North, William (1755-1836) [An account of the execution of Major John Andre]
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Gilder Lehrman Collection #: GLC02541.02 Author/Creator: North, William (1755-1836) Place Written: New London, Connecticut Type: Autograph manuscript signed Date: 18 September 1823 Pagination: 4 p. ; 25 x 20 cm. Order a Copy
Details the execution of Major John Andre, accused of being a spy, and expresses his sympathetic feelings toward Andre's unfortunate fate. Describes how Baron Von Steuben could not comply with Andre's wish to suffer a soldier's death by being shot since the only suitable death for a spy is hanging.
John André was the aide-de-camp of Sir Henry Clinton, the British commander-in-chief. He was involved in Benedict Arnold's treason plot to surrender West Point to the British. He was captured by the American forces and hanged as a spy in Tappan, New York on October 2, 1780. Many on both sides felt that Arnold should have been the one to die for treason and that André just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time, but Washington had no choice but to punish him as a spy.
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