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How Did Hamilton Contribute To The American Revolution

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How Did Hamilton Contribute To The American Revolution
The first secretary of the treasury is not often talked about when discussing the history of America. He was born in Nevis on January 11, 1757 to Rachel Levian and James Hamilton. By the time he was eleven, he had his first job in order to help support his family after his father left. Only two years later, his mother died. When a hurricane destroyed his town, Hamilton wrote a passionate letter about the destruction left behind. His letter impressed many people and funds were pooled together to send him to America to attend college. While attending college, Hamilton was introduced to several significant figures of the time which lead to his involvement in the American Revolution. Hamilton had a significant impact on the revolution including …show more content…
He made sure that they had proper military attire and that they were disciplined correctly. His artillery participated in the battle in New York where the British gained control of the state. While many men rushed to the wilderness early during the retreat, Hamilton was one of the last men to reach Harlem Heights as he stuck by his post to fight. Hamilton again showed his bravery at the battle at White Plains. George Washington, who Hamilton met through Nathanael Greene, was beginning to take notice of Hamilton. Hamilton continually showed his worth during the whole retreat of the Continental Army by persistently fighting and never backing down despite the barriers he faced. Washington was very impressed by Hamilton and asked Hamilton to be an aide-de-camp to him. Hamilton accepted and was promoted to lieutenant colonel. As an aide-de-camp to Washington, Hamilton was in charge of writing many papers for the general such as letters to Congress informing them of the current whereabouts and conditions of the army. Hamilton’s writings for the general were very significant to the war as they gave great insight to what the war was actually like due to Hamilton’s impressive skill in composition. Although Hamilton’s work as an aide-de-camp was mostly desk work, Washington occasionally entrusted Hamilton with other important tasks such as recruiting reinforcements from Horatio Gates, being a liaison officer to Lafayette, and leading three battalions at the battle of Yorktown. Hamilton led a surprise attack on the British at Yorktown that was so great that Charles Cornwallis, the leader of the opposing forces, had to resort to desperate tactics to try and defeat the Americans. Hamilton’s leadership at the battle of Yorktown is perhaps his most important contribution to the war as it was the battle that the British finally declared

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