Philip Schuyler

For Schuyler's son, the U.S. Representative, seePhilip Jeremiah Schuyler.For Schuyler's great-grandson, seePhilip Schuyler (born 1836).For the Dutch-born colonist landowner, seePhilip Pieterse Schuyler.

"General Schuyler" redirects here. For other uses, seeGeneral Schuyler (disambiguation).

Philip Schuyler
Portrait by Jacob H. Lazarus after a miniature byJohn Trumbull
United States Senator fromNew York
In office March 4, 1797 – January 3, 1798
Preceded by	Aaron Burr
Succeeded by	John Sloss Hobart
In office July 16, 1789 – March 3, 1791
Preceded by	Office established
Succeeded by	Aaron Burr
1stSurveyor General of New York
In office March 30, 1781 – May 13, 1784
Preceded by	Office established
Succeeded by	Simeon De Witt
Personal details
Born	Philip Schuyler (1733-11-20)November 20, 1733 Albany,Province of New York,British America
Died	November 18, 1804(1804-11-18)(aged 70) Albany, New York,U.S.
Resting place	Albany Rural Cemetery
Political party	Pro-Administration, Federalist
Spouse	Catherine Van Rensselaer ​ ​ (m.1755; died 1803)​
Children	Angelica Elizabeth Peggy John Philip Rensselaer Cornelia Catherine
Parent(s)	Johannes Schuyler, Jr. Cornelia van Cortlandt
Relatives	SeeSchuyler family
Profession	Soldier,Statesman
Military service
Allegiance	Province of New York(1755-1767) United States(1767-1779)
Branch/service	New York Provincial Troops New York Colonial Militia Continental Army
Rank	Captain(NY) Colonel(NY) Major general(USA)
Battles/wars	French and Indian War Revolutionary War Battle of Saratoga

Philip John Schuyler(/ˈskaɪlər/;November 20, 1733 - November 18, 1804) was an American general in theRevolutionary Warand aUnited States SenatorfromNew York.He is usually known asPhilip Schuyler,while his son is usually known asPhilip J. Schuyler.

Born inAlbany,Province of New York,into the prosperousSchuyler family,Schuyler fought in theFrench and Indian War.He won election to theNew York General Assemblyin 1768 and to theContinental Congressin 1775. He planned theContinental Army's 1775Invasion of Quebec,but poor health forced him to delegate command of the invasion toRichard Montgomery.He prepared the Continental Army's defense of the 1777Saratoga campaign,but was replaced by Major GeneralHoratio Gatesas the commander of Continental forces in the theater. Schuyler resigned from the Continental Army in 1779.

Schuyler served in theNew York State Senatefor most of the 1780s and supported the ratification of theUnited States Constitution.He represented New York in the1st United States Congressbut lost his state's 1791 Senate election toAaron Burr.After a period in the state senate, he won election to the United States Senate again in 1797, affiliating with theFederalist Party.He resigned due to poor health the following year. He was the father ofElizabeth Schuyler Hamiltonand the father-in-law ofSecretary of the TreasuryAlexander Hamilton.

Early life

Philip John Schuyler was born on November 20 [O.S.November 9] 1733inAlbany, New York,toCornelia Van Cortlandt(1698–1762) andJohannes ( "John" ) Schuyler Jr.(1697–1741), the third generation of the DutchSchuyler familyin America. His maternal grandfather wasStephanus Van Cortlandt,the 17thMayor of New York City.

Before his father died on the eve of his eighth birthday, Schuyler attended the public school in Albany.Afterward, he was educated by tutors at theVan Cortlandt familyestate atNew Rochelle.Fluent in both Dutch and English from childhood,in 1748 he began to study with Reverend Peter Strouppe at the New Rochelle French Protestant Church, where he learned French and mathematics.While he was at New Rochelle he also joined numerous trade expeditions where he metIroquoisleaders and learned to speakMohawk.

Schuyler joined the British forces in 1755 during theFrench and Indian War,raised a provincial company, and was commissioned as itscaptainby his cousin, Lieutenant GovernorJames Delancey.In 1756, he accompanied British officer ColonelJohn Bradstreetto Oswego, where he gained experience as a quartermaster, which ended when the outpostfell to the French.Schuyler took part in the battles ofLake George,Oswego River,CarillonandFort Frontenac.

