Major-General James Clinton (August 9, 1736 – September 22, 1812) was a

Continental Army The Continental Army was the army of the United Colonies representing the Thirteen Colonies and later the United States during the American Revolutionary War. It was formed on June 14, 1775, by a resolution passed by the Second Continental Co ...

officer and politician who fought in the

American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was the armed conflict that comprised the final eight years of the broader American Revolution, in which Am ...

. During the war he, along with John Sullivan, led the 1779

Sullivan Expedition The 1779 Sullivan Expedition (also known as the Sullivan-Clinton Expedition, the Sullivan Campaign, and the Sullivan-Clinton Campaign) was a United States military campaign under the command of General John Sullivan (general), John Sullivan duri ...

against the British-allied

Iroquois The Iroquois ( ), also known as the Five Nations, and later as the Six Nations from 1722 onwards; alternatively referred to by the Endonym and exonym, endonym Haudenosaunee ( ; ) are an Iroquoian languages, Iroquoian-speaking Confederation#Ind ...

. The Americans destroyed 40 villages as well as their winter stores of wheat and other produce. This forced 5,000 Iroquois to flee to British controlled

Fort Niagara Fort Niagara, also known as Old Fort Niagara, is a fortification originally built by New France to protect its interests in North America, specifically control of access between the Niagara River and Lake Ontario, the easternmost of the Great L ...

and caused the deaths of several hundred Iroquois during the harsh winter of 1779–1780. He subsequently obtained the rank of brevet major general.Moore, Charles B., "Introductory Sketch to the History of the Clinton Family", ''The New York Genealogical and Biographical Record'', (Richard Henry Greene at al, eds.), New York Genealogical and Biographical Society, 1880
/ref> After leaving the army, Clinton was a founding member of the New York

Society of the Cincinnati The Society of the Cincinnati is a lineage society, fraternal, hereditary society founded in 1783 to commemorate the American Revolutionary War that saw the creation of the United States. Membership is largely restricted to descendants of milita ...

and served as an assemblyman in the New York State legislature and later as a New York State Senator from 1788 to 1792.

Early life

Clinton was born in

Ulster County Ulster County is a county in the U.S. state of New York. It is situated along the Hudson River. As of the 2020 census, the population was 181,851. The county seat is Kingston. The county is named after the Irish province of Ulster. The count ...

in the

colony of New York The Province of New York was a British proprietary colony and later a royal colony on the northeast coast of North America from 1664 to 1783. It extended from Long Island on the Atlantic, up the Hudson River and Mohawk River valleys to the G ...

, at

Little Britain Little Britain may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Little Britain'' (TV series), a British radio and then television series ** '' Little Britain USA'', an American spin-off * "Little Britain", a song by Dreadzone from the 1995 album ''Second ...

in the town of New Windsor, now part of Orange County, New York. He was the third son of Col. Charles Clinton, an

Anglo-Irish Anglo-Irish people () denotes an ethnic, social and religious grouping who are mostly the descendants and successors of the English Protestant Ascendancy in Ireland. They mostly belong to the Anglican Church of Ireland, which was the State rel ...

colonist and a colonel in the

French and Indian War The French and Indian War, 1754 to 1763, was a colonial conflict in North America between Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain and Kingdom of France, France, along with their respective Native Americans in the United States, Native American ...

who immigrated to

New Ulster New Ulster was a province of the Colony of New Zealand that existed between 1841 and 1853. It was named after the Irish province of Ulster. Creation Between 1841 and 1846, the province included all the North Island. With the passing of the Ne ...

in 1729, and his wife Elizabeth Denniston.Gorse, C.A., "Town of New Windsor", ''The History of Orange County'', (Russel Headley, ed.), Van Deusen and Elms, Middletown, New York, 1908
/ref> He was the brother of George Clinton, who was elected and served as

Governor of New York The governor of New York is the head of government of the U.S. state of New York. The governor is the head of the executive branch of New York's state government and the commander-in-chief of the state's military forces. The governor ...

from 1777 to 1795 and as

U.S. Vice President The vice president of the United States (VPOTUS) is the second-highest ranking office in the executive branch of the U.S. federal government, after the president of the United States, and ranks first in the presidential line of succession. Th ...

from 1805 to 1812, and the father of

DeWitt Clinton DeWitt Clinton (March 2, 1769February 11, 1828) was an American politician and Naturalism (philosophy), naturalist. He served as a United States Senate, United States senator, as the mayor of New York City, and as the sixth governor of New York. ...

, who would also serve as Governor of New York. He was the grandson of

James Clinton Major general (United States), Major-General James Clinton (August 9, 1736 – September 22, 1812) was a Continental Army officer and politician who fought in the American Revolutionary War. During the war he, along with John Sullivan (ge ...

(d. 1718), and the great-grandson of William Clinton (1614–1684), a Royalist officer in the army of

Charles I of England Charles I (19 November 1600 – 30 January 1649) was King of Kingdom of England, England, Kingdom of Scotland, Scotland, and Kingdom of Ireland, Ireland from 27 March 1625 until Execution of Charles I, his execution in 1649. Charles was born ...

