Last week we covered the final breakup of the Continental Army in 1783. During that final year, the officers and men not only suffered terrible deprivation, but also came to understand that promises made during the war involving pay, pensions, land grants, and other benefits, might not be kept. The men were also looking for a way to maintain the bonds they had created during the war.
Formation
In the spring of 1783, many of the officers formed the Society of the Cincinnati. The Society is named after the Roman leader: Lucius Quinctius Cincinnatus. According to his legend Cincinnatus was a farmer who left his farm to accept an appointment as a leader of Rome during a war. After victory in battle and restoring peace, Cincinnatus restored power to the Senate and returned to his farm. This personified the ideal of the civilians who had taken up service during the war, but were expected to return to civilian life and make sure all political power remained with the civilian government when the war ended.
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| Cincinnati Badge |
The first organizational meeting took place on May 10 at the Temple of Virtue, the same building that the Continental Army had built as a meeting hall only a few months earlier, and where General Washington gave his famous Newburgh Address only a few weeks prior. General Friedrich von Steuben presided as the senior officer at the meeting for the formation of the Society.
At the meeting, the officers present voted for Steuben, General Knox, Knox’s aide-de-camp Major Samuel Shaw, and General Jedediah Huntington to form a committee to put together a formal resolution about the society to circulate to the rest of the army.
Three days later, the officers met at Steuben’s headquarters. The committee formally adopted the resolution thus creating the Society on May 13.
The society established itself with three basic goals in mind: 1) to protect the rights that they had secured during the war, 2) to promote the continuation of a union between the states, and 3) to assist members in need, as well as their widows and orphans.
Membership would be limited to officers who were still serving at the war’s end, or who had served at least three years during the war in the Continental Army or Navy. It was not open to enlisted men. It was not open to officers who had served only in state armies or militia. The Society did permit certain high ranking officers in the French Army and Navy to join the society as well.
Officers who had died during the war were granted membership. Their membership would be inherited by their oldest son. Going forward, only the oldest son of any member of the Society could inherit membership. A society would be set up in each state, with states given the authority to subdivide into districts within their state. Each state society would meet annually and set its own rules. They would have the power to expel any member who acted dishonorably or against the interests of the community. There would also be a national or general meeting every three years that all the states would attend. The General Society would elect officers and also establish a fund for operations.
There was also a provision for honorary memberships to men who had proved eminent in their abilities and patriotism in some way other than service as a Continental officer. Honorary memberships, however, could not be inherited, and were limited to one quarter of the total membership.
Each officer agreed to donate one month’s pay to their state society, so that the society could establish a fund and use the interest to cover any operating costs. Anyone was also free to make donations to the state society or the national one. Since none of the officers had actually been paid, they could pay the signup fee by directing the paymaster general to direct one month’s worth of pay to the Society once the army was ready to make those payments.
They also established a badge to identify members, a gold medal on a blue ribbon with white edging. The medal would depict Cincinnatus receiving his powers on one side, and returning to his farm on the other side. This was later amended so that there would be an eagle hanging on the ribbon, with the images of Cincinnatus appearing on the chest and back of the eagle.
The officers made an effort to get as many of their fellow officers to join as quickly as possible, spreading word of the Society to all of the regiments to establish a society in each state. They had to work quickly. The Society only really began recruitment after its organizational meeting on May 13. On June 1, Washington announced that most of the army would be going home on furlough.
As the army was breaking up, the popular idea of the Society spread through the officers. A committee consisting of Generals Heath, Von Steuben, and Knox met with General Washington to request that he lead the Society. Washington agreed. As second in command of the army, General Heath reached out to armies still in place in other parts of the country to inform them of the new Society. General Alexander McDougall was elected Treasurer General, and Henry Knox as Secretary General.
The establishment of the Society nationwide grew quickly. By November, there were state committees set up in all 13 states.