After the war, Bradstreet sent Schuyler to England to settle Bradstreet's reimbursement claims for expenses he incurred during the war effort, and he remained in England from 1760 to 1763.After returning toBritish Americahe took over management of several farms and business enterprises in upstate New York, including a lumber venture inSaratoga.In addition, Schuyler was responsible for constructing the first flax mill in the American colonies.Schuyler became colonel and commander of a militia district regiment in 1767.In 1768, he served as a member of the New York Assembly.

American Revolution

Schuyler was elected to theContinental Congressin 1775 and served until he was appointed a major general of theContinental Armyin June. General Schuyler took command of theNorthern Departmentand planned theInvasion of Quebec.His poor health required him to placeRichard Montgomeryin command of the invasion.In 1777, he again served in the Continental Congress.

Saratoga campaign

After returning to the command of the Northern Department in 1777, Schuyler was active in preparing a defense against theSaratoga 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 the summer of 1777, John Burgoyne marched his British force south from Quebec and through 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 GeneralSt. ClairabandonedFort Ticonderogain July, the Congress replaced Schuyler with GeneralHoratio Gates,who had accused Schuyler of dereliction of duty. In 1778, Schuyler andArthur St. Clairfaced a court of inquiry over the loss of Ticonderoga, and both were acquitted.

The British offensive was eventually stopped by Continental Army then under the command of Gates andBenedict Arnoldin theBattles 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 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.

Later career

As a prominent politician andPatriotleader in New York, Schuyler was the subject of an unsuccessful kidnapping attempt, which was plotted and led byJohn Walden Meyerson August 7, 1781. Schuyler was able to vacate his Albany mansion before the kidnappers arrived.Schuyler was an original member of the New YorkSociety of the Cincinnati.

After the war, he expanded his Saratoga estate to tens of thousands of acres, adding slaves, tenant farmers, a store, and mills for flour, flax, and lumber. He built several schooners on theHudson River,and named the firstSaratoga.According to the Schuyler Mansion Historic Society, there were around 40 slaves between the Albany and Saratoga estates.

He was a member of theNew York State Senatefrom 1780 to 1784, and at the same timeNew York State Surveyor Generalfrom 1781 to 1784.Afterwards he returned to the State Senate from 1786 to 1790, where he actively supported the adoption of theUnited States Constitution.

In1789,he was elected aU.S. Senator from New Yorkto theFirst United States Congress,serving from July 27, 1789, to March 3, 1791. After losing his bid for re-election in1791 to Aaron Burr,he returned to the State Senate from 1792 to 1797. In1797,he was selected again to the U.S. Senate and served in the5th United States Congressfrom March 4, 1797, until his resignation because of ill health on January 3, 1798.

Personal life

Further information:Livingston family

Schuyler's wife,Catherine Van Rensselaer,depicted in a portrait byWalter Robinson,c. 1795

According to the Schuyler Family's Bible, on September 7, 1755, he married Catherine Van Rensselaer (1734–1803) at Albany. In the Bible entry, he was called "Philip Johannes Schuyler" and she was called "Catherina Van Rensselaer". She was the daughter ofJohannes Van Rensselaer(1707/08–1783) and his first wife, Engeltje Livingston (1698–1746/47). Johannes was the grandson ofHendrick van Rensselaer(1667–1740). Engeltje was the daughter ofRobert Livingston the Younger.Philip and Catherine had 15 children together, eight of whom survived to adulthood, including:

