G (1940)

Sonja Henie; skater (1912)

John R. Hicks; British economist (1904)

Jim "Catfish" Hunter; Oakland A's P (1946)

Santiago Jimenez Jr.; accordionist (1944)

Taylor Kitsch; actor, model (1981)

Josef Krips; orchestra conductor (1902)

Julian Lennon; pop singer (1963)

Carmen McRae; jazz singer (1922)

Lewis Morris; signer of the Declaration of Independence (1726)

Edward Mulhare; actor (1923)

Mary Pickford; actor (1893)

John Schneider; actor (1960)

Izzy Stradlin; rock guitarist (1962)

Monty Sunshine; jazz clarinetist (1928)

Douglas Trumbull; film director (1942)

Robin Wright; actor (1966)

[handcalfieetherington]

alright time to look at helicopters, specifically at this point history how did the big oval with a propeller on it’s head come to be.

September 14, 1939, 12 days after the beginning of the second world war, the economy was still recovering from the depression back in the 20′s, Team fortress 2 was still a good 68 years off, things sucked, however even back then there were still smaller victories to look forward to, designed by  Igor Sikorsky  and built by the Vought-Sikorsky Aircraft Division of the United Aircraft Corporation, the helicopter was the first to incorporate a single main rotor and tail rotor design. Piloted by Sikorsky, the September 14 tethered flight lasted just a few seconds. The first free flight took place on May 13, 1940. The innovative 28-foot diameter, three-blade rotor allowed for variable pitch of the blades with a blade speed of 250 to 300 mph. The concepts demonstrated in the VS-300 provided the basis for the first production helicopters and became the standard for helicopter manufacturing across the world. On June 27, 1931, Sikorsky submitted a patent application (no. 1,994,488) for a direct lift aircraft, which included all the major engineering features of the VS-300. The patent was granted on March 19, 1935. Presented to Henry Ford and included in his Edison Museum in Dearborn, Michigan, on October 7, 1943, the VS-300 today remains on display at the Henry Ford Museum.

Igor himself was someone well known for his innovations and designs such being used on the  twin-engined S-38 amphibian aircraft. and heavy and design involvement with the take off of the first helicopter, as for where the the model took off.

Located on Long Island Sound, the Fairfield County town of Stratford is bounded by the Housatonic River on its eastern border. Europeans settled the area known as Cupheag, or harbor, in 1639 and later named it Stratford. Its original lands included what eventually became Trumbull, Shelton, Monroe, and parts of Bridgeport. Early industries included oystering and shipbuilding. With the advent of the industrial age, manufacturing became an economic mainstay and Stratford today still produces an array of goods, from chemicals, electrical parts, and hardware to plastics and paper products. It is best known, however, as the birthplace of the American helicopter industry built on the pioneering work of Igor Sikorsky.

World's first helicopter – Today in history: September 14 - Connecticut history: A cthumanities project (2021) Connecticut History | a CTHumanities Project - Stories about the people, traditions, innovations, and events that make up Connecticut's rich history. Available at: https://connecticuthistory.org/worlds-first-helicopter-today-in-history/ (Accessed: February 16, 2023).

Igor Sikorsky dies – Today in history: October 26 - Connecticut history: A cthumanities project (2020) Connecticut History | a CTHumanities Project - Stories about the people, traditions, innovations, and events that make up Connecticut's rich history. Available at: https://connecticuthistory.org/igor-sikorksy-dies-today-in-history/ (Accessed: February 16, 2023).

Stratford - Connecticut history: A cthumanities project (2011) Connecticut History | a CTHumanities Project - Stories about the people, traditions, innovations, and events that make up Connecticut's rich history. Available at: https://connecticuthistory.org/towns-page/stratford/ (Accessed: February 16, 2023).

