Speaker 1: You're listening to American Shadows, a production of I Heart
Speaker 1: Radio and Grim and Mild from Aaronmankey. America was in
Speaker 1: turmoil Britain's quest for territory. Britain's quest for territory and
Speaker 1: control prompted young George Washington to enlist. His formal education
Speaker 1: immediately afforded him the title of major, though he had
Speaker 1: no experience and little training. The French had claimed both
Speaker 1: Canada and the Great Lakes, Britain controlled colonies along the
Speaker 1: eastern seaboard. Both fought for control over the Upper Ohio
Speaker 1: River Valley. Still knew and without large forces, the colonists
Speaker 1: didn't farewell in territorial conflicts. By the time Washington was
Speaker 1: assigned to defend the area that now consists of Ohio, Pennsylvania,
Speaker 1: West Virginia, and Kentucky, the French and British both stood
Speaker 1: their ground, waiting for the other side attack first. On
Speaker 1: May seventeen fifty four, Washington and a regiment of roughly
Speaker 1: a hundred and fifteen men left their encampment. Their orders
Speaker 1: were to arrive in the Ohio Valley and assist in
Speaker 1: building a stronghold at transfourt and the men found the
Speaker 1: only thing more miserable than traveling through the dense woods
Speaker 1: under a pitch black sky was the unrelenting rain. But
Speaker 1: soon they would encounter worse. A messenger arrived with bad news.
Speaker 1: During their trip westward through the Appalachian Forest. The French
Speaker 1: had captured the fort. They had hundreds of soldiers and
Speaker 1: plenty of supplies. Washington and his troops were walking into
Speaker 1: a trap. Washington was young, just twenty one years old,
Speaker 1: and he had never been in combat. Determined to take
Speaker 1: back the fort, he ordered his men to press on.
Speaker 1: When the men finally reached an open clearing, the exhausted
Speaker 1: soldiers began setting up camp while Washington planned his attack.
Speaker 1: They hadn't made camp long when Tana Grisson arrived. He
Speaker 1: was the leader of the Ohio River Valley Hottnashawnee peoples
Speaker 1: called the Iroquois by the French. During his fifty some
Speaker 1: odd years, Tanna Grisson had become a skilled warrior, and
Speaker 1: he was called the half King by the British. He
Speaker 1: warned young Washington that the French already knew he was
Speaker 1: there and planned to attack. The French and British weren't
Speaker 1: the only ones in conflict over the area. Several other
Speaker 1: Native American groups were also looking to take over the valley.
Speaker 1: Tanna Grisson offered a few men to lead the British
Speaker 1: troops to a small glen near the mountain's crest, where
Speaker 1: the French search party made camp. Washington sent seventy five
Speaker 1: of the soldiers with the hon Na Shawnee, ordering them
Speaker 1: to stake out the area and await for their instruction.
Speaker 1: Washington and the other forty soldiers hiked seven hundred feet
Speaker 1: up Chestnut Mountain. The unrelenting rain made the trek across
Speaker 1: the ridge treacherous. By the time they reached the crest
Speaker 1: on they had lost seven men. Washington spotted the French
Speaker 1: about the same time that they spotted him. The French
Speaker 1: soldiers grabbed their muskets, but not fast enough. Within fifteen minutes,
Speaker 1: their corpses lay scattered through the camp. The hot Nashawnee
Speaker 1: warriors killed ten soldiers. One frenchman's head was placed on
Speaker 1: a pole for Washington. The attack was a victory, but
Speaker 1: until then, the British and the French had only been
Speaker 1: involved in a Cold War. His attack started both what
Speaker 1: we've come to call the French and Indian War. Here
Speaker 1: and the Seven Years War in Europe. Washington became the
Speaker 1: nation's first president and vowed to do better. Others followed
Speaker 1: a different plan. I'm Louren Vogelbaum. Welcome to American Shadows.
Speaker 1: Aaron Burr Senior and his wife led a charmed life.
Speaker 1: Esther Edwards Burgh was the daughter of an acclaimed theologian.