• Angelica Schuyler(1756–1814), who marriedJohn Barker Church(1748–1818), later a BritishMP.
• Elizabeth Schuyler(1757–1854), who marriedAlexander Hamilton(1755/7–1804), later the firstUnited States Secretary of the Treasury.Elizabeth co-founded the first private orphanage in New York City.
• Margarita "Peggy" Schuyler(1758–1801), who marriedStephen Van Rensselaer III(1764–1839), 8thPatroon.
• Cornelia Schuyler (1761–1762), a twin to the first John Bradstreet.
• John Bradstreet Schuyler (1761–1761), a twin to Cornelia.
• John Bradstreet Schuyler (1763–1764).
• John Bradstreet Schuyler (1765–1795), who married Elizabeth Van Rensselaer (1768–1841), the sister ofStephen Van Rensselaer IIIwho married his sister Peggy.
• Philip Jeremiah Schuyler(1768–1835), who served in theU.S. House of Representativesand who married Sarah Rutsen; after her death in 1805, he married Mary Anna Sawyer.
• Triplets (1770–1770, Unbaptized).
• Rensselaer Schuyler (1773–1847), who married Elizabeth Ten Broeck, daughter of GeneralAbraham Ten Broeck.
• Cornelia Schuyler (1776–1808), who married Washington Morton.
• Cortlandt Schuyler (1778–1778).
• Catherine Van Rensselaer Schuyler (1781–1857), who married first, Samuel Malcolm (son ofWilliam Malcolm), and thenJames Cochran(1769–1848), her cousin and the son ofJohn Cochranand Gertrude Schuyler, Philip Schuyler's sister.

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

Schuyler died at theSchuyler Mansionin Albany on November 18, 1804, four months after his son-in-law,Alexander Hamilton,was killed ina dueland 2 days before his 71st birthday. He is buried atAlbany Rural CemeteryinMenands, New York.

• 
  Schuyler Mansion,which was constructed from 1761 to 1765
• 
  Schuyler's Country Houseused during theRevolution,inSchuylerville

Legacy

Statue in its former location outsideAlbany City Hall

Place names

Geographic locations and buildings named in Schuyler's honor include:

• Schuyler, New York
• Schuylerville, New York
• Schuyler County, New York,as well asSchuyler County, Illinois,andSchuyler County, Missouri
• Fort Schuyler,a militaryfortificationbegun in 1833 at the tip ofThroggs Neckinthe Bronx,which now houses theMaritime Industry Museumand theState University of New York Maritime College
• The Philip Schuyler Achievement Academy (named for Schuyler and his son Philip) in Albany, New York (name change expected in 2021)

Works of art

Schuyler was depicted byJohn Trumbullin his 1821 paintingSurrender of General Burgoyne,which hangs in theUnited States Capitol rotundain Washington, D.C.

Major General Philip Schuyler,a bronze statue by sculptorJ. Massey Rhind,was erected outsideAlbany City Hallin 1925. In June 2020, Albany mayorKathy Sheehansigned an executive order for the statue to be removed and given to a "museum or other institution for future display with appropriate historical context", due to Schuyler's ownership of slaves.The statue was requested the next day by the mayor ofSchuylerville, New York,who suggested that it be relocated toSchuyler House.In the early morning of June 10, 2023, the statue was removed from its pedestal to a trailer and transported to an undisclosed storage location.After the statue was removed on June 10, 2023, a time capsule was discovered underneath in a sealed metal box.

In popular culture

The non-speaking role of Philip Schuyler was originated by ensemble member Sydney James Harcourt in the 2015BroadwaymusicalHamilton,in which Schuyler's son-in-lawAlexander Hamiltonis thetitle character.

Further reading

• Barbagallo, Tricia (March 10, 2007)."Fellow Citizens Read a Horrid Tale"(PDF).New York Archives.Archived fromthe original(PDF)on 2009-05-19.Retrieved2008-06-04.
• Revolutionary Enigma: A Re-Appraisal of General Philip Schuyler of New Yorkby Martin H. Bush; 1969; (ISBN0-87198-080-0).
• Tuckerman, Bayard (1969) [1903].Life of General Philip Schuyler, 1733–1804.Books for Libraries Press.ISBN0-8369-5031-3.
• Proud Patriot: Philip Schuyler and the War of Independence, 1775–1783by Don Gerlach; 1987; Syracuse University Press; (ISBN0-8156-2373-9).
• The New York Civil Listcompiled by Franklin Benjamin Hough (pages 37f; Weed, Parsons and Co., 1858)
• The Real George Washingtonby the National Center for Constitutional Studies; 1991; 2009 reprintISBN0-88080-014-3
• McEneny Ingraham, Courtland D., "Philip Schuyler",Mount Vernon Digital Encyclopedia of George Washington,https:// mountvernon.org/library/digitalhistory/digital-encyclopedia/article/philip-john-schuyler-1733-1804/

External links

• United States Congress."Philip Schuyler (id: S000154)".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
• Finding Aid to Schuyler Family Collection, 1679–1823at theNew York State Library