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1755 Extraordinary Content French and Indian War Letter Signed by Governor Stephen Hopkins of Rhode Island Regarding Raising More Men to Reinforce and Strengthen the Expedition Against Crown Point Per Braddock’s Defeat, This News Reported will have a Major Impact on the Future Career of a Young Lieutenant Colonel George Washington then Commanding the Virginia Regiment Serving with Bradford

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STEPHEN HOPKINS (March 7, 1707 - July 13, 1785). Founding Father of the United States; Signer of the Declaration of Independence and the Continental Association; Four-Time Governor of the Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, a Chief Justice of the Rhode Island Supreme Court; Member of First Continental Congress; Chief Justice of the Rhode Island Supreme Court; First Chancellor of Brown University; Speaker of the Rhode Island General Assembly; Author of the First Anti-Slavery Law in the United States.

August 2nd, 1755-Dated, French & Indian War Highly Important Content Manuscript Letter Signed, “Steph. Hopkins Govr.” of Rhode Island, being an Urgent Letter of disastrous military news of the Defeat and Death of General Braddock and warning that: “more Men be raised to reinforce and strengthen the Expedition against Crown Point,” Display Framed, Choice Very Fine. This Letter is in very choice quality, being fresh and clean, extremely well written and easily readable in rich brown ink on bright lightly transmittal folded laid period paper. The signature, “Steph. Hopkins Govr.” is even bolder deeper brown and more vivid measuring over 2,75” long at the letters conclusion. The devastating military news reported in this Letter will have a major impact on America’s future, and on the future of a young 20 Year-Old Lieutenant Colonel in the Virginia Regiment ... George Washington.

The Letter and its reply on the verso are archivally professionally matted and framed, shown under special UV Plexiglas, the letter measuring 11” x 7.75” being beautifully framed with a vintage appearance to fully 23.5” x 13.5” with a 5.5” x 4.5” reproduced image of Stephen Hopkins below, as part of the display. The reverse side is also matted with UV Plexiglas to show two cutouts. One side has the response from the Kings County Sheriff, signed “Benj. Brown Sher”. The second being a fully typed transcription, made fully viewable to read, of both Hopkin’s letter of August 2nd, 1755 and its response dated August 7th, 1755. Overall, a most impressive, quality framed display. This exceptional content Letter reports a major military disaster, and that General Braddock is dead. It reads, in full:

“RHODE ISLAND (Paper Seal Intact) -- To the Sheriff of the County of Kings County or to his Deputy - Greeting.

Whereas I have received Letters of Great Consequence from Governor Shirley, Lieutenant Governor Phips, Lieutenant Governor Lawrence, and Lieutenant Governor Delancey, the two first importing a Request that more Men be raised to reinforce and strengthen the Expedition against Crown Point, and the last containing an Account of the entire Defeat and Death of General Braddock, many of his Officers and Men, with the Loss of the Artillery, Provisions, and Military Stores, which together with several other Matters of great Importance, lately come to my Hands, have made it necessary to call the General Assembly together, before the Time to which it is adjourned, in order that they may have the Knowledge and Consideration of those Things, as soon as Possible.

THESE are therefore in the Name of George the Second, by the Grace of God, King of Great Britain and soforth, to Require you immediately on Sight Hereof, to warn and and give notice to all the Members of the General Assembly, within your County to meet together at the Colony House in Newport, on Monday the Eleventh Day of this Instant, August, at three of the clock in the Afternoon, in order to take into Consideration such Matters as I may then lay before them, and also to dispatch the other Business now lying before them. You are also further required to give Public Notice to all Persons within your said County, who had Business before the General Assembly, to be done at their Meeting on the third Monday of this Month, that they attend on the said Eleventh Day, for the Doing thereof.

GIVEN under my Hand and Seal at Providence the Second Day of August, in the Twenty ninth Year of his said Majesty's Reign, One Thousand Seven Hundred and Fifty Five. --- (Signed) STEPHEN HOPKINS Govr.”

(A Response is Handwritten on the reverse side of this Letter, viewed through the Plexiglas,) Reading, in full:

“Kings County August the 7th 1755 --- In obedence in this warrant I have Notified all the Members of the General Assembly in the County aforesaid to meet together at the Colony House in Newport on the Eleventh Day of this Instant August at three of the Clock in the afternoon, I have also Given Publick Notice to all persons within the County of Kings County who had Business Before the General Assembly to be Done on the third Monday of this Month that they attend on the Said Eleventh Day for the Doing thereof. -- (Signed) Benj, Brown Sher(riff)”

PROPERTY FROM THE COLLECTION OF

AMBASSADOR J. WILLIAM MIDDENDORF II


The defeat of General Edward Braddock and his soldiers during the French and Indian War (1754-1763) was a significant event that occurred near present-day Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

In 1755, during the early stages of the French and Indian War, British General Edward Braddock was dispatched to North America with the goal of capturing the French Fort Duquesne (located at the confluence of the Allegheny and Monongahela Rivers, where modern-day Pittsburgh stands) and securing control of the Ohio River Valley.

General Braddock led a force of British regulars and colonial militia, along with a contingent of Native American allies, on a grueling march from eastern Pennsylvania towards Fort Duquesne. On July 9, 1755, as Braddock's army approached Fort Duquesne, they were ambushed by a combined force of French soldiers, Canadian militia, and Native American warriors. The ambush took place near the Monongahela River, about ten miles from the fort.

The ambush was devastating for Braddock's forces. The British soldiers, who were accustomed to European-style warfare with lines and formations, were ill-prepared for the guerrilla tactics employed by their adversaries.

General Braddock himself was mortally wounded in the battle, and his forces suffered heavy casualties. The British were forced to retreat in disarray. The survivors fled back towards eastern Pennsylvania, leaving behind many of their wounded and supplies. The defeat at the Battle of the Monongahela was a significant setback for British efforts to control the Ohio River Valley.

Colonel George Washington was with the Virginia militia as part of General Edward Braddock's expedition during the French and Indian War. At the time of Braddock's campaign in 1755, George Washington held the rank of lieutenant colonel in the Virginia Regiment, a Provincial force raised by the colony of Virginia to support British military efforts in North America.

George Washington played a significant role in Braddock's expedition as one of his Aides-de-camp, a position that involved advising the general and assisting in the coordination of military operations. Despite his relative youth (Washington was in his early 20s at the time), he had gained valuable military experience and earned a reputation for leadership and bravery during earlier conflicts, including the “Battle of Fort Necessity” in 1754.

During the “Battle of the Monongahela” on July 9, 1755, Washington demonstrated courage and resilience in the face of adversity. Despite the chaos and confusion of the ambush, he remained calm and helped organize the retreat of Braddock's shattered forces.

George Washington's actions during the campaign, including his efforts to evacuate wounded soldiers and protect the rear guard, earned him praise from his contemporaries and helped solidify his reputation as a capable military leader.

The experience gained by Colonel George Washington during Braddock's expedition would prove invaluable in his later military career, including his leadership of the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War, as his experience in that campaign was formative and underscored the need for more flexible and adaptive military strategies.
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