Comments on the Military Affairs of this Country
Item
Type
Autograph Letter Signed
Title
Comments on the Military Affairs of this Country
Description
Hamtramck provides a detailed assessment of what should be done to imrprove the military service of the United States.
year created
1799
month created
10
day created
05
author
sent from location
Fort Fayette Pittsburgh
recipient
in collection
in publication
note
Cited in Hamilton to Hamtramck, 11/09/1799 and Hamilton to Hamtramck, 12/04/1799.
cited note
Cited document that was neither sent to nor from the War Office
notable person/group
Alexander Hamilton
John F. Hamtramck
culprit
Secretary of War [McHenry]
foreigners
notable location
Fort Fayette Pittsburgh
Detroit
war office
garrison of Michillimackinac
notable item/thing
discipline
fachines
saucissons, gabions
field fortifications
batteries
court martial
trial
commission
rules of arithmetic
circular letter
water transportation
clothing for the summer
fortified town
recruiting service
notable phrase
want of discipline in our troops is produced from the following causes
incompleteness of the regiments which for the want of men never allows an officer a command equal to his rank
the scattered, mutilated, and mixed situation of the regiments
these defects may be altogether attributed to the smallness of the establishment...appropriated to garrison an extensive frontier
to remedy these evils...keep the regiments together as much as the nature of the service would permit
the garrison should frequently be marched out a few miles, encamp, and be employed in making of fachines, saucissons, gabions, erect field fortifications, carry on lines of approaches, construct batteries &c
we have no military authors that treat on garrison duty except foreign ones
there is not two garrisons whose duty or police is alike
a practice of challenging members of a court martial has frequently given the cuprit an opportunity of procrastinating his trial
offenders frequently go unpunished to the great injury of the service
no persons ever ought to receive a commission without at least understanding the common rules of arithmetic and how to write
added to the other obstacles to our improvements, we may fairly count upon the number of miserable appointments that have been made
a great deficiency somewhere both respecting the quality of the clothing of the troops and the time of its arrival in this country
I wish to know whether Detroit does not come within the description of a fortified town
it has been my opinion that the inhabitants [of Detroi] were under the control of the commanding officer as far as related to the preservation of the town
foreigners who had served six and eight years in any of the regtiments of this country and who wanted to reenlist should be taken
document number
1799100560000
Item sets
Document instances
| In image | In source | Location in source | |
|---|---|---|---|
| [view document] (0 pages) | [no image] | Collection: Printed Versions | [unknown] |
| [view document] (0 pages) | [no image] | Publication: The Papers of Alexander Hamilton | [unknown] |
Document names
| Type | Name | Location | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Author | John Francis Hamtramck | Fort Fayette Pittsburgh | [n/a] |
| Recipient | Alexander Hamilton | [unknown] | [n/a] |