Career

French and Indian War

James Clinton's military experience began in the

(the North American front of the Seven Years' War), where he served in the provincial troops of New York in the British cause. He was commissioned an ensign in 1757 and achieved the rank of captain in the New York Regiment in 1759. Commanding a company in 1758, he participated, along with his father (Colonel) and brother George (Lieutenant), in General

John Bradstreet Major General John Bradstreet, born Jean-Baptiste Bradstreet (21 December 1714 – 25 September 1774) was a British Army officer during King George's War, the French and Indian War, and Pontiac's War. He was born in Annapolis Royal, Nova Scotia ...

’s capture of

Fort Frontenac Fort Frontenac was a French trading post and military fort built in July 1673 at the mouth of the Cataraqui River where the St. Lawrence River leaves Lake Ontario (at what is now the western end of the La Salle Causeway), in a location traditi ...

(now

Kingston Kingston may refer to: Places * List of places called Kingston, including the six most populated: ** Kingston, Jamaica ** Kingston upon Hull, England ** City of Kingston, Victoria, Australia ** Kingston, Ontario, Canada ** Kingston upon Thames, ...

, Ontario). He and his brother played a key role in capturing a French vessel. Clinton remained in the army, and was stationed at various frontier posts. In 1763 he raised and commanded a corps of two hundred men, who were designated as "Guards of the Frontier". After the war, he retired and married Mary De Witt.

American Revolutionary War

A month after the first open armed conflict in Lexington, the Continental Congress resolved on May 25, 1775, to build fortifications in the Hudson highlands for the purpose of protecting and maintaining control of the

Hudson River The Hudson River, historically the North River, is a river that flows from north to south largely through eastern New York (state), New York state. It originates in the Adirondack Mountains at Henderson Lake (New York), Henderson Lake in the ...

. Clinton and Major Christopher Tappen, lifetime residents of the area, were sent to scout appropriate locations. Clinton was commissioned as

colonel Colonel ( ; abbreviated as Col., Col, or COL) is a senior military Officer (armed forces), officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries, a colon ...

of the 3rd New York Regiment, which took part in Brig. Gen.

Richard Montgomery Richard Montgomery (2 December 1738 – 31 December 1775) was an Irish-born American military officer who first served in the British Army. He later became a major general in the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War, and ...

’s unsuccessful expedition to Quebec in 1775. In March 1776, Clinton took command of the

2nd New York Regiment The 2nd New York Regiment was authorized on May 25, 1775, and formed at Albany from June 28 to August 4 for service with the Continental Army under the command of Colonel Goose Van Schaick. The enlistments of the first establishment ended on Dec ...

and soon after, in August, was promoted to brigadier general in the

. He served most of the war in the Northern Department, along the New York

frontier A frontier is a political and geographical term referring to areas near or beyond a boundary. Australia The term "frontier" was frequently used in colonial Australia in the meaning of country that borders the unknown or uncivilised, th ...

."Brigadier General James Clinton", Yorktown Battlefield, National Park Service
/ref> During the

Saratoga Campaign The Saratoga campaign in 1777 was an attempt by the British to gain military control of the strategically important Hudson River valley during the American Revolutionary War. It ended in the surrender of a British army, which historian Edmund M ...

in 1777, he commanded

Fort Clinton Fort Clinton was an American Revolutionary War fort erected by the Continental Army on the west bank of the Hudson River in 1776. Fort Clinton was the original West Point academy Protecting the chain It was one of a pair of fortifications which ...

in the Hudson Highlands. He participated in a successful effort to prevent British General Sir Henry Clinton from rescuing General

John Burgoyne General (United Kingdom), General John "Gentleman Johnny" Burgoyne (24 February 1722 – 4 August 1792) was a British Army officer, playwright and politician who sat in the House of Commons of Great Britain from 1761 to 1792. He first saw acti ...

at Saratoga, but he and his troops were unable to hold Forts Clinton and Montgomery. Clinton sustained a bayonet wound in the leg during the assault. In 1778 he was stationed in Albany to oppose Indian and

Tory A Tory () is an individual who supports a political philosophy known as Toryism, based on a British version of traditionalist conservatism which upholds the established social order as it has evolved through the history of Great Britain. The To ...

forces. In 1779, Clinton led an expedition down the

Susquehanna River The Susquehanna River ( ; Unami language, Lenape: ) is a major river located in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States, crossing three lower Northeastern United States, Northeast states (New York, Pennsylvani ...

after making the upper portion navigable by damming up the river's source at Otsego Lake, allowing the lake's level to rise, and then destroying the dam and flooding the river for miles downstream. This event is described by

James Fenimore Cooper James Fenimore Cooper (September 15, 1789 – September 14, 1851) was an American writer of the first half of the 19th century, whose historical romances depicting colonial and indigenous characters from the 17th to the 19th centuries brought h ...

in the introduction to his popular novel '' The Pioneers'' (1823). It is commemorated by an annual Memorial Day canoe race. At

Tioga Tioga may refer to: United States communities *Tioga, California, former name of Bennettville, California *Tioga, Colorado * Tioga, Florida * Tioga, Iowa * Tioga, Louisiana * Tioga, Michigan * Tioga, New York, a town in Tioga County *Tioga County, ...

