Newburgh Conspiracy The Newburgh Conspiracy was what appeared to be a threatened uprising in the Continental Army in March 1783 , when the American Revolutionary War was at its end . Possibly instigated by political actors in the Congress of the Confederation , an anonymous letter was circulated in the army camp at Newburgh , New York , on March 10 , 1783 . The letter suggested that the army , whose soldiers were discontented over pay that was in arrears and a lack of funding for promised pensions , should take unspecified action against Congress to resolve the issue . The letter was written by Major John Armstrong , aide to General Horatio Gates , although the authorship of its text and underlying ideas is a subject of historical debate . Commander - in - Chief George Washington stopped any serious talk by appealing successfully to his officers to support the supremacy of Congress in an emotional address on March 15 . Not long afterward , Congress approved a compromise agreement it had previously rejected : some of the pay arrears were funded , and soldiers were granted five years of full pay instead of a lifetime pension of half pay . The motivations of numerous actors in these events are the subject of debate . Some historians allege that serious consideration was given within the army to some sort of " coup d ' état " , while others dispute the notion . The exact motivations of congressmen involved in communications with army officers implicated in the events are similarly debated . Background . After the British loss at the Siege of Yorktown in October 1781 , the American Revolutionary War died down in North America , and peace talks began between British and American diplomats . The American Continental Army , based at Newburgh , New York , monitored British - occupied New York City . With the end of the war and dissolution of the Continental Army approaching , soldiers who had long been unpaid feared that the Confederation Congress would not meet previous promises concerning back pay and pensions . Congress had in 1780 promised Continental officers a lifetime pension of half their pay when they were discharged . Financier Robert Morris had in early 1782 stopped army pay as a cost - saving measure , arguing that when the war finally ended the arrears would be made up . Throughout 1782 these issue were a regular topic of debate in Congress and in the army camp at Newburgh , and numerous memorials and petitions by individual soldiers had failed to significantly affect Congressional debate on the subject . A number of officers organized under the leadership of General Henry Knox and drafted a memorial to Congress . Signed by enough general officers that it could not be readily dismissed as the work of a few malcontents , the memorial was delivered to Congress by a delegation consisting of General Alexander McDougall and Colonels John Brooks and Matthias Ogden in late December 1782 . It expressed unhappiness over pay that was months in arrears , and concern over the possibility that the half pay pension would not be forthcoming . In the memorial they offered to accept a lump sum payment instead of the lifetime half pay pension . It also contained the vague threat that " any further experiments on their [ the army ' s ] patience may have fatal effects . " The seriousness of the situation was also communicated to Congress by Secretary at War Benjamin Lincoln . Actions of Congress . Congress was politically divided on the subject of finance . The treasury was empty , and Congress lacked the power to compel the states to provide the necessary funds for meeting its obligations . An attempt to amend the Articles of Confederation to allow Congress to impose an import tariff known as an " impost " was decisively defeated by the states in November 1782 , and some states had enacted legislation forbidding their representatives from supporting any sort of lifetime pension . Members of the " nationalist " faction in Congress who had supported the tax proposal ( including Robert Morris , Gouverneur Morris , James Madison , and Alexander Hamilton ) believed that the army funding issues could be used as a lever to gain for Congress the ability to raise its own revenue . The army delegation first met with Robert Morris and other nationalists . The politicians convinced McDougall that it was imperative for the army to remain cooperative while they sought funding . The hope they expressed was to tie the army ' s demands to those of the government ' s other creditors to force opposing Congressmen to act . On January 6 Congress established a committee to address the army ' s memorial . It first met with Robert Morris , who stated that there were no funds to meet the army ' s demands , and that loans for government operations would require evidence of a revenue stream . When it met with McDougall on January 13 , the general painted a stark picture of the discontent at Newburgh ; Colonel Brooks opined that " a disappointment might throw [ the army ] into blind extremities . " When Congress met on January 22 to debate the committee ' s report , Robert Morris shocked the body by tendering his resignation , heightening tension . The Congressional leadership immediately moved to keep Morris ' s resignation secret . Debate on a funding scheme turned in part on the issue of the pension . Twice the nationalists urged the body to adopt a commuted pension scheme ( one that would end after a fixed time , rather than lifetime ) , but it was rejected both times . After the second rejection on February 4 , a plot to further raise tensions began to take shape . Four days later , Colonel Brooks was dispatched back to Newburgh with instructions to gain the army leadership ' s agreement with the proposed nationalist plan . The army leadership was also urged by Gouverneur Morris to use its influence with state legislatures to secure their approval for needed changes . On February 12 , McDougall sent a letter ( signed with the pseudonym " Brutus " ) to General Knox suggesting that the army might have to mutiny by refusing to disband until it was paid . He specifically told Knox to not make any direct steps , but that he should " not lose a moment preparing for events . " Historian Richard Kohn is of the opinion that the purpose of these communications was not to foment a coup or military action against Congress or the states , but to use the specter of a recalcitrant army ' s refusal to disband as a political weapon against the antinationalists . The nationalists were also aware of a significant cadre of lower - level officers who were unhappy with General Washington ' s leadership and had gravitated to the camp of Major General Horatio Gates , a longtime Washington rival . These officers , Kohn believes , could be used by the nationalists to stage something that resembled a coup if necessary . The arrival on February 13 of rumors that a preliminary peace agreement had been reached in Paris heightened the sense of urgency among the nationalists . Alexander Hamilton wrote a letter to General Washington the same day , essentially warning him of the possibility of impending unrest among the ranks , and urging him to " " take the direction " " of the army ' s anger . Washington responded that he sympathized both with the plight of his officers and men and with those in Congress , but that he would not use the army to threaten the civil government . Washington believed such a course of action would violate the principles of republicanism for which they had all been fighting . It was unclear to the Congressional nationalists whether Knox , who had been a regular supporter of army protests to Congress , would play a role in any sort of staged action . In letters written February 21 , Knox unambiguously indicated he would play no such part , expressing the hope that the army ' s force would only be used against " the Enemies of the liberties in America . " On February 25 and 26 there was a flurry of activity in Philadelphia , which may have been occasioned by the arrival of Knox ' s letters . The nationalists had had little success in advancing their program through Congress , and continued to use rhetoric repeating concerns over the army ' s stability . On March 8 Pennsylvania Colonel Walter Stewart arrived at Newburgh . Stewart was known to Robert Morris ; the two had previous dealings when Stewart proposed coordinating activities of private creditors of the government , and he was aware of the poor state of affairs in Philadelphia . His movement to Newburgh had been ordered by Washington ( he was returning to duty after recovering from an illness ) and would not necessarily draw notice . Although his movements at camp are not known in detail , it appears likely that he met with General Gates not long after his arrival . Within hours rumors began flying around the Newburgh camp that the army would refuse to disband until its demands were met . Call for meeting . On the morning of March 10 an unsigned letter began circulating in the army camp . Later acknowledged to be written by Major John Armstrong , Jr . , aide to General Gates , the letter decried the army ' s condition and the lack of Congressional support , and called upon the army to send Congress an ultimatum . Published at the same time was an anonymous call for a meeting of all field officers for 11 a . m . the next day . Washington reacted with dispatch . On the morning of the 11th in his general orders he objected to the " disorderly " and " irregular " nature of the anonymously called meeting , and announced that there would be a meeting of officers on the 15th instead . This meeting , he said , would be presided over by the senior officer present , and Washington requested a report of the meeting , implying that he would not attend . On the morning of the 12th a second unsigned letter appeared , claiming Washington ' s agreement to a meeting as an endorsement of the conspirators ' position . Washington , who had initially thought the first letter to be the work of individuals outside the camp ( specifically citing Gouverneur Morris as a likely candidate ) , was compelled to admit this unlikely given the speed at which the second letter appeared . The March 15 meeting was held in the " New Building " or " Temple " , a 40 by 70 foot ( 12 by 21 m ) building at the camp . After Gates opened the meeting , Washington entered the building to everyone ' s surprise . He asked to speak to the officers , and the stunned Gates relinquished the floor . Washington could tell by the faces of his officers , who had not been paid for quite some time , that they were quite angry and did not show the respect or deference as they had toward Washington in the past . Washington then gave a short but impassioned speech , now known as the , counseling patience . His message was that they should oppose anyone " who wickedly attempts to open the floodgates of civil discord and deluge our rising empire in blood . " He then produced a letter from a member of Congress to read to the officers . He gazed upon it and fumbled with it without speaking . He then took a pair of reading glasses from his pocket , which were new and few of the men had seen him wear them . He then said : " Gentlemen , you will permit me to put on my spectacles , for I have not only grown gray but almost blind in the service of my country . " This caused the men to realize that Washington had sacrificed