Beschreibung:

WASHINGTON, GEORGE MANUSCRIPT LETTER SIGNED AS COMMANDER OF THE CONTINENTAL ARMY ("GO: WASHINGTON"), RESPONDING TO "THE ADDRESS OF THE CITIZENS OF NEW YORK, WHO HAVE RETURN'D FROM EXILE" 1 1/2 pages (12 7/8 x 7 7/8 in.; 326 x 199 mm) on a bifolium of laid paper (watermarked Britannia | jj), body of the letter in the hand of Richard Varick, [New York, 27 November 1783], directed "To the Citizens of New York who have returned from Exile," integral blank with a contemporary clerical transcription of the address to Washington that prompted the present response; central fold reinforced, just touching a letter of Washington's large, bold signature, some other fold repairs. General Washington graciously welcomes back to Manhattan the citizens "who from the noblest Motives have suffered a voluntary Exile of many Years, ... May the Tranquility of your City be perpetual. May the Ruins soon be repaired, Commerce flourish, Science be fostered; And all the civil and social Virtues be cherished, in the same illustrious Manner, which formerly reflected so much Credit on the Inhabitants of New York." Cornwallis's surrender at Yorktown may have ended the field campaigns of the Revolution, but it did not end the British occupation of New York City. Not until the Treaty of Paris was finally signed and ratified did Sir Guy Carleton begin to organize his Redcoats for withdrawal—an action which precipitated the flight of many American Loyalists to Nova Scotia. Evacuation Day came on 25 November: Carleton and his troops marched out of Manhattan, while General Washington, Governor Clinton, and their cohorts marched in, for New York City was being retaken not by the Continental Army but by the civil government of New York. Washington was greeted by cheering crowds. One woman who saw the General ride by, escorted by the Westchester Light Dragoons, later recalled, "We had been accustomed for a long time to military display in all the finish and finery of garrison life; the troops just leaving us were as if equipped for show, and with their scarlet uniforms and burnished arms, made a brilliant display; the troops that marched in, on the contrary, were ill-clad and weather beaten, and made a forlorn appearance; but then they were our troops, and as I looked at them, and thought upon all they had done and suffered for us, my heart and my eyes were full, and I admired and gloried in them the more. ... (quoted in Freeman, George Washington, 5:462–63). The Stars and Stripes were hoisted at Fort George on a flagpole that had been vandalized and greased by departing Loyalists. George Washington stood at the center of great celebration that continued for nearly a week. He received and replied to four other addresses welcoming and thanking him for his role in the liberation of New York. But the present reply by Washington is the most broad and inclusive, since the other four were sent to more narrow, specific groups or societies (the Ministers, Elders, Deacons, and Members of the Reformed German Congregation of New York; the Marine Society of New York; the Members of the Volunteer Association and other Inhabitants of the Kingdom of Ireland who have lately arrived in the City of New York; and the Freeholders and Inhabitants of Kings County). No original manuscript survives for these latter four responses by Washington. The laudatory address made to Washington by citizens returned from exile was transcribed onto to the conjugate blank of Washington's reply, and clearly demonstrates the enormous gratitude that civilian Americans had for the commander-in-chief: "To his Excellency George Washington Esquire, General and Commander in Chief of the Armies of the United States of America—The Address of the Citizens of New York, who have return'd from Exile, in behalf of themselves and their Suffering Brethren. ... At a moment when the arm of Tyranny is Yielding up its fondest usurpations; we hope the Salutations of long suffering Exiles, but now happy freemen, w