NJ, USA
Anthony Wayne
1745–1796 · Brigadier General · Commander of the Pennsylvania Line
1745–1796
Brigadier General · Commander of the Pennsylvania Line
Anthony Wayne was born on January 1, 1745, in Easttown Township, Chester County, Pennsylvania, into a prosperous farming family of Irish descent. He was educated at his uncle's private academy and the College of Philadelphia, where he studied mathematics and surveying. Before the Revolution, Wayne operated a tannery and served in the Pennsylvania legislature.
Wayne received a commission as colonel of the 4th Pennsylvania Battalion in January 1776 and quickly demonstrated the aggressive temperament that would earn him the nickname "Mad Anthony." He participated in the disastrous Canadian campaign of 1776, the battles of Brandywine, Paoli, and Germantown in 1777, and the battle of Monmouth in 1778. His most celebrated action was the night assault on the British fortification at Stony Point, New York, on July 16, 1779, a bayonet-only attack that succeeded brilliantly and restored American morale.
Wayne's connection to Morristown centers on the Pennsylvania Line mutiny of January 1-10, 1781, one of the most serious internal crises of the Revolution. The Pennsylvania troops, encamped near Morristown at Mount Kemble, had endured years of broken promises regarding pay, clothing, and enlistment terms. Many soldiers believed their three-year enlistments had expired, while the army insisted they had enlisted for the duration of the war. On the night of January 1, 1781, approximately 1,500 Pennsylvania soldiers seized their weapons, formed into ranks, and began marching toward Philadelphia to present their grievances to the Continental Congress.
Wayne attempted to stop the mutiny and was reportedly threatened at gunpoint by his own men. However, the mutineers maintained military discipline throughout their march, electing their own representatives and refusing British agents who attempted to recruit them to the Crown's cause. The killing of the British spies by the mutineers demonstrated that their grievance was with Congress, not with the American cause. Wayne accompanied the mutineers and served as an intermediary between the soldiers and congressional negotiators, eventually helping to broker a settlement that addressed some of the soldiers' complaints.
Wayne went on to command American forces at the Battle of Green Spring in Virginia in 1781 and was present at the siege of Yorktown. After the war, he served in the Georgia legislature and returned to military service in 1792 to command the Legion of the United States against the Western Confederacy of Native peoples, winning the Battle of Fallen Timbers in 1794. He died on December 15, 1796, at Presque Isle (now Erie), Pennsylvania.
WHY HE MATTERS TO MORRISTOWN
Anthony Wayne's experience at Morristown embodies the crisis of legitimacy that nearly destroyed the Continental Army from within. The mutiny of the Pennsylvania Line was the direct result of the suffering endured during the Morristown encampments — years of unpaid service, inadequate food and clothing, and broken promises. Wayne's role as both the commander whose men rebelled and the intermediary who helped resolve the crisis illustrates the impossible position of Continental officers who were expected to maintain an army that the government refused to support. The mutiny stands as one of the defining events of Morristown's Revolutionary history.
- 1745: Born January 1 in Easttown Township, Chester County, Pennsylvania - 1776: Commissioned colonel; participated in Canadian campaign - 1779: Led the bayonet assault on Stony Point - 1780-1781: Commanded Pennsylvania Line at Morristown encampment - 1781: Managed the Pennsylvania Line mutiny as intermediary - 1794: Won the Battle of Fallen Timbers - 1796: Died December 15 at Presque Isle, Pennsylvania
SOURCES - Nelson, Paul David. "Anthony Wayne: Soldier of the Early Republic." Indiana University Press, 1985. - Nagy, John A. "Rebellion in the Ranks: Mutinies of the American Revolution." Westholme Publishing, 2008. - National Park Service. "The Pennsylvania Line Mutiny." Morristown National Historical Park interpretive materials.
In Morristown
- Jun 1780Continental Army Departs Morristown (Second Encampment)(Commander of Pennsylvania Line departing Jockey Hollow)
The Continental Army broke camp at Jockey Hollow in June 1780, dispersing to various positions across New Jersey and New York. The departure was prompted by the approach of British forces and the need to defend the state against the raids that culminated in the Battle of Springfield. The second encampment had lasted approximately six months and had tested the army's survival more severely than any other period of the war. The army that left Morristown was diminished, hungry, and poorly equipped, but it had endured.
- Jan 1781Pennsylvania Line Mutiny(Commander of the Pennsylvania Line who served as intermediary)
On January 1, 1781, approximately 1,500 soldiers of the Pennsylvania Line stationed near Morristown mutinied. This was not a spontaneous riot but an organized action by veteran soldiers who had endured years of broken promises. They had not been paid in over a year. Many believed their three-year enlistments had expired, while officers insisted they had enlisted "for the duration of the war." The mutineers organized themselves under elected sergeants, rejected their officers' authority, and marched south toward Philadelphia to confront the Continental Congress directly. They maintained military discipline throughout — they were not deserting but demanding justice. Along the march, they rejected overtures from British agents who tried to recruit them, demonstrating that their grievance was with Congress, not with the cause. The crisis was resolved through negotiation. A congressional committee met the mutineers at Princeton and agreed to review enlistment terms and provide back pay. Approximately half the Pennsylvania Line was discharged. The mutiny exposed the fundamental contradiction at the heart of the Revolution: an army fighting for liberty was being sustained by men who were themselves unfree — bound by contracts, unpaid, and kept in service by a government that lacked the resources or political will to fulfill its obligations.