Philip Schuyler

Philip Schuyler
United States Senator from New York
In office July 16, 1789 – March 4, 1791
Preceded by	(none)
Succeeded by	Aaron Burr
In office March 4, 1797 – January 3, 1798
Preceded by	Aaron Burr
Succeeded by	John Sloss Hobart
Personal details
Born	Philip John Schuyler (1733-11-20)November 20, 1733 Albany, New York
Died	November 18, 1804(1804-11-18) (aged 70) Albany, New York
Political party	Pro-Administration, Federalist
Spouse(s)	Catherine Van Rensselaer
Children	John Bradstreet Schuyler, Philip Jeremiah Schuyler, Angelica Schuyler Church, Elizabeth Schuyler Hamilton, Margarita Schuyler Van Rensselaer, Catherine Van Rensselaer Schuyler Malcolm
Profession	Soldier, Statesman
Religion	Dutch Reformed

Philip John Schuyler (November 20, 1733 – November 18, 1804) was a general in the American Revolution and a United States Senator from New York. He is usually known as Philip Schuyler, while his son is usually known as Philip J. Schuyler.

Early life

Philip Schuyler was born in Albany, New York, on November 20, 1733, to John (Johannes) Schuyler, Jr. (1697–1741), third generation of the Dutch family in America, and Cornelia Van Cortlandt (1698–1762).

Prior to his father's death, on the eve of his eighth birthday, Schuyler attended the public school at Albany. Afterward, he was educated by tutors at the Van Cortlandt family estate at New Rochelle. He joined the British forces in 1755 during the French and Indian War, raised a company, and was commissioned as its Captain by his cousin, Lt. Governor James Delancey. Later in that war, he served as a quartermaster, purchasing supplies and organizing equipment.

From 1761 to 1762, Schuyler made a trip to England to settle accounts from his work as quartermaster. During this time his home in Albany, later called Schuyler Mansion, was built. His country estate at Saratoga (which is now Schuylerville, New York) was also begun. After the war he also expanded his estate at Saratoga, expanding his holdings to tens of thousands of acres, adding slaves, tenant farmers, a store, mills for flour, flax, and lumber. His flax mill for the making of linen was the first one in America. He built several schooners on the Hudson River, and named the first Saratoga.

Schuyler began his political career as a member of the New York Assembly in 1768, and served in that body until 1775. During this time his views came to be more opposed to the colonial government. He was particularly outspoken in matters of trade and currency. He was also made a Colonel in the militia for his support of governor Henry Moore.

Revolutionary War

Schuyler's house during the Revolution, in Schuylerville

Schuyler was elected to the Continental Congress in 1775, and served until he was appointed a Major General of the Continental Army in June. General Schuyler took command of the Northern Department, and planned the Invasion of Canada (1775). His poor health required him to place Richard Montgomery in command of the invasion.

As department commanding General, he was active in preparing a defense against the Saratoga Campaign, part of the "Three Pronged Attack" strategy of the British to cut the American Colonies in two by invading and occupying New York State in 1777. In the summer of that year General John Burgoyne marched his British army south from Quebec over the valleys of Lakes Champlain and George. On the way he invested the small Colonial garrison occupying Fort Ticonderoga at the nexus of the two lakes. When General St. Clair surrendered Fort Ticonderoga in July, the Congress replaced Schuyler with General Horatio Gates, who had accused Schuyler of dereliction of duty.

Letter from Philip Schuyler to Israel Shreve, 1776

Battle of Saratoga

The British offensive was eventually stopped by Continental Army then under the command of Gates and Benedict Arnold in the Battle of Saratoga. That victory, the first wholesale defeat of a large British force, marked a turning point in the revolution, for it convinced France to enter the war on the American's side. When Schuyler demanded a court martial to answer Gates' charges, he was vindicated but resigned from the Army on April 19, 1779. He then served in two more sessions of the Continental Congress in 1779 and 1780.

Schuyler was an original member of the New York Society of the Cincinnati.

