Hamilton+and+Burr+Duel

=__**Hamilton and Burr Duel**__=

toc When Aaron Burr's term as vice president was almost over, he ran for governor of New York. Alexander Hamilton prevented Burr from winning by opposing him. Burr then challenged him to a duel. On the morning of July 11, 1804, Alexander Hamilton and Aaron Burr shot their pistols and Hamilton missed. Burr hit Hamilton and the bullet was lodged next to his spine. Hamilton died the next day.

Alexander Hamilton[[image:HAMILTON.gif align="left" caption="Aexander Hamilton"]]
Alexander Hamilton was the secretary of the treasury. He was born on the West Indian island of Nevis. His exact date of birth is unknown but most historians believe it was in 1755. He spent his childhood mostly on the island of Saint Croix apprenticed as a clerk. In 1772 he was sent to New York City by his guardian, the merchant Nicholas Cruger. His guardian wanted to enroll him at the College of New Jersey in Princeton. He was refused and then enrolled at King's College (now Columbia University), New York City, in 1773. In 1774, when he was not 20 yet, he entered the fight of the colonies and the British and wrote doctrines of rebellion and natural rights derived from the philosopher John Locke. Hamilton was a man of action so he enlisted in the army and fought in battles around New York in 1775-6. He became a lieutenant colonel in March 1777 and served Washington for 4 years. He got to lead a regiment of New York troops at the battle of Yorktown. In December 1780, he married Elizabeth Schuyler, daughter of General Philip Schuyler. In 1782 he was admitted to legal practice in New York and became an assistant to Robert Morris, who was the superintendent of finance. He was elected a member of the Continential Congress later in 1782. He was a New York delegate in the Constitutional Convention of 1787. He was for a stronger national government and in the Contitution it was not as strong as he wanted it to be. With John Jay and James Madison, Hamilton wrote papers (called The Federalist in 1788) urging the people of New York to ratify the new constitution. At the New York ratifying convention of June-July 1788, Hamilton and the other federalists defeated the antifederalists in the state. Hamilton was the first secretary of the treasury under the new constitution and held his office from Sept. 11, 1789, to Jan. 31, 1795. He proposed to pay the nation's debts in full and also to assume the unpaid debts of all the states. He proposed that a national bank be established to help the federal government manage the nation's trade and finance. His proposal was accepted by Congress, and the Bank of the United States was chartered in 1791. He then took the lead in getting peace with Great Britain, which culminated in Jay's Treaty (1794), and in suppressing the Whiskey Rebellion (1794), which was provoked by his excise taxes. He retired from the Treasury Department in 1795. Hamilton openly opposed Adams's reelection in 1800 and liked Jefferson more than Aaron Burr.

Aaron Burr
Aaron Burr was born in Newark, New Jersey, on February 6, 1756. His father, Aaron Burr Sr., was president of the College of New Jersey, which is now named Princeton. His mother, Esther Edwards Burr, was the daughter of Jonathan Edwards, whose preaching helped start the religious movement known as the Great Awakening. Aaron Burr was an orphan at 2 and was raised by his uncle, Timothy Edwards. He applied to the College of New Jersey (now Princeton) at age 11, but was turned down. At age 13, he reapplied and was granted admission; he graduated at age 17. When the Revolution began, Burr (19) tried to get a commission from George Washington, Commander-in-Chief of the Continental Army. Burr then joined Benedict Arnold's march against the British in Canada. Later, he transferred to another force in Canada, led by General Richard Montgomery. In 1776 he served briefly on Washington's staff because he fought well when Montgomery attacked Quebec on December 31, 1775. In 1777 as lieutenant colonel he took command of a regiment. Later he was placed in command of the "neutral ground" north of New York City, where he guarded against British guerilla raids and cavalry forays. The job was extremely difficult, and Burr persevered as long as he could. When he was exhausted and ill, he retired from the military on March 3, 1779. Also in 1779, Burr met Theodosia Bartow Prevost who was the widow of a British officer, and 10 years older than him. In 1782, he married her and they had four children one of which survived, their daughter, Theodosia, in 1783. Burr was a master of politics and in 1783 he was elected to the New York Assembly. In 1789 he was appointed New York's attorney general. In 1791, Burr jumped into national politics, and took a United States Senate seat from Philip Schuyler, Alexander Hamilton's father-in-law. Burr held the seat for just one term. His wife then died in 1794. In 1800, Thomas Jefferson chose Aaron Burr as his presidential running mate. When the election results were tallied, Burr and Jefferson tied in total electoral votes. Alexander Hamilton, who despised Jefferson but hated Burr even more, tried to make people vote for Jefferson to little effect. Jefferson won the election and Burr became his vice president. In 1804, with Federalist backing, Burr ran as an independent candidate for governor in New York. Burr lost because George and DeWitt (secretly helped by Jefferson) unleashed attacks on him in the press. Alexander Hamilton, who feared that Burr would take away the power he held in the Federalist Party, had also spoken out against Burr.

