Death of Silas Deane essays

Death of Silas Deane essays Silas Deane was a very ambitious man. He went from the son of a blacksmith, to a lawyer, to a business man, and then entered himself into the political world. He served on Connecticut's Committee of Correspondence and in later years as a delegate to the first and second Continental Congress. During this time he won much respect from prominent leaders such as Robert Morris, Benjamin Franklin, and John Jay. In 1776 Congress decided to send Deane as a representative from the colonies over to France. His aim was to buy much needed military supplies for the Revolutionary cause. However, during his service as Minister Plenipotentiary he ran into many problems. He was accused of taking advantage of his power to make himself a large fortune. He denied it but congress still decided to take away his title as Minister Plenipotentiary. Then, in 1781, some of his letters to friends were found that stated that he thought that America should go in a more peaceful direction and try to make things better with England. But being that America had already won by the time these letters were found he was thought to be a traitor. Hence then Deane could no longer reside in America, and he couldn't go to England because that would confirm all accusation of him being a traitor. He also could not reside in France because he had earlier accused King Louis XVI of aiding Americans for selfish reasons. So he opted to find exile in Flanders. Deanes life in Flanders was a sad one. He spent his days with no friends and no money and after some years when he felt that the controversy had died down he decided to move to England where he didn't end up living any happier then he did in Flanders. Then finally a few years later Deane decided to move back to America so he purchased a ticket to board the Boston Packet and set sail. While on the ship Deane died. Sources say that he had complained of dizziness and pains in his stomach earlier that day and ...