ALS : Mount Vernon, to James Madison, 1786 Dec. 16.

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ALS : Mount Vernon, to James Madison, 1786 Dec. 16.

Washington explains to Madison that he may be unable to accept appointment as a Virginia delegate to the Constitutional Convention, because hehas already announced that he will not be attending the annual meeting of the Society of the Cincinnati which will be held in Philadelphia at the same time and it would be politically awkward for him to appear at another meeting. He also discusses some of the jealousies provoked by the Society that led to his decision not to attend. The last paragraph concerns Washington's opposition to taxes based on commutables.

1 item (3 p.) ; 33 cm.

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SNAC Resource ID: 6724297

Rosenbach Museum & Library

Related Entities

There are 4 Entities related to this resource.

Society of the Cincinnati

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w6mq5tk3 (corporateBody)

The Society of the Cincinnati was formed on 10-13 May 1783 by American Revolutionary Army officers who met at Mount Gulian, the American Army's cantonment on the east bank of the Hudson River. After resigning his post as General, George Washington (1732-1799) accepted an invitation to become the society's first president. Major General Henry Knox (1750-1806) was the secretary and for years the guiding spirit of the organization. Membership extended to those officers of the Continental Army and N...

Madison, James, 1751-1836

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w64850wc (person)

James Madison (1751-1836) was the fourth president of the United States, born in Port Conway, Virginia. He was a member of the Virginia legislature from 1776 to 1780 and from 1784 to 1786, and the Continental Congress from 1780 to 1783. His proposals at and management of the Constitutional Convention in 1787 earned him title "father of the U.S. Constitution." He cooperated with Alexander Hamilton and Jay in writing a series of papers (pub. 1787-88 under title of The Federalist) explaining the ne...

United States. Constitutional Convention 1787

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Washington, George, 1732-1799

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w6r31qfk (person)

George Washington (b. Feb. 22, 1732, Westmoreland County, Va.-d. Dec. 14, 1799, Mount Vernon, VA) was the first president of the United States, serving from 1789 to 1797. Washington came from a family of farmers and landowners. He had little education but showed an aptitude for mathematics. He used this talent to become a surveyor. At 15, Washington took a job as assistant surveyor on a team sent to map the Shenandoah Valley in western Virginia. In his early 20s, Washington joined the Virgin...