Speaker 1: Aaron Burr Senior's place as a prominent Presbyterian minister and
Speaker 1: president of the College of New Jersey later known as Princeton,
Speaker 1: also placed the couple in high standing. They had a daughter, Sarah,
Speaker 1: and welcomed their son into the world on February sixth
Speaker 1: of seventeen fifty six. Great things were expected of Aaron Jr.
Speaker 1: Tragedy struck a year later when Aaron Sr. Died Prominent
Speaker 1: or not, His death left the family scrambling financially. Esther's father,
Speaker 1: Jonathan Edwards, took over as the college's president and moved
Speaker 1: in with the family for economic support. A year later,
Speaker 1: Esther passed away. Jonathan died not long after. The children's guardian,
Speaker 1: William Shippin, took them in for a while before sending
Speaker 1: them to live with their uncle, Timothy Edwards in Philadelphia.
Speaker 1: Edwards was a successful lawyer and gave young Aaron the
Speaker 1: best tutors when he was old enough to enter school.
Speaker 1: That tutoring paid off. Aaron excelled in all his academics.
Speaker 1: At thirteen, he applied to Princeton. The seventeen hundreds boys
Speaker 1: attended college at an early age, though the most prodigious
Speaker 1: students didn't start until fourteen or fifteen. Some speculated that
Speaker 1: Aaron's family connections with the school had awarded him a spot,
Speaker 1: but he proved he could keep up with the best
Speaker 1: in his class. College suited him. At sixteen, Airing graduated
Speaker 1: with a Bachelor of Arts and continued his education in
Speaker 1: theology before studying law. However, there were no law schools
Speaker 1: in North America until the end of the seventeen hundreds.
Speaker 1: To become a lawyer, he had to serve as an apprentice. Eventually,
Speaker 1: Burr moved to Connecticut for his postgraduate studies. News of
Speaker 1: the revolution interrupted those plans for young men. War presented
Speaker 1: an opportunity if they survived. Burr saw the potential to
Speaker 1: make connections that would fast track his career. He put
Speaker 1: his studies on hold and enlisted in the Continental Army.
Speaker 1: Starting as a volunteer under Benedict Arnold, he rose through
Speaker 1: the ranks, becoming General Richard Montgomery's aide de camp, a
Speaker 1: position n akin to a senior officer and assistant. The
Speaker 1: troops marched to Quebec, though the invasion was not as
Speaker 1: successful as anyone had hoped. During a battle on December
Speaker 1: thirty one of seventeen seventy five, Montgomery was fatally shot
Speaker 1: and died in Burr's arms. The snow prevented Burr from
Speaker 1: dragging the general's body off the field for a proper burial.
Speaker 1: The skirmish also left Benedict Arnold injured. Without commanding officers,
Speaker 1: Burr found a new assignment with George Washington as his
Speaker 1: aide de camp. The two didn't get along well, and
Speaker 1: Burr was transferred to assist General Israel Puttnam. Under Putnam,
Speaker 1: Burr distinguished himself, becoming known for his leadership. He saved
Speaker 1: his entire brigade from capture in New York City. George
Speaker 1: Washington noted his bravery and promoted Burr to lieutenant colonel
Speaker 1: in seventeen seventy seven, placing three hundred men under his command.
Speaker 1: At the time, he was just twenty one years old,
Speaker 1: Burr and his men defended themselves against a British led
Speaker 1: raid in New Jersey, and during the winter of seventeen
Speaker 1: seventy seventeen seventy eight they protected a pass leading into
Speaker 1: Valley Forge. All was not victorious, though BurrH and his
Speaker 1: men suffered a defeat in the Battle of Monmouth in
Speaker 1: June of seventeen seventy eight. Burr readily supported General Charles Lee,
Speaker 1: which would end his military career. Lee had retreated from
Speaker 1: the battle, drawing ire and a reprimand from Washington. Burr
Speaker 1: cited health issues when he resigned from his command in
Speaker 1: March of seventeen seventy nine. He retained his hero status
Speaker 1: when he returned to studying law, though in seventeen two
Speaker 1: Burr was admitted to the Albany, New York bar. The
Speaker 1: year was busy and Burr made one more life change marriage.
