Aaron Burr

Aaron Burr Jr. was born on February 6, 1756, in Newark, in what was then the Province of New Jersey, one of the Thirteen Colonies of colonial era British America. He was the second child of the Reverend Aaron Burr Sr., a Presbyterian minister and co-founder of the College of New Jersey (now Princeton University) of which he served as the school's second president after his election in 1748.

His mother, Esther Edwards Burr, was the daughter of Jonathan Edwards, a philosopher-theologian, and his wife Sarah Edwards, a missionary. He had one older sister, Sarah, who was also known as Sally.

On September 24, 1757, Burr Sr. died after experiencing exhaustion and a high fever in the weeks prior to his death. Jonathan Edwards, Burr's maternal grandfather, briefly became the third president of the university for two months, having succumbed to a high fever related to a smallpox inoculation on March 22, 1758. Sixteen days later, Burr's mother Esther, died from a fever on April 7, 1758. While traveling with their maternal grandmother Sarah to what was to be their new home in Philadelphia, Sarah died on October 2, 1758, from dysentery. Burr and his sister Sally were orphaned at the age of two years old and three years old respectively.

Young Burr and his sister were then placed with the William Shippen family in Philadelphia, the capital of British America. The following year, in 1759, the children's guardianship was assumed by their 21-year-old maternal uncle, Timothy Edwards. The following year, Edwards married Rhoda Ogden, and moved the family to Elizabeth, New Jersey, where Burr attended the Elizabethtown Academy. Burr had a very strained relationship with his uncle, who was often physically abusive. As a child, he made several attempts to run away from home.

At age 13, Burr was admitted to the College of New Jersey as a sophomore, where he joined the American Whig Society and the Cliosophic Society, the college's literary and debating societies. In 1772, at age 16, he received his Bachelor of Arts degree, but continued studying theology at Princeton for an additional year. He then undertook rigorous theological training with Joseph Bellamy, a Presbyterian, but changed his career path after two years. At age 19, he moved to Litchfield, Connecticut, to study law with his brother-in-law Tapping Reeve, founder of the Litchfield Law School and husband of his sister Sally. In 1775, news reached Litchfield of the clashes with British troops in the Battles of Lexington and Concord, which launched the American Revolutionary War, and Burr put his studies on hold to enlist in the Continental Army, whose commander-in-chief was George Washington.

Revolutionary War

During the American Revolutionary War, Burr took part in Colonel Benedict Arnold's expedition to Quebec, an arduous trek of more than 300 miles (480 km) through the northern frontier of the Province of Massachusetts Bay (now Maine). Arnold was impressed by Burr's "great spirit and resolution" during the long march. He sent him up the Saint Lawrence River to contact General Richard Montgomery, who had taken Montreal, and escort him to Quebec. Montgomery then promoted Burr to captain and made him an aide-de-camp. Burr distinguished himself during the Battle of Quebec on December 31, 1775, where he attempted to recover Montgomery's corpse after he had been killed. However, his attempts to rescue the body of his general were short-lived, as Burr gave up due to the harsh conditions of the snow and the dead weight of Montgomery's body.

In the spring of 1776, Burr's relative Matthias Ogden helped him to secure a position with George Washington's staff in Manhattan, but he quit on June 26 to be on the battlefield. After John Hancock recommended Burr, General Israel Putnam took him under his wing, and Burr saved an entire brigade from capture after the British landing in Manhattan by his vigilance in the retreat from Lower Manhattan to Harlem. Washington did not recognize his actions in the following day's General Orders, through which promotions could be obtained most quickly. Burr was already a nationally known hero, but he never received a commendation. According to Ogden, he was infuriated by the incident, which may have led to the eventual estrangement between him and Washington. Nevertheless, Burr defended Washington's decision to evacuate New York as "a necessary consequence". It was not until the 1790s that the two men found themselves on opposite sides in politics.

Burr was briefly posted in Kingsbridge during 1776, at which time he was charged with protecting 14-year-old Margaret Moncrieffe, the daughter of Staten Island-based British Major Thomas Moncrieffe. Miss Moncrieffe was in Manhattan "behind enemy lines", and Major Moncrieffe asked Washington to ensure her safe return there. Burr fell in love with Margaret, and her attempts to remain with Burr were unsuccessful.

In late 1776, Burr attempted to secure Washington's approval to retake fortifications on Staten Island, which were then held by the British, citing his deep familiarity with the area. Washington said he wanted to defer such an action until later in the conflict, and ultimately chose not to pursue it. The British learned of Burr's plans and later took extra precautions.

