To John Jay from Alexander Gillon, 29 August 1779
From Alexander Gillon
[Nantes, 29 Augt. 1779]1
Sir
I flatter my self with the Hopes that you have enjoy’d a Perfect State of Health since I had the pleasure of Seeing you at Philadelphia, & that you will very soon Reap the Reward due to your Perserverance & Labour, as A little Success of the United Fleet must I conceive produce next Spring that Inestimable Blessing Peace.—
I have been Seven Months in this Kingdom Labouring to Execute the Business I was Sent on, by the State of So. Carolina, but the losses said State experienced in their Remittances to Europe, with the Denials to my Requests
to those in Power, & no Inclination to facilitate & Support my applications by him that your Hon’ble Body sent to France to aid every American, part[icularl]y. Officers on Public Business, has Retarded my Success hitherto, I will not trouble your Excellency with A Recital of them here, as Inclosed is A Packet for the Hon’ble the Delegates of So. Carolina, wherein is one for His Exelly John Rutledge Esqr.,2 which contains the part[icula]rs of my Conduct & Observations, part of which may not be Amiss to be known, have therefore Requested those Gentlen. to open Sd. Packet, & to Communicate its Contents to you,—the Affair of the Fleat fitted out at L’Orient I part[icularl]y. attended to, by their Conduct there & the pains that was taken in other places to have them thought Continental, caus’d me to believe they was, in that Supposition I did no more than my duty & what I owe to America, by Stating to Mr. Franklin the use such a Fleet wou’d be of to America in General, if it was immdly sent to So. Carolina & Virginia, at either of which places I presume there ^was^ no Superior British Naval Force, wherefore their Sea & Land forces must have Experience’d Burgoynes Fate. I did not wish to interfere in the Command, as ^tho as^ I had formerly propos’d, so I then Repeated, that with all my officers I wou’d go as Volunteers in this Fleet, please Observe Mr. Franklins Reply thereto—& Capt. Jones’s Conduct since, but admit me to Remark that at Same time Capt. Landais of the Alliance, was order’d by Mr. Franklin to put himself under the Orders of Capt. Jones,3 whose Ship the Bon Homme Richard was private property & under the Public Management of Mr. Chaumont, Mr. Franklin’s Landlord & Oracle,4 they are again Saild & I hope on a plan of Serving their Country, I do not mean injury to any of those parties but I conceive I am Right in saying what is come to my knowledge therein, & that as your Honble Body has form’d Rules for to Guide your Naval Officers & Men, so they will be pleasd to cause an Enquiry to be made, whether the difft. Courts that have been held at L’Orient by Capt. Jones’s order are not Repugnant to those Rules, thus very prejudicial to a Young Service that Cries Aloud for Stability to enforce its Consequence; the Orders for an Enquiry into the conduct of Capt. Landais & his Officers was so inconsistant in my humble Opinion, that I Requested Capt Robeson5 in the So. Carolina Service, who was President of that Curious Court to withdraw, their Proceedings will be known to you no doubt on Capt. Landais arrival; I am now in hopes of Building in Prussia for where Set off in A few days, on the Encouragemt. mentiond in my Inclos’d Letters, if I can there, or whilst in Europe be of any Service, I shall deem myself Honor’d to Receive your Commands, in such case please to order my Letters to be under Cover to any of your Ministers that will Carefully order it to be forwarded to me, it gives me pleasure
to Assure you, I recd. every Aid from the Honble Messers Adams Lee’s & Izard,6 but their Endeavours to Serve their Country cou’d Avail Little, when Underhand Opposition was made to every proposal that was made by them & me. I truly wish for America’s Sake in partr. that Mr. Adams may ere this be Amongst you.7 Sincerely do I wish your Excellency evry Blessing & am with all due Respect— Your Excellencys Most Obedt. & very hble Servt—
A. Gillon
To His Excellency John Jay Esqre. President of the Honble the Continental Congress at Philadelphia
ALS, DNA: PCC, item 78, 10: 171–74 (EJ: 10965). Enclosures not located.
1. This letter never reached JJ while he was president of Congress but is included for its illuminating account of American naval operations carried on in foreign waters under the direction of Benjamin Franklin and for its relationship to the ongoing Deane-Lee conflicts, which now included major attacks on Franklin and his associates. Alexander Gillon (1741–94) was a Dutch-born merchant and naval officer from Charleston, S.C. In 1778 he was named commodore of the South Carolina navy and in August he sailed on an abortive mission to obtain three frigates in Europe for the fleet.
2. John Rutledge (1739–1800), then governor of South Carolina.
3. Pierre Landais (1731–1818), a former French naval captain, was named commander of the Alliance in June 1778 by the Continental Congress. Landais was emotionally unstable, and his crew was on the point of mutiny when the Alliance finally reached France in 1779. Franklin put Landais under the command of John Paul Jones, who led the Bonhomme Richard from L’Orient on 14 Aug. 1779 on a raiding expedition on the British coast. The campaign was climaxed by engagement with the Serapis on 23 Sept. During the battle, Landais opened fire on the Bonhomme Richard, quite possibly on purpose so as to emerge the victor in this battle. , 189–90, 226–40; Richard B. Morris, “The Revolution’s Caine Mutiny,” American Heritage 11 (1960): 10–13, 88–91; , 11: 625.
4. Jacques Donatien Le Ray de Chaumont, a partisan of the American cause, was the owner of the Hôtel Valentinois, on whose premises the American commissioners had their quarters.
5. Probably Captain William Robertson, who accompanied Gillon on the voyage to Europe.
6. Arthur Lee. Ralph Izard (1742–1804) of South Carolina was appointed commissioner to the Grand Duchy of Tuscany in July 1777. His commission was revoked in June 1779. , 7: 334; 14: 700–703.
7. John Adams sailed from France on 22 Mar. 1779 and reached Boston on 2 Aug.