, New York, Clinton met up with General John Sullivan's forces, who had marched from Easton, Pennsylvania. Together, on August 29, they defeated the

Tories A Tory () is an individual who supports a political philosophy known as Toryism, based on a British version of traditionalist conservatism which upholds the established social order as it has evolved through the history of Great Britain. The T ...

and British-allied

at the

Battle of Newtown The Battle of Newtown (August 29, 1779) was the only major battle of the Sullivan Expedition, an armed offensive led by Major General John Sullivan that was ordered by George Washington to end the threat of the Iroquois who had sided with the Br ...

(near today's city of Elmira, New York). This became known as the "Sullivan-Clinton Campaign" or the "

." They also attacked Iroquois villages throughout western New York, destroying 40 as well as the winter stores of the people. Around 5,000 Iroquois fled to British controlled Niagara and mortality was high that winter because of starvation with several hundred deaths. In 1780, Clinton temporarily commanded the

Northern Department The Northern Department was a department of the government of the Kingdom of England from 1660 to 1707 and later the Kingdom of Great Britain from 1707 until 1782 when its functions were reorganised into the new Home Office and Foreign Office. ...

. By October 1781, his brigade had joined

George Washington George Washington (, 1799) was a Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father and the first president of the United States, serving from 1789 to 1797. As commander of the Continental Army, Washington led Patriot (American Revoluti ...

's army in the

siege of Yorktown The siege of Yorktown, also known as the Battle of Yorktown and the surrender at Yorktown, was the final battle of the American Revolutionary War. It was won decisively by the Continental Army, led by George Washington, with support from the Ma ...

Post-war years

After leaving he army, Clinton served on the commission defining the New York-Pennsylvania boundary. In 1783 General Clinton became an original member of the New York

. He entered state politics, serving as an assemblyman in the New York State legislature from 1787 to 1788 and again from 1800 to 1801, and as a New York State Senator from 1788 to 1792.

Personal life

On February 18, 1765, James Clinton married Mary DeWitt (1737–1795), the only daughter of Egbert DeWitt, members of a colonial Dutch family. They had seven children, including: * Alexander Clinton (1765–1787), who served in Colonel Lamb's regiment during the Revolution and drowned in the Hudson River * Charles Clinton (1767–1829), who married Elizabeth Mulliner (1770–1865) *

(1769–1828), a politician and later governor of New York * George Clinton, Jr. (1771–1809), politician who served as a U.S. representative in Congress * Mary Clinton (1773–1808), who married Robert Burrage Norton. After his death, she married Judge Ambrose Spencer (1765–1848). * Elizabeth Clinton (1776–1832), who married William Stuart * Katharine Clinton (1778–1837), who married Samuel Lake Norton, brother to her sister Mary's husband. After his death, she married Ambrose Spencer, her sister's widower. His second wife was Mary (

née The birth name is the name of the person given upon their birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name or to the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a births registe ...

Little) Gray (1768–1835), the widow of Alexander Gray (1762–1795), who was born in Ireland. Together, James and Mary were the parents of six children: * James G. Clinton, who died young. * Caroline Hannah Clinton (1800–1864), who married Charles Augustus Dewey (1793–1866), an Associate Justice of the

Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court (SJC) is the highest court in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Although the claim is disputed by the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, the SJC claims the distinction of being the oldest continuously fu ...

* Emma Little Clinton (1802–1823), who never married. * James Graham Clinton (1804–1849), who married Margaret Ellsworth Conger and served in Congress. * Letitia Clinton (1806–1842), who married Dr. Francis Bolton (1804–1849). * Anna Clinton (1809–1833), who married Lt. Edward Ross. Clinton died in

, New York, on September 22, 1812, the same year as his brother George.

Descendants

Through his son DeWitt, he was the grandfather of ten, including George William Clinton (1807–1885) who served as Mayor of Buffalo, New York from 1842 to 1843. Through his son George, he was the grandfather of three.William Smith Pelletreau
''Historic Homes and Institutions and Genealogical and Family History of New York''
Volume 3, 1907, page 183

References

;Notes ;Sources *

External links

Sullivan/Clinton Expedition
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Clinton, James 1736 births 1812 deaths Continental Army generals Continental Army officers from New York (state) People from Otsego County, New York People from New Windsor, New York Irish emigrants to the Thirteen Colonies People of New York in the French and Indian War People from the Province of New York Clinton family (New York) De Witt family Continental Army personnel of the Sullivan Expedition