Speaker 1: He had met Theodosia Bartow Prevost five years earlier in
Speaker 1: September of seventeen seventy seven. During the war, Burr had
Speaker 1: just led his men to victory against the British on
Speaker 1: the outskirts of Hackensack, New Jersey. Theodosia was busy raising
Speaker 1: her children while her husband, a British soldier, was stationed
Speaker 1: in Jamaica. Burr rented a room for her until he
Speaker 1: received orders to go to Valley Forge for the winter.
Speaker 1: The following year, they met again and engaged in a
Speaker 1: heated affair. When Burr left the military and returned to
Speaker 1: his studies, Theodosia kept up correspondence with both Burr and
Speaker 1: her husband. In Theodosia received a letter notifying her of
Speaker 1: her husband's death. She was now free to marry Burr.
Speaker 1: Their affair only became more scandalous when they announced plans
Speaker 1: to marry. Burr was ten years younger than Theodosia. The
Speaker 1: age difference didn't bother him, though his wife had experience
Speaker 1: and was highly intelligent. They moved to Albany to start
Speaker 1: Burr's legal career. As with everything he had done in life,
Speaker 1: Burr excelled at his new profession. Along with his success,
Speaker 1: he earned substantial fees. He in Theodosia furnished their home
Speaker 1: and style for the most fashionable clothes, and through lavish parties.
Speaker 1: By seventeen eighty three, the couple moved to New York City,
Speaker 1: where Burr became interested in politics. He was elected to
Speaker 1: the New York Assembly that same year. By seventeen eighty nine,
Speaker 1: he became New York's Attorney General. He also met another
Speaker 1: former soldier turned lawyer, Alexander Hamilton's, For a short time,
Speaker 1: they shared a law practice. Afterward, the two became adversaries
Speaker 1: both in and out of court. Though they remained cordial
Speaker 1: and professional, neither man liked the other. Then Burr won
Speaker 1: a seat in the U. S. Senate from one Phillips Skylar,
Speaker 1: pushing Hamilton's quiet dislike to open contempt. Skylar happened to
Speaker 1: be Hamilton's father in law, and Hamilton's considered Burr's victory
Speaker 1: an act of war. Even more irritating to Hamilton's was
Speaker 1: Burr's habit of alternating between the Republican Democrats to the Federalists.
Speaker 1: Burr had long been a mediator between the parties and
Speaker 1: found that changing sides benefited his career. Theodosia was proud
Speaker 1: of her husband and worked as hard as he did.
Speaker 1: She managed not only his law practice, but their affluent
Speaker 1: home in New York City and a summer residence in
Speaker 1: Westchester County where she could be closer to relatives. They
Speaker 1: had four children together, Sadly, only one survived, a daughter.
Speaker 1: Burr insisted share her mother's name. He noted on his
Speaker 1: daughter and ensured that she had an education equal to
Speaker 1: any man. Young Theodosia could read and write by her
Speaker 1: sixth birthday and remained a voracious reader throughout her youth,
Speaker 1: and Burr asked his daughter's governess to help establish a
Speaker 1: school that offered the same level of education to other girls.
Speaker 1: In sevente the elder Theodosia died from stomach cancer. Lost
Speaker 1: without the woman he considered his equal in all ways,
Speaker 1: Burr grieved deeply. Then father and daughter threw themselves into
Speaker 1: their work and promoted their ideals. Aside from women's education,
Speaker 1: Burr pushed to eliminate slavery and changed voting laws to
Speaker 1: allow those without land the right to vote. He also
Speaker 1: opened a bank that offered credit to the middle class,
Speaker 1: not just society's elite. Burr also fought for the freedom
Speaker 1: of the press, immigrants, and for non English descended citizens
Speaker 1: to run for office. In eighteen hundred, he returned to
Speaker 1: practicing law, taking on America's first murder trial. Perhaps surprisingly,
Speaker 1: he partnered with Hamilton on the case. Their client Levi
Speaker 1: Weeks had been accused of killing one, Elma Sands. The
Speaker 1: two had had a passionate relationship that raised a few eyebrows.
