Washington, George. Letter signed, 11 September 1781....

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Washington, George. Letter signed, 11 September 1781. Letter signed ("Go Washington") as Commander-in-Chief of the Continental Army, 2 pages (7.5 x 9.25 in.; 191 x 235 mm.), Mount Vernon, 11 September 1781, written to "His Excellency Gov [Thomas Sim] Lee", Governor of Maryland. Expertly reinforced at folds; detached address leaf completely rebacked and attached by cloth tape. Less than a month before Cornwallis' surrender at Yorktown (19 October 1781), George Washington marches south from New York to meet him, and requests supplies for his Continental Army from the Governor of Maryland. "...circumstances pressing upon me as I advanced on my March, and Time slipping from me too fast, I found a Necessity of getting on with such Rapidity that I have been obliged to proceed without calling at Anapolis." Washington writes in full: Sir: I intended on passing thro' Maryland, to have done myself the Pleasure to have seen your Excellency; but circumstances pressing upon me as I advanced on my March, and Time slipping from me too fast, I found a Necessity of getting on with such Rapidity that I have been obliged to proceed without calling at Anapolis. I am exceedingly pleased to find, as I passed thro' your State, that a Spirit for Exertion prevails universally in such Manner, as gives me the happiest Prospects of receiving very Effectual Support from you. Great Attention is necessary to be given to the Article of Supplies. I mention this Circumstance, as I am just informed from below, that the Army is in Distress at this moment for Want of Provisions, particularly Flour; let me intreat your Excellency to give every the most expeditious Relief on this Head that is within your Power. With very great Regard & Esteem - I have the Honor to be Your Excellency Most Obedient & most humble Servt G. Washington George Washington's Continental Army of 3,500 troops maintained its camp in the Hudson River highlands for nearly two years, opposed by Clinton's overwhelming army of 14,500 veterans on Manhattan Island. Washington's men were without real uniforms, and lacked rations. As well, they were unpaid. By the spring of 1781, it appeared as though the Revolutionary War was to be over with a whimper. Then, on 22 May, Washington learned that Admiral de Grasse planned to bring his French fleet from the Caribbean to American waters in the fall. The news inspired Washington to re-assess his plans as he hoped to take New York away from the British, with the assistance of Count Jean-Baptiste de Rochambeau, commander of the French garrison of 4,000 men at Newport, Rhode Island. Rochambeau began marching southward toward New York during the first week of July, and, by the end of July, had assembled (with Washington's troops) an army of over 9,000 men (half French and half American) on the Hudson. Finding no weak spot in the British defenses, Washington and Rochambeau decided that a combined operation on the Yorktown peninsula with Admiral de Grasse (who was sailing for the Chesapeake Bay) was feasible. On 21 August the allied army (2,000 Americans and 4,000 French) began a secret march south, leaving only Major General William Heath with 2,500 men on the Hudson to watch Clinton. De Grasse arrived in the Chesapeake Bay on 30th August, encountering no resistance from the British Caribbean squadron under Admiral Sir Samuel Hood, who had sailed on to New York. Cornwallis was held in place until the main allied army arrived. This superb letter was written by Washington from Mount Vernon during his travels southward - through New Brunswick, Princeton, Trenton, Philadelphia, Chester, Wilmington, Baltimore, and Annapolis. All along his route, he implored governors, legislators, and businessmen for food, clothing and equipment for his army. [The French, in contrast, could pay hard money for their supplies.] On 9th September, in the company of only two aides, Washington left Baltimore in pursuit of a dream that had haunted him for the past seven years. Two days later, Washington was at his own familiar gates at Mount Vernon. There, he encountered four new faces - those of his step-grandchildren - who had been born in his absence. After his brief three day visit to Mount Vernon, his first since the war began, Washington continued on to Williamsburg, where the decisive confrontation with Cornwallis took place. Cornwallis being trapped and conditions hopeless, opened negotiations (17 October) for the surrender of his army. The capitulation was signed on the 18th, and, on the 19th, the British force of almost 8,000 men laid down their arms. An important and historic letter penned less than one month before Yorktown.