[biglisbonnews]

Commodore Richard Dale Monument in Portsmouth, Virginia Born in 1756, Portsmouth native Richard Dale began his seafaring career at the age of 12, apprenticed to a ship owner and after five years, he became chief mate on a valuable brig. Dale was an intriguing figure in the American Revolution, with an uncanny knack for escaping capture, having managed to slip away from the British a remarkable five times. Following his first capture by a tender of the HMS Liverpool, he knew some of his captors from his days as a merchant and was able to escape by fighting for the British cause until he was able to reunite with the patriot effort. En route to Jamaica, the British vessel on which he was traveling was captured by the American vessel, the USS Lexington, and he enlisted as a midshipman with a subsequent promotion to Master's Mate. The Lexington was later captured by the British vessel, the HMS Pearl, in 1776. Dale was released as part of a prisoner exchange early the following year. During his third assignment on the Lexington, Dale was captured while on a mission that had wrought damage on Ireland's coast and incarcerated at Mill Prison in Plymouth, England. Dale and his fellow inmates attempted to tunnel out of the prison as the harsh conditions and poor treatment did not instill in them much confidence in their continued survival. Dale and one of his mates were captured attempting to board a ship out of England and returned to Mill Prison to suffer even worse treatment after being placed in solitary confinement for 40 days. After a year of mistreatment in Mill Prison, Dale was able to calmly walk out of the prison dressed in the uniform of a British soldier. Dale served as a Master's Mate on John Paul Jones’ ship, the USS Bon Homme Richard, and was quickly promoted to First Lieutenant. After a valiant effort in a battle with the British ship HMS Serapis, Dale was promoted by Jones to Second in Command, and upon his death, Jones willed the gold-hilted sword given to him by the King of France to Richard Dale. Dale's fifth and final capture occurred after he had signed on as a Lieutenant on the USS Trumbull serving under Captain Nicholson. Dale was captured during a battle with a British frigate ship and imprisoned in New York, which was under British control at the time. U.S. agents were able to secure an early release for him. Following his career at sea, Dale rose in the ranks of the Insurance Company of North America before departing for the Union Insurance Company, where he would become president for the final two years of his career before his passing in 1826. The bronze memorial was sculpted by William Couper and cast at the Henry-Bonnard Foundry in New York. It was placed in 1917 during World War I to rally the community based on the bravery and dedication of one of Portsmouth's favorite sons. https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/commodore-richard-dale-monument

[longteens]

Splice 2 the rebirth trailer

SPLICE 2 THE REBIRTH TRAILER TV

The Witcher launches on Netflix December 20. Personally, I think it looks pretty good, but then again I grew up in the ’90s, when television didn’t look exactly the same as the cinema, so I’m still thankful we don’t have ad breaks.

SPLICE 2 THE REBIRTH TRAILER TV

The Witcher is a closely-held franchise, with a dedicated and devoted following, so here’s hoping that the TV adaptation will live up to their expectations. Call of Duty: Warzone is approaching that King of the Monsters is coming again: Godzilla. In 2019 we spent the day with Doug Trumbull in interview. This sense of (relative) minimalism extends to Wrath of Man’s entire first act, a slow burn in which we’re introduced to the inner workings of a cash truck company. Genetic engineers Clive Nicoli and Elsa Kast hope to achieve fame by successfully splicing together the DNA of different animals to create new hybrid animals for medical use. Ritchie’s willingness to squander all sorts of potential money shots, and to take the largely unseen violence quite seriously, suggests a stylistic rebirth for the director. That and snow, lots and lots of crisp snow.Īll eight episodes of The Witcher will drop onto Netflix on December 20, ready to binge over the Holiday period. A Cineramic roller coaster ride through the rise, fall and rebirth of projected film. With Adrien Brody, Sarah Polley, Delphine Chanac, Brandon McGibbon. The Netflix adaptation of The Witcher stars Man of Steel’s Henry Cavill as the sword-swinging monster hunter Geralt of Rivia, and looks set to feature all the mysticism, folklore, politicking, femme-fatales and brutal violence of both the novels and their award-winning video game counterparts. But there’s still time for one more trailer, giving us a look at the hot (not literally) new show in action. The world waits with bated breath as we approach the release of Netflix’s adaptation of Andrzej Sapkowski’s fantasy franchise, The Witcher.

[napoleonic-sexyman-tournament]

With two days left to submit nominees, here is where the list stands:

France:

Jean Lannes

Josephine de Beauharnais

Thérésa Tallien

Jean-Andoche Junot

Joseph Fouché

Charles Maurice de Talleyrand

Joachim Murat

Michel Ney

Jean-Baptiste Bernadotte (Charles XIV of Sweden)

Louis-Francois Lejeune

Pierre Jacques Étienne Cambrinne

Napoleon I

Marshal Louis-Gabriel Suchet

Jacques de Trobriand

Jean de dieu soult.