a great deal for the Revolution , just as much as any of them . These , of course , were his fellow officers , most having worked closely with him for several years . Many of those present were moved to tears , and with this act , the conspiracy collapsed as he read the letter . He then left the room , and General Knox and others offered resolutions reaffirming their loyalty . Knox and Colonel Brooks were then appointed to a committee to draft a suitable resolution . Approved by virtually the entire assembly , the resolution expressed " unshaken confidence " in Congress , and " disdain " and " abhorrence " for the irregular proposals published earlier in the week . Historian Richard Kohn believes the entire meeting was carefully stage - managed by Washington , Knox , and their supporters . The only voice raised in opposition was that of Colonel Timothy Pickering , who criticized members of the assembly for hypocritically condemning the anonymous addresses that only days before they had been praising . Aftermath . General Washington had sent copies of the anonymous addresses to Congress . This " alarming intelligence " ( as James Madison termed it ) arrived while Congress was debating the pension issues . Nationalist leaders orchestrated the creation of a committee to respond to the news , which was deliberately populated with members opposed to any sort of pension payment . The pressure worked on Connecticut representative Eliphalet Dyer , one of the committee members , and he proposed approval of a lump sum payment on March 20 . The final agreement was for a five years ' full pay instead of the lifetime half pay pension scheme originally promised . They received government bonds which at the time were highly speculative , but were in fact redeemed 100 cents on the dollar by the new government in 1790 . The soldiers continued to grumble , with the unrest spreading to the noncommissioned officers ( sergeants and corporals ) . Riots occurred and mutiny threatened . Washington rejected suggestions that the army stay in operation until the states found the money for the pay . On April 19 , 1783 , his General Orders of the day announced the end of hostilities against Great Britain . Congress thereafter ordered him to disband the army , since everyone agreed that a large army of 10 , 000 men was no longer needed , and the men were eager to go home . Congress gave each soldier three months pay , but since they had no funds Robert Morris issued $ 800 , 000 in personal notes to the soldiers . Many soldiers sold these notes to speculators , some even before they left camp , in order to be able to make their way home . Over the next several months , much of the Continental Army was furloughed , although many of the rank and file realized it was effectively a disbandment . The army was formally disbanded in November 1783 , leaving only a small force at West Point and several scattered frontier outposts . Discontent related to pay resurfaced in Philadelphia in June 1783 . Due in part to a critical miscommunication , troops in eastern Pennsylvania were led to believe that they would be discharged even before Morris ' promissory notes would be distributed , and they marched to the city in protest . Pennsylvania President John Dickinson refused to call out the militia ( reasoning they might actually support the mutineers ) , and Congress decided to relocate to Princeton , New Jersey . There is circumstantial evidence that several participants in the Newburgh affair ( notable Walter Stewart , John Armstrong , and Gouverneur Morris ) may have played a role in this uprising as well . The main long - term result of the Newburgh affair was a strong reaffirmation of the principle of civilian control of the military , and banishing any possibility of a coup as outside the realm of republican values . It also validated Washington ' s stature as a leading proponent of civilian control . Historical analysis . Historian Richard Kohn writes that a number of key details about the individuals and their motivations are not known , and probably never will be . For example , it is unclear exactly how much Colonels Brooks and Stewart , the principal messengers in the affair , knew . The intent of the Gates group has been the subject of some debate : Kohn argues that they were intent on organizing some form of direct action ( although he disclaims the idea that this would necessarily take the form of a traditional " coup d ' état " ) , while historian Paul David Nelson claims Kohn ' s thesis is circumstantial and poorly supported by primary materials . A letter written by General Gates in June 1783 illustrates the disagreement : in the letter Gates writes that the purpose of the events was to pressure Congress . Kohn argues that Gates is writing after the fact to cover his tracks , while Nelson claims Gates is giving a candid account of the affair . Historian C . Edward Skeen writes that Kohn ' s case is weak because it relies heavily on interpretation of written statements and is not well supported by the actions of the alleged conspirators . He notes , for example , that there is ample evidence suggesting mutinous sentiments were not obviously circulating in the Newburgh camp between the arrivals of Brooks and Stewart ; Kohn counters that the relative quiet in camp masked significant undercurrents of unhappiness . David Cobb , who served on Washington ' s staff during the affair , wrote in 1825 , " I have ever considered that the United States are indebted for their republican form of government solely to the firm and determined republicanism of George Washington at this time . " Skeen notes that the event has served to significantly burnish Washington ' s reputation .