Henry Clinton papers, 1736-1850

University of Michigan William L. Clements Library

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Summary

Creator:: Clinton, Henry, Sir, 1738?-1795
Abstract:: The Henry Clinton papers contain the correspondence, records, and maps of Henry Clinton, who served under Thomas Gage and William Howe between 1775 and 1778, and was commander-in-chief of the British forces in North America from 1778 to 1782. Although the bulk of the papers cover his tenure as commander-in-chief, with particular attention to engagements in New York and New Jersey and the sieges of Charleston and Yorktown, they also document Clinton's efforts to restore his reputation after the war, and to some extent, his personal life. The Harriot Clinton and Elizabeth Carter diaries are described in a separate finding aid. In addition to this finding aid, three other research aids have been created for the Henry Clinton papers: The Subject Index provides access to the large number of people, events, places, and themes represented in the Henry Clinton papers; the Geographic Index catalogs references to specific places; and the Volume Descriptions provide brief overviews of the content of each volume in the collection. A list of the names of letter-writers in the collection is also available: Henry Clinton Papers Contributor List.
Extent:: 304 volumes (90 linear feet)
Language:: English
French
German
Spanish
Authors:: Collection processed and finding aid created by Shannon Wait, December 2010

Background

Scope and Content:

Series I: Chronological Materials

The Chronological Materials series (Volumes 1-220) comprises approximately 10,500 items, or over 75% of the collection. Covering the years 1736-1850, it contains a huge variety of document types, including incoming correspondence, Clinton's retained copies of outgoing letters, military documents, memoranda, financial accounts, printed matter, journals, meeting minutes, poetry, and newspaper clippings. The bulk of the material (approximately 7,500 items) concentrates on the years 1778-1782, when Clinton was commander-in-chief of the British forces in North America, although the postwar years are also well represented. All items in this series are arranged chronologically. This series has been indexed for General Subjects and Names and Geographic Subjects.

Pre-Revolutionary War: 1736-1774

Volumes 1-9 contain Clinton's pre-Revolutionary War papers, which cover the years 1736-1774, and primarily document his early career, personal life, and finances. Frequent subjects include Clinton's service in the Seven Years War in Europe; routine military matters related to the 12th Regiment of Foot, of which Clinton was colonel; Clinton's property in New York and Connecticut and his attempts to sell it; occasional personal and family matters; and Clinton's political career, including a few references to his service in Parliament. Clinton's most frequent correspondents during this period include William Phillips; William Picton; Henry Lloyd; Henry Fiennes Clinton, 2nd duke of Newcastle; and John Jervis, 1st earl of St. Vincent.

Of particular interest are:

Clinton's description of his being wounded and his gallantry at the Battle of Friedberg (August 30, 1761)
An interview between William Goldthwait and an unnamed Mataugwesauwack Indian, describing the location of the Mataugwesauwacks and other tribes of the upper Midwest and central Canada and comparing Mataugwesauwack and Penobscot women (July 1771)
A letter describing the relationship between Mary Dunckerley and King George II, which produced an illegitimate son, Thomas Dunckerley (June 9, 1766)
A letter to Clinton from his close confidant, William Phillips, shortly after the death of Clinton's wife, Harriot, which urges him to "throw off" his "unseemly way of thinking" and not to "lose the tribute due her virtues in an inexprimable maze of error." The papers contain only a handful of references to Clinton's wife and his grief over losing her ([1772] 8:43)

Clinton's service under Gage and Howe: May 1775- February 1778

Volumes 9-31 cover the period during which Clinton served in the Revolutionary War as third in command under General Thomas Gage (through September 26, 1775), and subsequently second in command under General William Howe (through February 4, 1778).

The primary writers and recipients of letters are Clinton's colleagues in North America, in particular, Thomas Gage, William Howe, Richard Howe, John Burgoyne, Charles Cornwallis, John Vaughan, Peter Parker, Thomas Graves, William Phillips, John Jervis, Hugh Percy, Charles Grey, and William Erskine. Correspondence also sheds light on Clinton's relationships with politicians, friends, and family members in England (primarily Lord Germain; Clinton's sisters-in-law, Elizabeth and Martha Carter; and Henry Fiennes Clinton, Duke of Newcastle, and his son,Thomas Pelham-Clinton, Lord Lincoln). The letters concern a variety of topics, including military strategy, troop movements, provisioning, battles, disagreements between military officers, reports of intelligence, encounters with Native Americans, attitudes of locals toward the British, and Clinton's grievances.

Several topics are covered in particular depth during this period. The Siege of Boston is well documented for the time between Clinton's arrival in Boston in May 1775 and his departure for the Carolinas in January 1776. Of particular interest are Lieutenant William Sutherland's account of the Battles of Lexington and Concord (April 26, 1775), various tactical discussions and firsthand reports of the Battle of Bunker Hill, and Clinton's strategy notes and records of conversations with Howe during the late autumn of 1775. After Clinton's arrival in South Carolina, the papers shift focus to possible methods of seizing Charleston, the relationships between the British Army and the Cherokee and Creek tribes, British failure at the Battle of Sullivan's Island and culpability in the matter, and the subsequent deterioration of the working relationship between Clinton and Admiral Sir Peter Parker.