François-Étienne-Christophe Kellermann

Louis Davout

Pauline Bonaparte, Duchess of Guastalla

Eugène de Beauharnais

Jean-Baptiste Bessières

Antoine-Jean Gros

Jérôme Bonaparte

Andrea Masséna

Antoine Charles Louis de Lasalle

Germaine de Staël

Thomas-Alexandre Dumas

René de Traviere (The Purple Mask)

Claude Victor Perrin

Laurent de Gouvion Saint-Cyr

François Joseph Lefebvre

Major Andre Cotard (Hornblower Series)

Edouard Mortier

Hippolyte Charles

Nicolas Charles Oudinot

Emmanuel de Grouchy

Pierre-Charles Villeneuve

Géraud Duroc

Georges Pontmercy (Les Mis)

Auguste Frédéric Louis Viesse de Marmont

Juliette Récamier

Bon-Adrien Jeannot de Moncey

Louis-Alexandre Berthier

Étienne Jacques-Joseph-Alexandre Macdonald

Jean-Mathieu-Philibert Sérurier

Catherine Dominique de Pérignon

England:

Richard Sharpe (The Sharpe Series)

Tom Pullings (Master and Commander)

Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington

Jonathan Strange (Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell)

Captain Jack Aubrey (Aubrey/Maturin books)

Horatio Hornblower (the Hornblower Books)

William Laurence (The Temeraire Series)

Henry Paget, 1st Marquess of Anglesey

Beau Brummell

Emma, Lady Hamilton

Benjamin Bathurst

Horatio Nelson

Admiral Edward Pellew

Sir Philip Bowes Vere Broke

Sidney Smith

Percy Smythe, 6th Viscount Strangford

George IV

Capt. Anthony Trumbull (The Pride and the Passion)

Barbara Childe (An Infamous Army)

Doctor Maturin (Aubrey/Maturin books)

Scotland:

Thomas Cochrane

Colquhoun Grant

Austria:

Klemens von Metternich

Friedrich Bianchi, Duke of Casalanza

Franz I/II

Archduke Karl

Marie Louise

Franz Grillparzer

Wilhelmine von Biron

Poland:

Wincenty Krasiński

Józef Antoni Poniatowski

Józef Zajączek

Maria Walewska

Władysław Franciszek Jabłonowski

Adam Jerzy Czartoryski

Antoni Amilkar Kosiński

Zofia Czartoryska-Zamoyska

Stanislaw Kurcyusz

Russia:

Alexander I Pavlovich

Alexander Andreevich Durov

Prince Andrei (War and Peace)

Pyotr Bagration

Mikhail Miloradovich

Levin August von Bennigsen

Pavel Stroganov

Empress Elizabeth Alexeievna

Karl Wilhelm von Toll

Dmitri Kuruta

Alexander Alexeevich Tuchkov

Barclay de Tolly

Fyodor Grigorevich Gogel

Ekaterina Pavlovna Bagration

Prussia:

Louise von Mecklenburg-Strelitz

Gebard von Blücher

Carl von Clausewitz

Frederick William III

Gerhard von Scharnhorst

Louis Ferdinand of Prussia

Friederike of Mecklenburg-Strelitz

Alexander von Humboldt

Dorothea von Biron

The Netherlands:

Ida St Elme

Wiliam, Prince of Orange

The Papal States:

Pius VII

Portugal:

João Severiano Maciel da Costa

Spain:

Juan Martín Díez

José de Palafox

Inês Bilbatua (Goya's Ghosts)

Haiti:

Alexandre Pétion

Sardinia:

Vittorio Emanuele I

Denmark:

Frederik VI

Sweden:

Gustav IV Adolph

[larryland]

REVIEW: "The Almost True and Truly Remarkable Adventures of Israel Potter" at Oldcastle

REVIEW: “The Almost True and Truly Remarkable Adventures of Israel Potter” at Oldcastle

[18thcentury]

My Christmas present to myself. I put it up today. The surrender of Lord Cornwallis who wasn't present because he was a damned poltroon or because he was "sick"... Something like that. This should be called the Victory at Yorktown tbh. Painted by Colonel John Trumbull. This hangs in the capitol rotunda.