The group prepared to hold its first general meeting or all state leaders in May, 1784. Almost all top officers who were eligible for membership in the society joined. Among the founding members were George Washington, the Marquis de Lafayette, John Paul Jones, Alexander Hamilton and Aaron Burr, Generals Anthony Wayne, Arthur St. Clair, Nathanael Greene, Henry Knox, Benjamin Lincoln, Daniel Morgan, Lachlan McIntosh, Baron von Steuben, and Horatio Gates. By the 1784 national meeting about half of the 5500 former Continental officers who were eligible for membership had joined and paid their membership fees.
Opposition
Almost from the beginning, the Society had its critics. General Heath, who had participated in the establishment of the Society, expressed some concerns about it. Many of the comparisons to knightly orders in Europe made it seem unamerican and perhaps contrary to republican values. Colonel Timothy Pickering, who was the army’s quartermaster general, also expressed concerns about the elitist nature of the society. Despite their reluctance, both men joined the Society.
There had never been a veterans organization before, certainly not one at the national level. The only historical reference people had were European orders where leading warriors formed orders of knighthood after serving together in battle. These orders were seen as the basis of nobility and aristocracy. After all, aristocrats were descended primarily from military leaders of the past who had performed some valuable service to the king.
Many of the features of the Society of the Cincinnati shared features with the knightly orders of Europe. The creation of such a group in America seemed, to many, to threaten the ideals of an equal citizenry without separate classes defined by accident of birth. Aristocratic orders controlled Europe and were seen as a tool to keep commoners down. That was antithetical to the goals of the Revolution. For many Americans who had not served, the Society looked like it would become the tool of a counter-revolution that would undermine and eventually end the universal freedoms for which they had fought and sacrificed.
By the fall of 1783, the larger civilian population was learning about the Society and expressing its concerns. A town meeting in Connecticut feared that the organization would be used to lobby on behalf of veterans benefits, which would mean they would have to pay higher taxes to support them. General Arthur St. Clair wrote that he delayed forming a Pennsylvania chapter for fear that just creating it would have a negative impact on state considerations of passing veterans benefits.
In October, South Carolina Judge Aedanus Burke published a Pamphlet: Considerations on the Society or Order of the Cincinnati. Burke expressed concerns that a hereditary organization of military leaders was the establishment of a class of nobles that threatened the idea of a democratic republic. This permanent organization of military leaders and their descendants would threaten the idea of a government established by and for all the people. It would establish an aristocratic class.
Burke’s pamphlet, which was originally targeted simply for South Carolina politics, was soon republished across the continent. Elbridge Gerry, a delegate to the Continental Congress from Massachusetts wrote numerous letters to other leaders, saying he believed that the Society would become an instrument of tyranny. Others, including John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, and John Jay, were all highly critical of what Franklin called the “hereditary knights” of America.
Public editorials and articles attacked the society. One accused it of establishing a parallel power structure that was independent of elected government and one that would soon dominate the political system. In February, the Massachusetts legislature began an inquiry to consider measures against any plans to “promote undue distinction among the citizens of this free state and tending to establish an hereditary nobility.” A month later, the committee report condemned the Society. South Carolina Governor Benjamin Guerard expressed similar concerns, telling a joint session of the legislature that if left unchecked, the Society would endanger the success of the revolution.
Washington Concerned
The wave of criticism over the Society of the Cincinnati seemed to take some officers by surprise. George Washington, who certainly kept up with the editorials and pamphlets on this topic, worried about his own reputation. He had agreed to lead the Society, thinking it was an appropriate way for the officers to maintain the fraternal bonds they had established during their time in the army through a private organization. He certainly did not want to be seen as leading an organization that threatened the results of the Revolution.
Washington wrote privately to many men whose opinions he valued, including Thomas Jefferson. In response, Jefferson told him that the popular opinion believed that the Society was unconstitutional and subversive of the ideals of equality and liberty in the young republic. He thought it should be abolished and recommended that Washington separate himself from it.
