Description
Autograph Letter Signed, as Major-General, to Colonel Stanley, about the disposition of regimental officers. 2 pp. 9 x 7 inches, some paper loss at seal opening, clear of signature, integral leaf laid down on old album page, light stains. Danbury Camp, 16 August 1803. An elusive Revolutionary War signature. General Sir George Beckwith (1753 – 1823). Beckwith was commissioned into the 37th Regiment of Foot in 1771. He distinguished himself as a regimental officer in the American Revolutionary War. He fought with distinction in the New York and New Jersey campaigns in 1776, leading the British advance into Elizabethtown and Brunswick. In 1780 he took charge of British military intelligence in New York. After the war he worked for Sir Guy Carleton in Canada. His efforts were aimed at stirring up trouble in Vermont, Florida, Kentucky and Tennessee. At the time Britain thought the weak American government might ask for British help. He was then appointed Governor of Bermuda in 1797, Governor of Saint Vincent in 1806 and Governor of Barbados in 1810. He was made a K.B. for his Capture of Martinique in 1809 and also led a successful expedition against Guadeloupe, the last French possession in the area, in 1810. He attained the full rank of General in 1814. Sir George Beckwith was Commander-in-Chief, Ireland from 1816 to 1820. See his entry in Spies, Wiretaps, and Secret Operations: An Encyclopedia of American Espionage.