Speaker 1: To salvage their reputations, Levi told Alma's cousin that they
Speaker 1: were eloping. On December twenty second, the two left town.
Speaker 1: Elma's body was found on January second. The court room
Speaker 1: was packed during the two day trial. Burr and Hamilton
Speaker 1: destroyed Alma's reputation, and the jury took less than five
Speaker 1: minute to return a not guilty verdict. Burr decided to
Speaker 1: return to politics and run for president. Elections worked differently
Speaker 1: in the early eighteen hundreds. Whoever received the most votes
Speaker 1: became president. The candidate who received the second most votes
Speaker 1: became vice president, even if the two were members of
Speaker 1: different parties. Burr and Thomas Jefferson tied, leaving Congress to decide.
Speaker 1: An informant told Jefferson that Burr intended to steal the presidency.
Speaker 1: Though berb seemed content to become vice president, when Jefferson
Speaker 1: took office, he gave Burr little authority or power. Hamilton's
Speaker 1: reveled in Jefferson's distrust of Burr and happily recounted how
Speaker 1: the vice president had once stolen a political office in
Speaker 1: the Senate years before. In eighteen o four, Burr chose
Speaker 1: to run for governor of New York, but Hamilton's slander
Speaker 1: and rumor that Burr had run against Jefferson again for
Speaker 1: president caused Burr's popularity to fall. Burr was furious. He
Speaker 1: had dedicated years to service and study, and, in his opinion,
Speaker 1: Hamilton's pettiness had all but ended his political career. The
Speaker 1: tension brewing between the two men had come to a
Speaker 1: breaking point. The two adversaries exchanged angry letters. Burr accused
Speaker 1: Hamiltons of slander. Hamilton's tried to defend himself against the accusations,
Speaker 1: though he refused to stop publishing articles about Burr's shortcomings.
Speaker 1: Hamilton's insisted that Burr was both dangerous and opportunistic. He
Speaker 1: adamantly proclaimed that ending Burr's career was his moral and
Speaker 1: religious duty. Dueling is a way to resolve disagreements, was
Speaker 1: falling out of favor and had become illegal. However, Burr
Speaker 1: challenged Hamilton's, who readily accepted both men had been involved
Speaker 1: in duels in the past. They settled on July eleven,
Speaker 1: eighteen o four, are and met in the early hours
Speaker 1: of the Common Dueling Grounds in Weehawken, New Jersey. There
Speaker 1: are multiple accounts as to the events that took place,
Speaker 1: and some my witnesses claimed that both men fired. Others
Speaker 1: say that only one shot was fired that day. Hamilton's
Speaker 1: dueling assistant said that as the two faced off, Hamilton's
Speaker 1: cided that a duel was morally wrong after all, and
Speaker 1: intentionally missed. It was a common dueling practice to fire
Speaker 1: a shot into the ground or another location, preserving the
Speaker 1: men's honor while ending the duel, But Burr's dueling assistant
Speaker 1: said that Hamilton's simply missed, and that Burr returned fire.
Speaker 1: Either way, the bullet penetrated Hamilton's stomach and lodged near
Speaker 1: his spine. He died the following afternoon. Burr was charged
Speaker 1: with murder. The charges didn't stick, though his political allies
Speaker 1: pushed to have them all dropped. Burr's former title of
Speaker 1: vice president offered him immunity from prosecution until his term
Speaker 1: ended in eighteen o five. Fighting the charges took a toll,
Speaker 1: though Burr's reputation was in tatters and the legal fight
Speaker 1: had strained his finances, so Burr headed to the newly
Speaker 1: acquired U. S. Territory from the Louisiana Purchase, where he
Speaker 1: met with James Wilkerson, the U. S. Armies commander in chief,
Speaker 1: and the territories governor. Together, the men planned to take
Speaker 1: over the land and turn it into their own personal
Speaker 1: empire separate from the United States. As the army's commander,
Speaker 1: Wilkerson agreed to provide the manpower needed to seize the
Speaker 1: territory from the US and the indigenous peoples who actually
Speaker 1: lived there. Burr wrote to and met with contacts for support.