Later career

He was a member of the New York State Senate from 1780 to 1784, and at the same time New York State Surveyor General from 1781 to 1784. Afterwards he returned to the State Senate from 1786 to 1790, where he actively supported the adoption of the United States Constitution.

In 1789, he was elected a U.S. Senator from New York to the First United States Congress, serving from July 27, 1789, to March 4, 1791. After losing his bid for re-election in 1791, he returned to the State Senate from 1792 to 1797. In 1797, he was elected again to the U.S. Senate and served in the 5th United States Congress from March 4, 1797, until his resignation because of ill health on January 3, 1798.

Family and Relatives

In September 1755, he married Catherine Van Rensselaer (1734–1803) at Albany. Philip and Catherine had fifteen children together. Among them are:

• Angelica, who married British MP John Barker Church.
• Elizabeth, married Alexander Hamilton who later was the first United States Secretary of the Treasury.
• Philip Jeremiah Schuyler, who served in the United States House of Representatives.
• Margarita, who married Stephen Van Rensselaer III 8th Patroon of the name.

Additionally, Schuyler is related to:

• Peter Schuyler (cousin), who commanded the Jersey Blues.
• Hester Schuyler (cousin), who married William Colfax, a veteran of George Washington's Life Guards and later a general in the New Jersey militia who also commanded the Jersey Blues. (William and Hester were the grandparents of Vice President and Speaker of the House Schuyler Colfax).
• Arent Schuyler De Peyster (cousin), a noted Loyalist.
• Mary (Watts) Johnson (second cousin), loyalist and wife of Colonel Sir John Johnson.
• Dr. John Cochran (brother-in-law), Director General of the Military Hospitals of the Continental Army.

Schuyler's country home had been destroyed by General John Burgoyne's forces in September, 1777. Later that year, he began rebuilding on the same site, now located in southern Schuylerville, New York. This later home is maintained by the National Park Service as part of the Saratoga National Historical Park, and is open to the public.

Schuyler died at the Schuyler Mansion in Albany on November 18, 1804, and is buried in the Albany Rural Cemetery at Menands, New York.

Legacy

Statue outside Albany City Hall

• Schuyler County, Illinois and Schuyler County, New York were named in his honor.
• Fort Schuyler, constructed 1833–56, at the tip of Throggs Neck (a narrow spit of land in the southeastern portion of the borough of the Bronx in New York City) was named in his honor. The fort, built to defend the passage between the East River and Long Island Sound from sea invasion, now houses the Maritime Industry Museum and the State University of New York Maritime College.
• The Philip Schuyler Achievement Academy in Albany, New York is named in his and his son's honor.
• A statue of Schuyler, created by sculptor J. Massey Rhind in 1925 stands on the grounds of Albany's city hall.

References

• Barbagallo, Tricia (March 10, 2007). "Fellow Citizens Read a Horrid Tale" (PDF). http://www.archives.nysed.gov/apt/magazine/archivesmag_sum07.pdf. Retrieved 2008-06-04. 
• Revolutionary Enigma; A Re-Appraisal of General Philip Schuyler of New York by Martin H. Bush; 1969; (ISBN 0-87198-080-0).
• Life of General Philip Schuyler, 1733-1804 by Bayard Tuckerman; 1903; (1969 reprint ISBN 0-8369-5031-3).
• Proud Patriot: Philip Schuyler and the War of Independence, 1775-1783 by Don Gerlach; 1987; Syracuse University Press; (ISBN 0-8156-2373-9).
• The New York Civil List compiled by Franklin Benjamin Hough (pages 37f; Weed, Parsons and Co., 1858)
• The Real George Washington by the National Center for Constitutional Studies; 1991; (2009 reprint ISBN 10:0-88080-014-3

External links

• Philip Schuyler at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
• Co-Planner of the Sullivan-Clinton Campaign Against the Iroquois
• Collection of Letters from Philip Schuyler
• Philip Schuyler Achievement Academy