Personally, Washington was torn. He was concerned about his reputation as a stalwart in favor of republicanism. He did not want to be seen as a threat to that, even though he was not convinced the Society actually represented any such threat. Beyond that, Washington did not want to resign, which might be seen as a betrayal to his fellow officers.
Washington remained as leader of the Society. He traveled to Philadelphia to attend the first general meeting in May 1784. At the meeting, Washington proposed a series of radical changes.
He called for the removal of anything political in its writings. The Society should be seen as a fraternal organization. Its involvement in politics, or even potential involvement, was a big source of criticism.
It should also discontinue the idea of hereditary memberships. The hereditary nature of the society led to the comparisons to hereditary aristocracies in Europe. There was no need for that. The society should also stop admitting honorary members. Allowing powerful political figures to join the organization only heightened fears that it was becoming some sort of shadow government outside of elected leaders.
The Society should also reject donations from non-citizens. Fears that outside interests might try to gain influence in America through such donations had been another expressed concern. Any funds raised to assist veterans in need should be put in the hands of the state legislature for dissemination. The creation of some sort of private pension system could be seen as a way to maintain influence through the use of the money.
Washington also called for an end to the general meeting. In the original plans, the various state organizations would meet at an national event every three years, this being the first. The national meetings made the organization appear to be more powerful and would probably only end up sowing dissension between the various state organizations.
The General Meeting began on May 4 at City Tavern in Philadelphia. On the second day, Washington presented his recommendations on reform to the entire group of those meeting. The leaders were reluctant to make the changes, but Washington suggested that he might resign if the changes were not made. The group met in committee for about a week before presenting their response. The members adopted some of the reforms but seemed to want to water them down. Again, Washington pressed the issue, not wanting to be part of a group that would be seen as controversial and a threat to the principles of the Revolution.
By the end of the two week meeting, the assembly adopted Washington’s reforms and sent them to the state committees. Since the men at this meeting were the leaders of the state committees one would have thought that would have been the end of it.
As Washington had hoped, his reforms did seem to reduce national criticism of the Society. However, most of the state committees ended up not adopting the reforms. The leaders did not want to make the changes and only agreed to carry them back to their state committees out of deference to Washington. In the end, the society ended up continuing much as it had originally been established.
Some states agreed not to accept foreign donations. Originally, the members expected to wear their medals at all times. This changed so that they were only worn on special occasions. Overall though, the controversial features such as hereditary memberships, national meetings, and private funds largely continued with all the state societies.
Criticism Continues
Failure to enact these reforms only invited more attacks on the Society. Some states considered adding a prohibition that members of the Society would be ineligible to run for public office. In 1785, John Adams announced that he was considering retiring from public life because he believed the Society threatened to transform the republic into an aristocracy, thus destroying everything he had worked for.
That same year, The French Count de Mirabeau published a revised version of Burke’s critical pamphlet, including new criticisms by Franklin and others. It reaffirmed the idea that the Cincinnati were attempting to transform America into a hereditary aristocracy. Thomas Jefferson publicly joined the argument a year later, writing that the Society posed a threat to the political stability of the United States.
Some critics believed that the Society was part of a French plot to spread its influence in America. The Society had a chapter of French officers who met in France. The King of France permitted officers to wear the order of the Society of the Cincinnati on their uniforms. Although France had been a close ally of America during the war, many American leaders were still wary of French influence on America and the dangers of a monarchical government’s influence on the new republic. The Cincinnati were accused of being a tool of that influence.
Burke, whose pamphlet had been the first very public criticism, continued to rail against the Cincinnati. He argued that the attempt to establish itself as a fraternal and charitable organization was simply a front. Its secret hidden purpose was the establishment of a noble order that would rule over America. As a hereditary peerage, it would slowly and secretly destroy the democratic reforms of the revolution and establish a class of nobles who would become quite separate from the commoners who made up the bulk of the population.