[horrorcomeshome]

But oh, just to see your face When you find me here like this Now there's no time for wondering Darkness is now at my door, rapping with bony fingers... He's come to take me home! He'll envelope me in sleep, wrapped in black feathery wings...

But before we fly, here's my goodbye:

I get the last word! I get the last laugh! As sure as my b l o o d is running cold!

The precarious and toxic friendship of Levi Trumbull and Henry Hawthorn

[yr-obedt-cicero]

I heard somewhere Hamilton gained weight and lost sleep after Philip's death, is this true? And damn that's sad :(

Yes and no.

Hamilton was already gaining weight before Philip's death, as reported repeatedly from 1790 and so on.

Angelica Church wrote a letter to Elizabeth from London concerning the reports of her husband's weight gain;

“Colonel Beckwith tells me that our dear Hamilton writes too much and takes no exercise, and grows too fat. I hate both the word and the thing, and I desire you will take care of his health and his good looks, why I should find him on my return a dull, heavy fellow!”

(Source: The Intimate Life of Alexander Hamilton. By Allan Mclane Hamilton.)

Baron Von Steuben also showed concern for Hamilton's, not only emotional, but physical health. In a letter [16 December, 1790] he suggests Hamilton a diet containing more vegetables than meat, and says he should go on horseback rides every morning for eight or ten miles, and claims his walks on foot are doing him no good;

“My good friend? I learn with sorrow Your indisposition I am persuaded that the lack of Exercise is the principal Cause, I conjure You to bring the remedy there, give You a small bidet and trot Your eight or ten miles all the Mornings, Your races on foot is not enough. Saved that Health so dear to so many people, and So useful to this tender Miss Collumbia.

I have consulted my friend Tissot, I order you to eat a lot of roots, such as refort or horsraddish, carrots, parsley roots in your broth, turnips, chicory and saddlery, a little meat and a lot of exercise—I become Charletan—but what will I not become for You?”

(Source: Founders Archive)

Hamilton must have taken on the Baron's suggestion, as apparently in 1791, AH corresponded with Henry Lee, regarding a horse to assist him in getting out and exercising. Hamilton requested a gentle horse, and Lee made sure to find one that would meet with his needs. Lee then wrote to Hamilton [12 August 1791];

“Mr Cox was about taking to you my riding horse, but my apprehension of yr. necessary hurry & my wish to compare him with a horse I have sent for, concluded a procrastination of my execution of your request & my ardent desire. No other consideration could have induced me to postpone a measure you reckon essential to your health.

Nor shall time be lost in presenting you with this trivial testimony of the zeal with which I engage in any matter which goes to your comfort.”

(Source: Founders Archive)

I don't think it was anything detrimental, truthfully. Hamilton was prone to ailment and being slim with a short stature, I think the couple of pounds he put on was just more noticable due to this (Stop shaming him for his dad bod, okay). Trumbull's 1792 portrait gives a perspective of it though.

So, no; this was a couple of years before Philip's death. But there are hints to Hamilton losing sleep during his long period of grievance, like this 1805 portrait that shows Hamilton's strikingly plane luggage worth of bags under his eyes;

[countyflagchampionship]

On to Round 2!

This is a wrap-up of the current standings. Polls for round 2 will be published starting this Saturday (12/16).

Congratulations to all the counties that progressed!

The state that is standing the strongest is New York, with 39 counties progressing to round 2! Albany, Allegany, Allegany, Broome, Cattaraugus, Chautauqua, Chemung, Chenango, Clinton, Columbia, Delaware, Franklin, Greene, Hamilton, Jefferson, Kings, Livingston, Nassau, New York, Niagara, Oneida, Orange, Otsego, Putnam, Rensselaer, Richmond, Rockland, Saint Lawrence, Saratoga, Schuyler, Steuben, Suffolk, Sullivan, Ulster, Warren, Washington, Wayne, Westchester, and Wyoming.