In July 1777, Burr was promoted to lieutenant colonel and assumed virtual leadership of Malcolm's Additional Continental Regiment. There were approximately 300 men under Colonel William Malcolm's nominal command, but Malcolm was frequently called upon to perform other duties, leaving Burr in charge. The regiment successfully fought off many nighttime raids into central New Jersey by Manhattan-based British troops who arrived by water. Later that year, Burr commanded a small contingent during the harsh winter encampment at Valley Forge, guarding "the Gulph", an isolated pass that controlled one approach to the camp. He imposed discipline and defeated an attempted mutiny by some of the troops. Some of the men, upset with Burr's way of leadership, plotted to kill Burr. Being informed of the plot to kill him, Burr made sure his men's guns were emptied. At night, one man fired his empty musket at Burr, and the latter immediately drew his sword, severing his attacker's arm. There were no more mutinies at the Gulph from that point on.

Burr's regiment was devastated by British artillery on June 28, 1778, at the Battle of Monmouth in New Jersey, and Burr suffered heatstroke and exhaustion. Washington denied Burr's request for medical leave without pay, and instead placed Burr in temporary command of the garrison at West Point, New York, until his recovery.

In January 1779, Burr was assigned to Westchester County, New York, in command of Malcolm's Regiment, a region between the British post at Kingsbridge and that of the Americans about 15 miles (24 km) to the north. This district was part of the more significant command of General Alexander McDougall, and there was much turbulence and plundering by lawless bands of civilians and by raiding parties of ill-disciplined soldiers from both armies.

Due to continuing poor health, Burr resigned from the Continental Army in March 1779. During his recovery, Burr carried urgent messages to Washington and various officers at the request of Generals McDougall and Arthur St. Clair. On July 5, 1779, he rallied a group of Yale students at New Haven, Connecticut, along with Captain James Hillhouse and the Second Connecticut Governor's Guards, in a skirmish with the British at the West River. The British advance was repulsed, forcing them to enter New Haven from nearby Hamden.

In 1783, Burr became an Original Member of the New York Society of the Cincinnati, an organization of officers who had served in the Continental Army and Navy during the Revolution.

Marriage to Theodosia Bartow Prevost

Burr met Theodosia Bartow Prevost in August 1778 while she was married to Jacques Marcus Prevost, a Swiss-born British officer in the Royal American Regiment. In Prevost's absence, Burr began regularly visiting Theodosia at The Hermitage, her home in New Jersey. Theodosia would go on to visit Burr many times throughout his stay at West Point New York in June through July 1778. Although she was ten years older than Burr, the constant visits provoked gossip, and by 1780 the two were openly lovers. In December 1781, Burr learned that Jacques Prevost had died of yellow fever while serving in Jamaica.

After her husband's death, Theodosia was hesitant to marry Burr right away, writing to him: "When I am sensible I can make you and myself happy, I will readily join you... But till I am confident of this, I cannot think of our union." After a few months of consideration, however, Burr and Theodosia were married on July 2, 1782, and they moved to a house on Wall Street in Lower Manhattan. After several years of severe illness, Theodosia died in 1794 from stomach or uterine cancer. Their only child to survive to adulthood was Theodosia Burr Alston, born in 1783.

In addition to his daughter Theodosia, Burr was the father of at least three other children and he adopted two sons. Burr also acted as a parent to his two stepsons by his wife's first marriage and he became a mentor or guardian to several protégés who lived in his home.

Law and politics

In the autumn of 1780, Burr resumed his study of law with Thomas Smith of Haverstraw. He was licensed as an attorney in Albany, New York, in January 1782, and was admitted to the bar as a counselor that April. He promptly opened a successful law office in Albany. He moved his law practice to New York City the following year, after the British evacuated the city.

Burr was a prominent lawyer, notably defending Levi Weeks in the Manhattan Well Murder trial of 1800, alongside Alexander Hamilton and Brockholst Livingston. Burr's address to the jury for the trial was, according to James Hardie, who kept an account of the trial, "one of the most masterly speeches, both with respect to composition and oratory," that Hardie had ever heard. Weeks was acquitted after only five minutes of jury deliberation. General Erastus Root concluded that Burr and Hamilton were "much the two greatest men in the state, perhaps in the nation."

Burr quickly became a key player in politics, especially in New York, largely due to the power of the Tammany Society (which became Tammany Hall). Burr converted it from a social club into a political machine to help Jefferson reach the presidency, particularly in New York City.

Conspiracy and trial

After Burr left the vice presidency at the end of his term in 1805, he journeyed to the western frontier, areas west of the Allegheny Mountains and down the Ohio River Valley, eventually reaching the lands acquired in the Louisiana Purchase. He leased 40,000 acres (16,000 ha) of land, known as the Bastrop Tract, along the Ouachita River, in present-day Louisiana, from the Spanish government. Starting in Pittsburgh and then proceeding to Beaver, Pennsylvania and Wheeling, Virginia, and onward, he drummed up support for his planned settlement, whose purpose and status was unclear.

