Philip Schuyler

For the U.S. Representative, see Philip Jeremiah Schuyler.

Philip Schuyler
United States Senator from New York
In office July 16, 1789 – March 3, 1791
Preceded by	(none)
Succeeded by	Aaron Burr
In office March 4, 1797 – January 3, 1798
Preceded by	Aaron Burr
Succeeded by	John Sloss Hobart
Personal details
Born	November 20, 1733 Albany, New York, USA
Died	November 18, 1804(1804-11-18) (aged 71) Albany, New York, USA
Political party	Pro-Administration, Federalist
Spouse	Catherine Van Rensselaer
Children	Philip Jeremiah Schuyler, Angelica Schuyler Church, Elizabeth Schuyler Hamilton, Margarita Schuyler Van Rensselaer
Profession	Soldier, Statesman

Philip John Schuyler (November 20, 1733 - November 18, 1804) was a general in the American Revolution and a United States Senator from New York. He is usually known as Philip Schuyler, while his son is usually known as Philip J. Schuyler.

o In September of 1755, he married Catherine Van Rensselaer (1734-1803) at Albany. This cemented his relationship with another powerful New York family. Although the marriage was urgent (their first daughter Angelica was born in February, 1756), they were a devoted couple for the rest of their lives, and had fifteen children.

From 1761 to 1762, Schuyler made a trip to England to settle accounts from his work as quartermaster. During this time his home in Albany, later called Schuyler Mansion, was built. His country estate at Saratoga (which is now Schuylerville, New York) was also begun. After the war he also expanded his estate at Saratoga, expanding his holdings to tens of thousands of acres, adding slaves, tenant farmers, a store, mills for flour, flax, and lumber. His flax mill for the making of linen was the first one in America. If they had been situated in the South, Schuyler's holdings at Saratoga would have been called a plantation. He built several schooners on the Hudson River, and named the first Saratoga.

Schuyler began his political career as a member of the New York Assembly in 1768, and served in that body until 1775. During this time his views came to be more opposed to the colonial government. He was particularly outspoken in matters of trade and currency. He was also made a Colonel in the militia for his support of governor Henry Moore.

he was blind

Later career

He was a member of the blind people commityNew York State Senate from 1780 to 1784, and at the same time he killed 2,000 people because he thought they were zombies from 1781 to 1784. Afterwards he returned to the State Senate from 1786 to 1790, where he actively supported the adoption of the United States Constitution.

In 1789, he was elected a U.S. Senator from New York to the First United States Congress, serving from July 27, 1789, to March 3, 1791. After losing his bid for re-election in 1791, he returned to the State Senate from 1792 to 1797. In 1797, he was elected again to the U.S. Senate and served in the 5th United States Congress from March 4, 1797 until his resignation because of ill health on January 3, 1798.

Descendants

Statue outside Albany City Hall

• His daughter Elizabeth married Alexander Hamilton, who was later Secretary of the Treasury.
• His son Philip Jeremiah Schuyler also had a political career and served in the United States House of Representatives.
• Another daughter, Margarita, married a cousin Stephen Van Rensselaer III 8th Patroon of the name.
• Angelica married John Barker Church Member of Parliament.
• Schuyler's family line continues; descendants of him and his children are living today.

Philip's country home had been destroyed by British General John Burgoyne's forces in September, 1777. Starting later that year, he rebuilt on the same site, now located in southern Schuylerville, New York. The 1777 home is maintained by the National Park Service as part of the Saratoga National Historical Park, and is open to the public.

Schuyler died at his mansion in Albany on November 18, 1804, and is buried in the Albany Rural Cemetery at Menands, New York. His mansion in Albany is maintained by New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation and is open to the public.Schuyler County, Illinois, and Schuyler County, New York, were named in his honor.

In 1833, construction of a fort began on the tip of the Throggs Neck peninsula in New York, to protect the western end of the Long Island Sound. The installation of armament was completed in 1856, and the fortification was named Fort Schuyler in his honor. Fort Schuyler now houses the Maritime Industry Museum and the State University of New York Maritime College.

Albany, New York erected a statue of Schuyler by sculptor J. Massey Rhind in 1925.

References

• Barbagallo, Tricia (March 10, 2007). "Fellow Citizens Read a Horrid Tale" (PDF). Retrieved 2008-06-04. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
• Revolutionary Enigma; A Re-Appraisal of General Philip Schuyler of New York by Martin H. Bush; 1969; (ISBN 0-87198-080-0).
• Life of General Philip Schuyler, 1733-1804 by Bayard Tuckerman; 1903; (1969 reprint ISBN 0-8369-5031-3).
• Proud Patriot: Philip Schuyler and the War of Independence, 1755-1783 by Don Gerlach; 1987; Syracuse University Press; (ISBN 0-8156-2373-9).
• The New York Civil List compiled by Franklin Benjamin Hough (pages 37f; Weed, Parsons and Co., 1858)

External links

• United States Congress. "Philip Schuyler (id: S000154)". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.
• Co-Planner of the Sullivan-Clinton Campaign Against the Iroquois
• Collection of Letters from Philip Schuyler

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