Next most powerful state is Virginia, which has 36 winning counties. Alleghany, Alleghany, Amherst, Augusta, Bedford, Brunswick, Caroline, Carroll, Charlotte, Chesterfield, Fairfax, Fauquier, Fluvanna, Gloucester, Goochland, Grayson, Halifax, Isle of Wight, James City, King and Queen, King George, King William, Lee, Louisa, Montgomery, Patrick, Pittsylvania, Prince Edward, Pulaski, Rockingham, Scott, Smyth, Southampton, Tazewell, Warren, and Wise.

Ohio is also standing strong with 27 advancing counties. Brown, Butler, Columbiana, Coshocton, Crawford, Defiance, Erie, Fulton, Geauga, Holmes, Jackson, Lake, Lawrence, Licking, Madison, Mahoning, Medina, Mercer, Monroe, Muskingum, Perry, Pickaway, Ross, Scioto, Seneca, Trumbull, and Van Wert.

North Carolina is up next with a solid 24 wins. Beaufort, Cabarrus, Caldwell, Camden, Carteret, Craven, Currituck, Granville, Harnett, Henderson, Hoke, Jackson, Johnson, Lenoir, Lincoln, Macon, Madison, Mecklenburg, Northampton, Onslow, Person, Robeson, Tyrrell, and Wake.

Only 1 more state has over 20 counties that made won their match-ups and that's my wonderful Washington. Adams, Asotin, Chelan, Clallam, Cowlitz, Ferry, Garfield, Grant, Grays Harbor, King, Kitsap, Kittitas, Klickitat, Lewis, Pacific, Pend Oreille, Skagit, Snohomish, Thurston, Walla Walla, Whatcom, Whitman, Yakima. Stay strong my soldiers.

A much higher number of states are comfortably in the middle of the pack. They are as follows:

Texas: 19 counties. Bosque, Collin, Dallas, Denton, Fort Bend, Goliad, Hockley, Jones, Lipscomb, Live Oak, Llano, McMullen, Milam, Ochiltree, Orange, Panola, Parker, San Patricio, and Travis.

California: 17 counties. Amador, Calaveras, El Dorado, Imperial, Lake, Mariposa, Monterey, Orange, San Benito, San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara, Santa Clara, Santa Cruz, Solano, Tulare, Tuolumne, and Yolo.

Pennsylvania: 16 counties. Allegheny, Blair, Butler, Carbon, Dauphin, Franklin, Greene, Jefferson, Lancaster, Lycoming, Mifflin, Montgomery, Perry, Potter, Venango, and York.

Tennessee: 15 counties. Blount, Campbell, Carter, Cumberland, Hardin, Houston, Johnson, Knox, Madison, Maury, McNairy, Obion, Union, Williamson, and Wilson.

Nebraska: 13 counties. Adams, Buffalo, Cass, Cherry, Dakota, Keith, Knox, Nuckolls, Platte, Saunders, Stanton, Thayer, and Webster.

Nevada: 13 counties. Churchill, Clark, Douglas, Esmeralda, Eureka, Lander, Lincoln, Lyon, Mineral, Pershing, Storey, Washoe, and White Pine.

Illinois: 12 counties. Cook, DeKalb, Franklin, Jasper, Kane, Marion, McDonough, McHenry, Morgan, Peoria, St Clair, and Winnebago.

Maryland: 12 counties. Anne Arundel, Calvert, Carroll, Cecil, Dorchester, Frederick, Montgomery, Prince George’s, Queen Anne’s, Talbot, Washington, and Worcester.

Michigan: 12 counties. Barry, Berrien, Clinton, Genesee, Gogebic, Kalamazoo, Lake, Oceana, Ottawa, Rocommon, Sanilac, and Wexford.

Iowa: 11 counties. Dickinson, Fayette, Hancock, Hardin, Henry, Humboldt, Jefferson, Jones, Polk, Pottawattamie, and Wright.

Louisiana: 11 parishes. Ascension, Bossier, Cameron, Catahoula, Concordia, Jefferson, Lincoln, Natchitoches, St Bernard, St James, and St Tammany.

New Jersey: 11 counties. Bergen, Cumberland, Essex, Middlesex, Morris, Passaic, Salem, Somerset, Sussex, Union, and Warren.