Speaker 1: While he was still the Vice President, Burr secretly contacted
Speaker 1: Anthony Mary, Britain's Minister to the US, and floated the
Speaker 1: idea that he could help them conquer the US Western Territory,
Speaker 1: but the British weren't interested in cooperating in this act
Speaker 1: of treason. When Burr's term as Vice president ended in
Speaker 1: eighteen five, he resumed visiting towns and cities to gain
Speaker 1: endorsement for his plans, including Bayan from a former U. S. Senator.
Speaker 1: One Herman Blenner Hassett, a wealthy lawyer and plantation owner,
Speaker 1: signed on becoming one of Burr's most trusted allies. Several
Speaker 1: influential and prominent New Orleans business owners wanted to take
Speaker 1: over Mexican Territory and add it to the Louisiana Territory.
Speaker 1: They agreed to support Burr's plan. If they succeeded, Burr
Speaker 1: would become the territories leader, perhaps emperor. But all his
Speaker 1: travels and meetings hadn't gone unnoticed, and by the end
Speaker 1: of eighteen o five, rumors of a revolution had spread
Speaker 1: to the East coast. A Philadelphia newspaper speculated that Burr
Speaker 1: and British allies planned to use military might to take
Speaker 1: Mexican Territory. They weren't far from the truth. Bird dismissed
Speaker 1: the rumors, though it wasn't long before he left for
Speaker 1: Blenner Hassett's private island in the Ohio River, where he
Speaker 1: and fellow co conspirators met in early eighteen o six.
Speaker 1: With the plan moving along just as expected, Burr wrote
Speaker 1: to Wilkerson in August. When he received that letter in October,
Speaker 1: the commander reconsidered his part and backed out. The consequences
Speaker 1: outweighed the rewards. A knowing Burr planned to go forward
Speaker 1: with treason, Wilkerson made his own plan to save himself
Speaker 1: from the fallout. Rumors of treason spread over the country
Speaker 1: and Europe. Courts in Kentucky, where Burr had been actively
Speaker 1: raised in support and supplies, charged Burr with treason three times,
Speaker 1: but he was acquitted in each instance. Then, on December nine,
Speaker 1: the militia found supplies that backed up the rumors aboard
Speaker 1: Burr's ships. By the time the militia descended on Blenner
Speaker 1: Hassett's Island mansion, the remaining co conspirators had already fled.
Speaker 1: After ransacking the home and not finding what or whom
Speaker 1: they had come for, they left confident that the scheme
Speaker 1: could still work. Burr arrived at Blenner Hassett's in late December.
Speaker 1: They had planned for a massive army. Instead, only a
Speaker 1: hundred men came. Undeterred, Bird led the men down river
Speaker 1: to buy you Pierre. There, Bird learned that Wilkerson had
Speaker 1: betrayed him, had written to Jefferson detailing Burr's plan. The
Speaker 1: local paper had even printed the letter he had written
Speaker 1: to Wilkerson. Though Burrd tried to flee, he was caught
Speaker 1: in Mobile, Alabama and returned to Richmond to stand trial
Speaker 1: for treason in eighteen o seven, but months later Burr
Speaker 1: was acquitted and walked out of court a free man.
Speaker 1: The verdict and Burr's actions and intentions are still discussed
Speaker 1: among scholars today. On January of eighteen o seven, Jefferson
Speaker 1: maintained that he believed Burr was guilty and announced that
Speaker 1: opinion to Congress. Burr and Jefferson didn't get along, but
Speaker 1: then Jefferson and Chief Justice John Marshall were also at odds.
Speaker 1: Marshall's subpoena President Jefferson insisting he delivered documents that Burr
Speaker 1: and his lawyers needed to prepare for the case. Jefferson's
Speaker 1: refusal to acknowledge the subpoena and sending of only a
Speaker 1: fraction of the requested documents hurt the prosecution worse. Witnesses
Speaker 1: for the defense testified that Burr was at least a
Speaker 1: hundred miles away from Glenner Hassett's mansion when troops first gathered.
