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The Galloping Hessian of the Hollow: the Search for Early American Identity Through Foreign Mercenaries ______

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The Galloping Hessian of the Hollow: the Search for Early American Identity Through Foreign Mercenaries ______ THE GALLOPING HESSIAN OF THE HOLLOW: THE SEARCH FOR EARLY AMERICAN IDENTITY THROUGH FOREIGN MERCENARIES ___________________________________ A Thesis Presented to the Faculty of California State University, Fullerton ___________________________________ In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Master of Arts in History ___________________________________ By Mark R Malebranche II Thesis Committee Approval: Professor Jessica Stern, Chair Professor Benjamin Cawthra, Department of History Professor Allison Varzally, Department of History Spring, 2016 ABSTRACT The subject of an American national identity has been a source of debate for centuries. Some argue it had naturally evolved by the time of the American Revolution while others argue there was no cohesive “American” people at the time of the war. By looking at the ways in which the American colonists interpreted the presence of the Hessian soldiers contracted by the British government during the struggle, this conversation can be continued in a new and unique way. The Hessians themselves have often been ignored by the historical record, though studying these men reveals that at the time of the American Revolution, the colonists remained divided and were rather a collection of different peoples. I approach this study by looking primarily at the wartime press of New York and Pennsylvania, put in context with the events of the Revolution, along with some of the early American historians (Mercy Otis Warren, David Ramsay, John Marshall, and Washington Irving) writing in the decades following the Treaty of Paris. Differences and similarities in the ways they discussed the Hessian involvement during the American Revolution reveal a lack of cohesive identity during and in the decades following the war. ii TABLE OF CONTENTS ABSTRACT ................................................................................................................... ii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS .............................................................................................. v Introduction IN THE BOSOM OF ONE OF THOSE SPACIOUS COVES ...................................... 1 An American Legend ............................................................................................ 1 Objects of Superstitious Awe: The Hessians ........................................................ 5 What is American: The Quandary of National Identity ........................................ 10 The Path to Sleepy Hollow .................................................................................... 18 Chapter 1. THE DIALATING POWERS OF AN ANACONDA .......................................... 25 The Press of New York ......................................................................................... 25 The Object of Whimsical Persecution ................................................................... 31 A Mixture of Respect and Superstition ................................................................. 43 Reflections on the Empire State ............................................................................ 47 2. FULL OF METTLE AND MISCHIEF ................................................................. 50 The Pennsylvania Record ...................................................................................... 50 Local Tales and Superstitions ................................................................................ 58 That Witching Hour ............................................................................................... 65 A Labyrinth of Whims and Caprices ..................................................................... 79 Reflections on the Keystone State ......................................................................... 82 3. THE SLEEPY HOLLOW BOYS: AMERICA’S FIRST HISTORIANS ............. 85 Small Shrewdness and Simple Credulity .............................................................. 86 Administering Justice with Discrimination: Four Views of the Hessian .............. 92 The Moody and Dogged Silence: Conniving Underlings or Noble Warriors ....... 96 A Rather Lonely but Pleasant Situation: Prisoners of War ................................... 108 Spirited Away by Supernatural Means: The Lasting Legend of the Hessians ...... 115 If I Can but Reach that Bridge ............................................................................... 120 iii Conclusion THE TRANQUIL SOLITUDES OF SLEEPY HOLLOW ............................................ 123 APPENDICES ................................................................................................................ 131 A. RESOLUTION FROM THE CONTINENTAL CONGRESS – AUGUST 14, 1776 ......................................................................................... 131 B. RESOLUTION FROM THE CONTINENTAL CONGRESS – AUGUST 27, 1776 ......................................................................................... 132 BIBLIOGRAPHY .......................................................................................................... 133 iv ACKNOWLEDGMENTS “Survival can be summed up in three words – never give up. That's the heart of it really. Just keep trying.” – Bear Grylls1 First and foremost, I would like to thank my wife, Kelly, for her endless support. It has taken me seven years to finish my M.A. To say it has been a difficult process would be an understatement, but I could not have done it without her. Since 2009 I have faced financial challenges, stalled career options due in part to the economic depression (yes, it is a depression), and coming to terms with my own alcoholism (and, fortunately, my subsequent recovery). Through it all she has been there for me and for our family. My wife has helped me to keep focused and keep positive. During the last seven years there has also been a lot of good in my life that I am grateful for. I have welcomed two perfect children into this world and have been able to see them grow and develop their own unique personalities. There is nothing more satisfying than having not one, but two, little people in your life whose day becomes immediately brighter with something as simple as you entering the room. It is truly humbling to know that these children, with their own special ways of experiencing the world around them, would not exist without you. It is nothing short of miraculous. To paraphrase Homer J. Simpson, they are my single greatest accomplishments and they have done it all themselves. 1 http://www.buddytv.com/articles/man-vs-wild/man-vs-wild-season-3-debuts-to-21816.aspx v Through this all, the work towards my M.A. has been incredibly rewarding. I have faced heavy criticism with comments like “just face it, you’re never going to finish” and “you’ve spent how long on your degree?! How much money have you wasted on that thing?” They do not see it, but they have completely missed the point. It has not been about money or just finishing it already. It has been a personal journey in which I have grown immensely. I would like to thank Dr. Jessica Stern and Dr. Benjamin Cawthra for inspiring and encouraging me over the years. They have both pushed me to be a better historian. I would also like to thank Dr. Allison Varzally for stepping into my thesis committee at the last minute and Dr. Volker Janssen for always helping his students to look beyond the facts to see the “so what.” Finally, thank you to my parents and my in- laws for their continued love and support. This thesis is not so much mine as it is the combined effort of everyone who has encouraged me along the way. vi 1 INTRODUCTION IN THE BOSOM OF ONE OF THOSE SPACIOUS COVES An American Legend Within American society there exist several classic Halloween stories and franchises that children and adults alike look forward to every fall. Slasher movies, zombie flicks, and vampire stories are among the most popular in this second decade of the twenty-first century. As trends come and go, however, one Halloween story has stood the test of time in America and is continually re-imagined with each passing year: Washington Irving’s “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow.” This short story is not only one of the United States’ first true Halloween legends, but it is also a part of one of the nation’s first strong pieces of literature. Countless Americans continue to revel in reading, watching, or listening to one of the many incarnations of Irving’s enduring legend because the story has the same elements popular in thrillers across time and space. More than just a simple ghost story, “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow” penetrates the core of psychological terror by touching on what can happen when one allows their imagination to run away with them. Perhaps one of the strongest appeals it that we never find out what actually happened to Ichabod, but are left only to assume. He either left Sleepy Hollow following his run in with the Headless Horseman or else he truly was spirited away. Regardless of his personal fate, 2 Irving’s tale ends with events of that evening entering the pantheon of Sleepy Hollow lore. Just as Crane became a part of the local legend among those living in Irving’s Sleepy Hollow, so too did he enter into popular American culture. The story of Ichabod Crane and his run in with the Headless Horseman has been reinvented many times since its original inception.2 This tale has obviously stood the test of time, but what has been lost over the decades is that “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow,” more than a simple ghost story, also criticized American society.3 The story is a criticism
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