Kentucky: 10 counties. Boone, Boyle, Breckinridge, Daviess, Leslie, Logan, Pike, Shelby, Trimble, Woodford.

Many of these poor cute states are barely hanging on. Please wish them luck.

Florida: 8 counties. Alachua, Bay, Miami-Dade, Monroe, Okaloosa, Osceola, Palm Beach, and St Johns.

New Mexico: 8 counties. Colfax, Curry, Doña Ana, Lincoln, Mora, Otero, Roosevelt, and Socorro.

Georgia: 6 counties. Bartow, Cherokee, Floyd, Fulton, Pierce, and Rockdale.

Indiana: 6 counties. Benton, Elkhart, Jennings, Marion, Marshall, and Starke.

Minnesota: 6 counties. Aitkin, Clearwater, Hennepin, Hubbard, McLeod, and Pipestone.

Wisconsin: 6 counties. Calumet, Fond du Lac, Osaukee, Portage, Racine, and Sheboygan.

Wyoming: 6 counties. Big Horn, Converse, Lincoln, Natrona, Park, and Teton.

Missouri: 5 counties. Clay, Gentry, Greene, Newton, and St Louis.

South Carolina: 5 counties. Anderson, Calhoun, Dillon, Dorchester, and Lexington.

Utah: 5 counties. Beaver, Summit, Utah, Washington, and Wayne.

Alaska: 4 boroughs. Anchorage, Juneau, Matanuska-Susitna, and Wrangell.

Arkansas: 4 counties. Cross, Searcy, Washington, and White.

Colorado: 4 counties. Douglas, El Paso, Fremont, and La Plata.

Oklahoma: 4 counties. Bryan, Payne, Rogers, and Washington.

West Virginia: 4 counties. Fayette, Marion, Monongalia, and Roane.

Alabama: 3 counties. Bullock, Cleburne, and Mobile.

Arizona: 3 counties. Coconino, Maricopa, and Yavapai.

Maine: 3 counties. Androscoggin, Hancock, and Washington.

Idaho: 2 counties. Bannock and Bonner.

Kansas: 2 counties. Atchinson and Johnson.

Massachusetts: 2 counties. Barnstable and Berkshire.

Montana: 2 counties. Gallatin and Silver Bow.

North Dakota: 2 counties. Benson and LaMoure.

Some states only have 1 county that progressed. They are: Delaware (Kent County), Hawaii (Maui County), Mississippi (Adams County), New Hampshire (Hillsborough County), Oregon (Linn County), and South Dakota (Bennet County).

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In addition to all the winning counties above, there will be 83 new county flags folded into round 2!!! (Because of math reasoning this had to happen) Get hyped

They are as follows:

Alexander NC, Allen OH, Alpena MI, Alpena MI, Alpine CA, Arapahoe CO, Ashe NC, Avery NC, Baldwin AL, Baltimore MD, Bell KY, Benzie MI, Bernalillo NM, Black Hawk IA, Brevard FL, Camden NJ, Campbell WY, Canyon ID, Centre PA, Charles City VA, Cheatham TN, Chester PA, Clark WA, Clarke VA, Cleveland OK, Cochise AZ, Columbus NC, Coweta GA, Darke OH, Davidson NC, Elko NV, Erie PA, Florence SC, Garrett MD, Goshen WY, Greene VA, Grundy IL, Gwinnett GA, Hidalgo TX, Highland OH, Hocking OH, Holt NE, Hot Springs WY, Howard MD, Huntingdon PA, Ingham MI, Island WA, Kankakee IL, Lackawanna PA, Lawrence PA, Leelanau MI, Lehigh PA, Leon FL, Liberty TX, Lucas OH, Madera CA, Mahaska IA, Manitowoc WI, McLennan TX, Meigs OH, Milwaukee WI, Nashville and Davidson TN, Northumberland VA, Orleans NY, Page VA, Porter IN, Sacramento CA, Salt Lake UT, San Diego CA, Sangamon IL, Sevier TN, Shelby TN, Skamania WA, Spotsylvania VA, Stafford VA, Sussex VA, Terrell TX, Trinity CA, Tulsa OK, Tuscarawas OH, Ventura CA, Wahkiakum WA, Yuma AZ