Hazen, Moses, 1733-1803 to Benjamin Lincoln
Order a pdf of this item here.
Gilder Lehrman Collection #: GLC01147 Author/Creator: Hazen, Moses, 1733-1803 Place Written: Lancaster, Pennsylvania Type: Autograph letter signed Date: May 27, 1782 Pagination: 2 p. : Height: 23 cm, Width: 18.3 cm Order a Copy
Written by Hazen as commander of prisoners at Lancaster, Pennsylvania during the Huddy-Asgill Affair to Lincoln as Secretary of War. References letters of General Washington from May 4 and 18, 1782, which he received on May 25, 1782. Writes that lots were drawn and Captain Charles Asgill was chosen to be executed in retaliation for the hanging of Captain Joshua Huddy. Asgill was a seventeen-year old youth, "a most amiable character, an extensive fortune and great interest in the British Court and Army." Says the British officers are enraged at Sir Henry Clinton's conduct and that they want Hazen to send an officer to New York on their behalf. Says all the letters going to New York will remain open for him to view. Wants to send Captain Ludlow to New York with a servant if Lincoln allows it. The Huddy-Asgill Affair, an embarrassment for Washington, began when the Associated Loyalists received permission from General Clinton to take Captain Huddy and two other prisoners for an exchange. The Loyalists then hanged Huddy in retaliation for the killing of one of their partisans, Philip White. Washington wanted Captain Lippincott, who was responsible for hanging Huddy, turned over to him. When he was not, Hazen was directed to select a British officer to die in retaliation.
Citation Guidelines for Online Resources
The copyright law of the United States (title 17, United States Code) governs the making of photocopies or other reproductions of copyrighted material. Under certain conditions specified in the law, libraries and archives are authorized to furnish a photocopy or other reproduction. One of these specific conditions is that the photocopy or reproduction is not to be “used for any purpose other than private study, scholarship, or research.” If a user makes a request for, or later uses, a photocopy or reproduction for purposes in excess of “fair use,” that user may be liable for copyright infringement. This institution reserves the right to refuse to accept a copying order if, in its judgment, fulfillment of the order would involve violation of copyright law.