The Confederation Congress, which contained members opposed to the society, as well as society members, refused to recognize the Society in any way. In a 1785 land ordinance for making land available in the Ohio territory, an initial draft prohibited bearers of hereditary titles from residing in Ohio. The prohibition was dropped before the final version passed, but it did show that even Congress had grave concerns about a potential threat
The controversy remained strong enough in 1787 that when it came time to hold the second triennial meeting in Philadelphia, Washington sent his regrets. Always trying to avoid controversy or insulting either side, Washington used vague excuses of his health and personal finances for not attending. He remained an officer in the state society and as titular president of the general meeting, but at the same time seemed to want to distance his association with it.
As consideration of government reforms came out, particularly consideration of a new Constitution in 1787, many critics accused the Society of the Cincinnati of being a conspiratorial force that planned to use such reforms to take over the new country. It was only after the actual establishment of the new Constitution, that many of the fears of the Cincinnati creating a new aristocracy in America finally began to fade.
Next week, we take a look at the state of slavery in America at the end of the war.
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Next Episode 333 Slavery and Revolution (Available November 3, 2024)
Previous Episode 331 Washington Goes Home
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Further Reading
Websites
Society of the Cincinnati: https://www.societyofthecincinnati.org
Society of the Cincinnati: https://www.mountvernon.org/library/digitalhistory/digital-encyclopedia/article/society-of-the-cincinnati
George Washington and the Society of the Cincinnati: https://washingtonpapers.org/resources/articles/george-washington-and-the-society-of-the-cincinnati
Considerations on the Society or Order of the Cincinnati (1783), by Aedanus Burke: https://quod.lib.umich.edu/cgi/t/text/text-idx?c=evans;cc=evans;rgn=main;view=text;idno=N14115.0001.001
Benjamin Franklin and the Society of Cincinnati https://www.societyofthecincinnati.org/benjamin-franklin-and-the-society-of-the-cincinnati
Once in Every Three Years: The Triennial Meetings of the Society of the Cincinnati https://www.societyofthecincinnati.org/once-in-every-three-years-the-triennial-meetings-of-the-society-of-the-cincinnati
“From George Washington to Thomas Jefferson, 8 April 1784,” Founders Online, National Archives, https://founders.archives.gov/documents/Washington/04-01-02-0204
“To George Washington from Thomas Jefferson, 16 April 1784,” Founders Online, National Archives, https://founders.archives.gov/documents/Washington/04-01-02-0215
“I. Observations on the Institution of the Society, c.4 May 1784,” Founders Online, National Archives, https://founders.archives.gov/documents/Washington/04-01-02-0236-0002
“Appendix V: To the State Societies of the Cincinnati, 15 May,” Founders Online, National Archives, https://founders.archives.gov/documents/Washington/04-01-02-0236-0008
“II. Winthrop Sargent’s Journal, 4–18 May,” Founders Online, National Archives, https://founders.archives.gov/documents/Washington/04-01-02-0236-0003
Free eBooks
(from archive.org unless noted)
[Archive.org has been offline due to hacking problems, therefore, I've been unable to find new resources there for this episode].
The Institution and Proceedings of the Society of the Cincinnati, Boston: Thomas B. Wait and Co. 1812 (Google Books).
Fostern, Francis Apthorp The Institution of the Society of the Cincinnati, Boston: Caustic-Flaflin Co. 1923.
Books Worth Buying
(links to Amazon.com unless otherwise noted)*
Hünemörder, Markus The Society of the Cincinnati: Conspiracy and Distrust in Early America, Berghahn Books, 2006.
Moore, Alexander The Fabric of Liberty: The Society of the Cincinnati of the State of South Carolina, Home House Press, 2012.
Myers, Minor Liberty without Anarchy: a History of the Society of the Cincinnati, Univ. of Vriginia Press, 1983.
* As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
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