Burr's most important contact was General James Wilkinson, Commander-in-Chief of the United States Army at New Orleans, and governor of the Louisiana Territory. Others included Harman Blennerhassett, who offered the use of his private island for training and outfitting Burr's expedition. Wilkinson later proved to be a bad choice.

Burr envisioned the probability of a war between the US and the Kingdom of Spain. In case war was declared, Andrew Jackson, then commander of Tennessee's militia, stood ready to assist Burr.

Burr's expedition of about eighty men carried modest arms for hunting and no war materiel was ever revealed even when Blennerhassett Island was seized by Ohio's militia. Burr vowed the aim of his conspiracy was that if he settled there with a large group of armed farmers and war broke out, he would likely face a force with which to fight and claim land for himself thereby restoring his wealth. However, the war did not emerge as soon as Burr expected. In 1819, the Adams–Onís Treaty secured Florida for the U.S. without a fight, and war in Texas did not commence until 1836, the year Burr died.

After a near-incident with Spanish forces at Natchitoches, Wilkinson decided he could best protect himself by betraying Burr's plans to his Spanish spymasters and to President Jefferson. Jefferson issued an order for Burr's arrest, declaring him a traitor before any indictment. Burr read this in a newspaper in the Territory of Orleans on January 10, 1807. Several journals reported on the subject, creating a pool of rumors, most against Burr. Jefferson's warrant put federal agents on his trail. Burr twice turned himself in to federal authorities, and both times judges found his actions legal and released him.

Jefferson's warrant, however, followed Burr, who fled toward Spanish Florida. He was intercepted at Wakefield, in Mississippi Territory in present-day Alabama, on February 19, 1807, by Edmund P. Gaines and Nicholas Perkins III. He was confined to Fort Stoddert after being arrested on charges of treason.

Burr's secret correspondence with Anthony Merry and the Marquis of Casa Yrujo, the British and Spanish ministers in Washington, D.C., were eventually revealed. Burr tried to secure money and conceal what may have been his true design, which was aiding Mexico in overthrowing Spain's governance of the Southwest. If Burr intended to establish a dynasty in what later became Mexican territory, such an offense at the time was a misdemeanor under the Neutrality Act of 1794, which Congress passed to block filibuster expeditions against U.S. neighbors, including those of George Rogers Clark and William Blount. Despite this, Thomas Jefferson sought the highest charges against Burr.

In 1807, Burr was charged with treason in U.S. circuit court in Richmond, Virginia. His defense lawyers included Edmund Randolph, John Wickham, Luther Martin, and Benjamin Gaines Botts. Burr was arraigned four times for treason prior to being indicted before a grand jury. The only physical evidence presented to the grand jury was Wilkinson's letter from Burr, which proposed stealing land in the Louisiana Purchase. During the grand jury's deliberations, however, the court discovered that the letter was written in Wilkinson's handwriting. He said he had made a copy because he had lost the original. The grand jury dismissed the letter out as evidence, and the news made a laughingstock of Wilkinson for the rest of the proceedings.

The trial, which was presided over by Chief Justice John Marshall, began on August 3. Article 3, Section 3 of the U.S. Constitution requires that treason either be admitted in open court or proven by an overt act witnessed by two people. Since no witnesses came forward, Burr was acquitted on September 1, despite efforts by the Jefferson administration to exert its political influence against him in the trial. Burr was immediately tried on a misdemeanor charge and was again acquitted.

Jefferson used his influence as president to seek Burr's conviction, leading the trial to be seen as a major test of the U.S. Constitution and the separation of powers. Jefferson challenged the authority of the Supreme Court and Chief Justice Marshall, who was appointed by John Adams and clashed with Jefferson over Adams' last-minute judicial appointments. Jefferson believed that Burr's treason was obvious. Burr sent a letter to Jefferson in which he stated that he could do Jefferson much harm. The case, as tried, was decided on whether Burr was present at certain events at certain times and in certain capacities. Jefferson used all of his personal influence in an attempt to convince Marshall to convict Burr, but Marshall was not swayed. Burr was found not proven to be guilty by the jury due to the lack of evidence against him.

Historians Nancy Isenberg and Andrew Burstein write that Burr:

was not guilty of treason, nor was he ever convicted, because there was no evidence, not one credible piece of testimony, and the star witness for the prosecution had to admit that he had doctored a letter implicating Burr.

David O. Stewart, on the other hand, alleged that Burr was not explicitly guilty of treason, according to Marshall's definition, but evidence existed linking him to treasonous crimes. Bollman admitted to Jefferson during an interrogation that Burr planned to raise an army and invade Mexico. He said that Burr believed that he should be Mexico's monarch, since a republican government, in Burr's view, was not appropriate for Mexico.