Lee, Richard Henry, 1732-1794 to William Davies
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Gilder Lehrman Collection #: GLC00513 Author/Creator: Lee, Richard Henry, 1732-1794 Place Written: Chantilly, Virginia Type: Autograph letter signed Date: November 3, 1781 Pagination: 1 p. : address : docket ; 29.3 x 19.7 cm. Order a Copy
Written by Lee, a signer of the Declaration of Independence, as a legislator in the Virginia Assembly to Davies as Commissioner of the Virginia War Office in Richmond. Asks Davies to see that arms taken from militiamen at Gloucester, probably used at the battle of Yorktown, be returned to them. Says near 200 arms were taken from the militia and they have returned home unarmed. Says the situation leaves 40 miles along the shores of his county "exposed to the ravage of piratical vessels." Says General George Weedon told him that the government detained the arms to furnish militia rotations, but says this should not apply to the Gloucester militia who stayed in the county for the entire siege. The folio page has been cut in half and the letter is pasted on one side of a white piece of paper and the address and docket on the verso of that paper. This creates a 1.5" border around the original letter.
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