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John Hancock Military Appointment Signed as President of the Second Continental Congress....
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Description
John Hancock's 1776 appointment for an officer just two weeks prior to Washington's historic crossing of the Delaware and subsequent victory at the Battle of Trenton
John Hancock Military Appointment Signed as President of the
Second Continental Congress. One page, partially printed with
manuscript insertions, 284 x 197 mm. [Philadelphia: Printed by John
Dunlap, 1776], engrossed, Philadelphia, December 10, 1776. The
document appoints "John Hellen, Gentleman" to the rank of
"Second Lieutenant in Captain Henry Hardman's Company of the
Maryland Forces." Countersigned by Charles Thomson as
secretary, "Chas Thomson Secy." Docketed on verso.By December 1776, the situation faced by Washington and the Continental Army was becoming desperate. Winter was ominously approaching, and the contingency of Continental militia was due to disband at the first of the year, when their period of enlistment would expire. His tattered troops were encamped across the Delaware River from Trenton, which was occupied by 2,000 to 3,000 Hessian mercenaries and their six-field cannon. Just before midnight on Christmas Day, 1776, Washington's small force began to move north toward McConkey's Ferry on the Delaware River. There, Washington and his troops crossed the river. Once ashore in New Jersey, Washington formed up his troops and descended on Trenton. Word came within a few minutes that the Hessians in the field had surrendered. The whole affair lasted less than three-quarters of an hour. Washington collected his men, rounded up almost 900 prisoners, and arranged for immediate transportation of captured stores back across the river. The victory sent shockwaves through the rebelling colonies. Washington's troops had defeated a superior force of almost three German regiments, all without the loss of a single American life. Success against the British now seemed at least a distant possibility. Trenton, and the following victory at Princeton on January 3, 1777, cowed the British from continuing their advanced posts in New Jersey.
There is strong evidence that John Hellen was with Washington and present for the Crossing of the Delaware River and subsequent victory at Trenton. Prior to Hellen's promotion - the present appointment to Second Lieutenant - Hellen was a first lieutenant in the First Maryland battalion of the Flying Camp, a unit of state militia responsible for civil defense. However, at the time of this appointment to second lieutenant, Hellen's commanding officer, Captain Henry Hardman (for whom the company was named), was in British captivity, having been taken prisoner at Fort Washington on November 16. Capt. Hardman's commanding officer, Lt. Col. Moses Rawlings, commander of the Maryland rifle battalion volunteers, was suffering from wounds received at Fort Washington and was absent from the Battle of Trenton. In his stead, Captain David Harris, a senior officer, commanded three commissioned officers and 102 enlisted men at the Battle of Trenton. These field officers served directly under Washington's immediate command. While it is unknown if Hellen was one of these officers, it is certainly possible - and indeed likely - that Lt. Hellen was present at both the historic crossing of the Delaware River and the Battle of Trenton (see Fischer's Washington's Crossing, Appendix F, for the "American Order of Battle Before the Attack on Trenton," December 22, 1776).
Condition: Archival repair to horizontal and vertical separations (one of which bisects Hancock's signature), some minor losses to printed text; paper replacement on edges with toning from previous tape repairs on verso (now removed). Signature still dark and bold.
References: Evans 15129; Fischer, Washington's Crossing, 2004, page 391; Stryker, The Battles of Trenton and Princeton, 1898, page 353.
Auction Info
2023 July 8 Historical Platinum Signature® Auction #6275 (go to Auction Home page)
Auction Dates
July, 2023
8th
Saturday
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