Speaker 1: Marshall limited testimony to focus solely on the events on
Speaker 1: the island, no other letters, meetings, or evidence that the
Speaker 1: prosecution had was permitted. Treason was punishable by hanging, though
Speaker 1: the evidence collected and the letter that Burr had written
Speaker 1: to Wilkerson were damning. Supreme Court Justice John Marshall chose
Speaker 1: to stick to a more specific definition of treason, as
Speaker 1: stated in the Constitution. The clause reads, treason against the
Speaker 1: United States shall consist only in levying war against them,
Speaker 1: or in adhering to their enemies giving them aid in comfort.
Speaker 1: No person shall be convicted of treason unless on the
Speaker 1: testimony of two witnesses to the same overt act, or
Speaker 1: on confession in open court. Marshall interpreted that, since no
Speaker 1: two witnesses could attest the Burr was present when the
Speaker 1: troops gathered, he had not declared war on the United
Speaker 1: States and was innocent. Jefferson moved to have Marshall impeached.
Speaker 1: Burr's acquittal came at a cost, though his reputation followed
Speaker 1: him and his political career was over. Several states brought
Speaker 1: additional charges against him. Burr left the United States, claiming
Speaker 1: that he feared for his life. While in Europe, he
Speaker 1: unsuccessfully tried to persuade Britain and France to take part
Speaker 1: in more plots to seize land in North America. In
Speaker 1: eighteen twelve, another war with Britain seemed inevitable. Burr returned
Speaker 1: to New York and resumed his legal career. Though he
Speaker 1: found clients, he had become debt ridden. He lived a
Speaker 1: solitary life for years until meeting the wealth best widow
Speaker 1: in America. Burr courted and hastily married Eliza Bowen Jumal
Speaker 1: in three Four months later, Jumal filed for divorce, claiming
Speaker 1: adultery and that her husband had mismanaged and frivolously spent
Speaker 1: much of her inheritance. Jumal hired the best lawyer from
Speaker 1: a prominent family of lawyers. The young man was more
Speaker 1: than happy to take her case, and he and Burr's
Speaker 1: attorney battled out the divorce for nearly three years. Burr
Speaker 1: died shortly after hearing the verdict on September eighteen thirty six,
Speaker 1: and though he never said it, that young lawyer had
Speaker 1: to have felt some sense of justice in winning that
Speaker 1: case against the man who had shot and killed his father,
Speaker 1: Alexander Hamilton Sr. Many years before. There's more to the story.
Speaker 1: Stick around after this brief sponsor break to hear all
Speaker 1: about it. Life for farmers is often hard, and conditions
Speaker 1: in the seventeen eighties in western and central Massachusetts didn't
Speaker 1: make it any easier. They lived in isolation and suffered
Speaker 1: from the lack of assistance when their crops failed or
Speaker 1: falling prices cut into their already meager profits. Jefferson's forward
Speaker 1: facing picture of near utopia in the United States didn't
Speaker 1: match reality. While other state governments passed pro debtor laws
Speaker 1: that forgave debt in some instances, Massachusetts did not. Without
Speaker 1: such protection, the government seized farmers land and threw them
Speaker 1: into debtors prisons. Under the article's confederation, the central government's
Speaker 1: power was limited. At the time of its writing, the
Speaker 1: American colonists were in the midst of a war against
Speaker 1: a country that they believed ruled unfairly than with tyranny,
Speaker 1: so the documents creators ensured that the new central government
Speaker 1: could not directly tax its citizens, but states could. A
Speaker 1: Massachusetts raised property taxes to pay its creditors farmers, most
Speaker 1: of them revolutionary veterans, had very little currency, and mostly
Speaker 1: they bartered with other locals for goods and services, and
Speaker 1: most of the veterans had been stiffed for their amount
Speaker 1: of work and service during the war. Some weren't paid
Speaker 1: at all. Unless they were wounded. They didn't get a pension.
Speaker 1: The increase in taxes was more than they or their
Speaker 1: farms could stand. In August of seventy six, a band
Speaker 1: of farmers drafted a document detailing their grievances and sent it,
Speaker 1: along with suggestions to Boston's legislature. The letter was promptly ignored.
Speaker 1: In Northampton, Captain Joseph Hines took a different approach. He
Speaker 1: led hundreds of farmers to the local court house in protest.