Events Leading to the Duel
In 1804 Hamilton defeated Burr's attempt to win the governorship of New York. Hamilton, who feared that Burr would take away the power he held in the Federalist Party, had spoken out against Burr. Burr decided to try to restore his reputation by challenging Hamilton to a duel. Hamilton accepted because he didn't want to be known as a coward. He hoped Hamilton would apologize, but he didn't. Then the duel was unavoidable.

The Duel[[image:hamilton_and_burr.jpg width="370" height="267" align="right" caption="Hamilton and Burr facing off."]]
On July 11, 1804, in Weehawken, New Jersey. Burr arrived first as they agreed. When Hamilton arrived, they measured the distance, ten paces, and cast lots for the choice of position, and to determine whom the word should be given by, both of which fell to the second of General Hamilton. They loaded their pistols, took their stations, and the second who gave the word told them the rules: The parties being placed at their stations, the second who gives the word shall ask them whether they are ready; being answered in the affirmative, he shall say- //present!// After this the parties shall present and fire //when they please//. If one fires before the other, the opposite second shall say //one, two, three, fire//, and he shall then fire or lose his fire. Hamilton turned first, fired and didn't hit Burr, Burr then shot Hamilton in the side. The next day Hamilton died.

Statement of the Seconds
When they were ready, Hamilton turned first but didn't want to hit Burr, but he also wanted to seem brave for accepting the duel, so he fired past Burr into a tree. Burr thought he had fired and missed so he turned and shot him before he could reload. The bullet went into Hamilton's side and was lodged next to his spine. Burr regretted this and walked toward Hamilton, but was urged from the field by his friend to prevent being recognized by the surgeon. Then as Hamilton was lying on the ground he said, "This is a fatal wound, doctor." Dr. Hosack didn't feel a pulse and decided to get him on the water as soon as possible. On the water he attempted to revive him, rubbed his face with spirits of hartshorn (like ammonia). Fifty yards from the shore Hamilton started breathing and said, "My vision is indistinct." He started to breathe normally again and got his sight back. When Dr. Hosack examined his side he pressed it and had to stop because it hurt Hamilton. Hamilton couldn't feel the lower half of his body. He went back home in agony and died the next day.

After the Duel
After the duel Hamilton was taken onto a boat. Fifty yards from the shore Hamilton said he couldn't feel the lower half of his body. This was a mortal wound. He went home in pain and died the next day. Burr was indicted for murder in New York and New Jersey but was never tried. He escaped to South Carolina, returned to Washington, and completed his term as the Vice President. He was arrested and tried for treason in August 1807 for trying to form a republic in the southwest with him as the leader. He was found "not guilty" and went away in 1808. He came back to New York in 1812 and resumed practicing law. He died in Port Richmond, Staten island, N.Y. September 14,1836.