Deane, Silas, 1738-1789

Silas Deane (January 4, 1738 [O.S. December 24, 1737] – September 23, 1789) was an American Founding Father, merchant, politician, and diplomat, and a supporter of American independence. Deane served as a delegate to the Continental Congress, where he signed the Continental Association, and then became the first foreign diplomat from the United States to France.

Born in Groton in the Colony of Connecticut, he received a classical training before graduating from Yale College and studying law. After being admitted to the bar, Deane practiced law for a short time outside of Hartford before moving to Wethersfield, Connecticut, and establishing a thriving business as a merchant. In 1768, Deane was elected to the Connecticut House of Representatives; in 1769, he was appointed to the Wethersfield Committee of Correspondence; and from 1774 to 1776, he served as a delegate from Connecticut to the Continental Congress. On March 2, 1776, Congress appointed Deane as a secret envoy to France with the mission of inducing the French government to grant financial aid to the colonies. Deane's position was officially recognized after Benjamin Franklin and Arthur Lee arrived in Paris in December 1776, with orders from Congress appointing the trio as the diplomatic delegation to France. For a variety of reasons, many of the foreign officers Deane recruited to help with the American cause for independence were unpopular in America, and many in Congress blamed Deane for their behavior, leading them to recall him on December 8, 1777. On February 6, 1778, Deane and the other commissioners signed the Treaties of Amity and Commerce and of Alliance, officially creating the alliance between France and the American colonies.

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