Speaker 1: They blocked the doors, preventing judges from entering. Before long,
Speaker 1: several hundred more people gathered in solid air. Judges and
Speaker 1: Worcester met the same resistance. The judges called in the
Speaker 1: militia to disband the rebels. To their surprise, many of
Speaker 1: the soldiers joined in on the protest. Their new leaders
Speaker 1: had employed the same method of government that they had
Speaker 1: fought to escape. In Pelham, farmer Daniel Shay was fed up.
Speaker 1: He had bravely fought at bunker Hill and others, and
Speaker 1: now he couldn't afford the taxes on the land that
Speaker 1: he had worked hard to buy. He joined the farmer's Rebellion.
Speaker 1: Shea's reputation and bravery earned him respect from the other farmers. Initially,
Speaker 1: he refused to lead them, but eventually agreed. He and
Speaker 1: the others marched to the courthouse, beating drums and waiting
Speaker 1: weapons until midnight. He also led a group of six
Speaker 1: hundred to Springfield in September of seventeen. He wanted to
Speaker 1: negotiate with General William Shephard to allow the protest and
Speaker 1: in return the group would allow the courts to stay open,
Speaker 1: But as it turned out, the court was still forced
Speaker 1: to close due to the lack of willing jurors. While
Speaker 1: there were other factions of the rebellion, Boston's elite believed
Speaker 1: Daniel Shay had orchestrated and led the entire thing. Attentions
Speaker 1: began to rise. Former artillery commander Henry Knox wrote to
Speaker 1: George Washington with his concerns over the growing revolution. Samuel
Speaker 1: Adams said that they should do what England had done
Speaker 1: to rebels, execute them. Still, the farmers had allies in
Speaker 1: high places. Chief Justice William Whiting claimed that members of
Speaker 1: the state legislature were building their wealth off of the
Speaker 1: impoverished farmers. Realizing the protesters would not stop the legislation
Speaker 1: offered leniency to those struggling to stay afloat. They also
Speaker 1: offered rebels amnesty. There was a catch, though, the rebels
Speaker 1: had to take an oath of loyalty. A few might
Speaker 1: have known that a recently passed bill allowed sheriff's immunity
Speaker 1: if they happened to kill rebels, and called for stricter
Speaker 1: punishment for anyone arrested. When the dust settled, the courts
Speaker 1: at at another bill ordering the death penalty for any
Speaker 1: militiamen who joined forces with the rebel farmers men. In January,
Speaker 1: Boston business owners funded Governor Bowden's private army. The army's
Speaker 1: mission was to end the rebellion. The governor called upon
Speaker 1: the public to join the mission to end the treason
Speaker 1: US protests. In response, Say and the other factions elected
Speaker 1: to raid Springfield's arsenal on September twenty five of that year.
Speaker 1: General Shepherd believed that the rebels wanted to overthrow the government.
Speaker 1: At this point, he anticipated their arrival and called General
Speaker 1: ben Lincoln from Worcester to assist. When the General saw
Speaker 1: the one thousand, two hundred approaching rebels, they opened fire,
Speaker 1: killing two and injuring another twenty. The insurgents fled, but
Speaker 1: sent a message to the army demanding the bodies of
Speaker 1: their fallen comrades. The generals remained unrelenting, forcing the rebels
Speaker 1: to retreat. Shay and his wife took refuge with Revolutionary
Speaker 1: War leader Ethan Allen. Later in new Governor John Hancock
Speaker 1: pardoned most of the rebels. He pardoned Daniel Shay, and
Speaker 1: new legislation put a cap on debts, cut taxes, and
Speaker 1: eased the farmers economic burdens. American Shadows is hosted by
Speaker 1: Lauren Vogelbaum. This episode was written by Michelle Muto, researched
Speaker 1: by Ali Steed, and produced by Miranda Hawkins and Trevor Young,
Speaker 1: with executive producers Aaron Mankey, Alex Williams, and Matt Frederick.
Speaker 1: To learn more about the show, visit Grim and Mild
Speaker 1: dot com. From more podcasts from iHeart Radio, visit the
Speaker 1: iHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.