General James Wilkinson, commander of the
Army of the United States, played a major role in the Burr Conspiracy,
first as a co-conspirator and later as Burr's chief nemesis and the prosecution's
chief hope for conviction.
The Conspiracy to attack Spanish territory
and perhaps create a new nation west of the Alleghenies grew out of a series
of conversations between Wilkinson and Vice President Burr during the winter
of 1804-05. The design may have been more Wilkinson's than Burr's.
Wilkinson knew the West as well as any man and sensed that many westerners
were ready to move against the Spanish. Admiral Truxton quoted Burr
as describing Wilkinson as "the projector" of the Conspiracy and as having
said that he "would never have thought of such designs but for the importunities
of Wilkinson."
By 1806, however, events convinced Wilkinson
to abandon his plans. When on October 8, 1806, he received Burr's
infamous ciphered letter, Wilkinson denounced Burr, alerted President Jefferson
of Burr's plan to attack Mexico, and moved to crush Burr's troops.
Wilkinson claimed ignorance of the entire enterprise and referred to Burr's
followers as "bandits." He said it was "the highest ambition of my
soul...to spend my last breath in the cause of my country."
Wilkinson send squads out to track down and
arrest Burr. After Burr's arrest in February, 1807, Wilkinson ordered
Burr transported by military guard to Washington (later the decision was
made to take Burr to Richmond for trial).
After three months spent in New Orleans trying
to line up witnesses to testify against Burr, Wilkinson arrived in Richmond
on June 15, 1807, to meet his adversary and to find himself the subject
of grand jury scrutiny. Wilkinson was dismayed, writing to
a friend: "I had anticipated that a deluge of testimony would have poured
forth from all quarters to overwhelm him [Burr] with guilt and dishonor.
Sadly, indeed, I was mistaken, and to my astonishment I found the traitor
vindicated and myself condemned by a mass of wealth, character, influence,
and talents....Did I ever expect it would depend upon my humble self to
stop the current of such a polluted stream? Never, never."
Wilkinson ultimately escaped indictment for treason and misdemeanor on
a 9 to 7 grand jury vote.
Wilkinson and Washington Irving, a courtroom
eyewitness, offered differing account's of the first meeting of the general
and Burr since Burr's arrest. Wilkinson wrote that upon seeing him,
Burr "averted his face, grew pale, and affected passion to conceal his
perturbation." Irving, on the other hand, said "Burr turned his head,
looked him full in the face with one of his piercing regards, swept his
eye over his whole person from head to foot, as if to scan his dimensions,
then coolly resumed his former position."
Wilkinson (who never testified in the trial)
remained a controversial figure throughout. Only Thomas Jefferson
was unwavering in his support of the general. Prosecutor Hay reported,
"My confidence in [Wilkinson] is shaken if not destroyed." John Randolph
described Wilkinson as "the most finished scoundrel that ever lived."
Historian Frederick Jackson Turner concurred in Randolph's judgment, calling
Wilkinson "the most consummate artist of treason that the nation ever possessed."
After Burr's trial, Wilkinson was court-martialed
in 1811 for being a pensioner of Spain while serving as general of the
United States Army, but was acquitted. In 1812, Wilkinson commanded
troops against the British in Canada, but met with defeat. He died
in Texas in 1825. |