Materials representing the latter half of 1776 record Clinton's return to New York, and the planning and administration of the New York and New Jersey campaign, with multiple accounts of the battles of Long Island, Trenton, and White Plains, and Clinton's continuing defense of his actions at Sullivan's Island. Also documented is the crumbling relationship between Clinton and Howe (particularly after the missed opportunities to deliver a decisive blow to the Americans in New York), and many aspects of the Saratoga campaign, including accounts of battles, Burgoyne's perspective on the events, and negotiations concerning the resulting “Convention Army” of captured British soldiers, including Clinton's plans to rescue them (January 18, 1778).

Other items of note include:

Intelligence report concerning the condition of the American Army one day before they left Whitemarsh, Pennsylvania, for Valley Forge, which describes the poor condition of the Army and their many shortages, and notes their use of leather from cartridge boxes for makeshift shoes (December 18, 1777)
A diary of an unknown officer in the 84th Regiment of Foot (Royal Highland Emigrants) for May-July 1776 (Volume 16) describing daily life and travels of the regiment
John Burgoyne's defense of his actions at Saratoga (October 20, 1777)

Clinton as Commander-in-Chief: February 1778-May 1782

The volume of papers increases greatly beginning in February 1778, upon General William Howe's resignation and the promotion of Clinton to commander-in-chief. Clinton's four-year tenure in this role is documented in Volumes 32-194, which contain chronologically arranged correspondence, military documents, reports, memoranda, newspaper clippings, printed matter, and a few journals and pieces of ephemera, which, taken together, document myriad aspects of the British prosecution of the war.

Clinton's correspondence during this period is quite varied and includes official, semi-official, and personal letters to him from a wide range of military and civilian writers both in North America and England, as well as Clinton's retained copies of many of his outgoing letters. Clinton's most frequent correspondents during his tenure as commander-in-chief were other British military officers, with whom he discussed many aspects of war planning and administration, particularly army and naval strategy; the logistics of transporting, provisioning, arming, and detaching troops; expenditures; army policies; and military engagements. The collection contains significant correspondence to and from the following officers (as well as many others) during this period: Charles Cornwallis, Marriot Arbuthnot, Francis Rawdon-Hastings, Leslie Alexander, Oliver DeLancey, Patrick Ferguson, John André, William Dalrymple, Frederick Haldimand, Guy Carleton, and John Graves Simcoe.

Although the series contains references to most battles and a number of lesser- known skirmishes between 1778-1782, some receive special attention in the correspondence, particularly the battles of Monmouth, Stony Point, Camden, King's Mountain, and Guilford Courthouse, and the sieges of Charleston and Yorktown. Letters reveal British planning, troop movements, strategy debates, reactions to successes and failures, casualties, and in the case of the two sieges, negotiations with the enemy forces.

Clinton's correspondence with the Cabinet of Great Britain, particularly with Lord George Germain, the Secretary of State for the American Department, is also an excellent source of information on high-level army strategy. The collection preserves both sides of the Clinton-Germain correspondence and documents Germain's numerous recommendations, many of which Clinton obeyed only reluctantly. Clinton's letters to Germain are an excellent source of information on his intentions in prosecuting the war, as well as his justifications of his actions in North America. They are also notable for their enclosures and attachments, which often contain first-hand accounts of battles or pressing issues from officers under Clinton.

Included are numerous intelligence reports, particularly on New York, New Jersey, and South Carolina. These reports provide information on the location, number, and condition of enemy troops, as well as their defenses, weaponry, and provisions. As the war drew on, Clinton and the British Army relied more heavily on deserters' depositions as a source of information on the Continental and French troops; these increased over time, with some providing basic information on American enlisted men. Also well-documented is the Arnold-André affair, regarding Benedict Arnold's defection to the British, promising them control of West Point, and John André's subsequent capture and execution. The series contains letters, documents, and drafts relating to the negotiations between André and Arnold under Clinton's authorization, including some of the letters in cipher from Arnold, under various pseudonyms, addressed to “John Anderson,” André's alias. Also present are letters concerning André's expedition and capture, attempts to exchange him, his farewell letter to Clinton (September 29, 1780), and Clinton's bleak account of André's fate and the progress of the war, written to his sisters-in-law on October 4, 1780.

Other notable topics covered during Clinton's tenure as commander-in-chief, 1778-1782, include:

Clinton's ongoing conflicts with Cornwallis, Arbuthnot, and other officers
The debate over the British evacuation of Rhode Island in the fall of 1779
Unsuccessful attempts by Clinton to capitalize on Continental Army mutinies, especially among the New Jersey and Pennsylvania lines
Military handling of plundering and profiteering and the role of the Commissary of Captures
Negotiations concerning the status of present-day Vermont
Clinton's frequently-expressed desire to resign
British protection of Loyalists and efforts to organize them

In addition, the series contains hundreds of military documents, including returns, memorials, depositions, reports, and minutes. The returns are particularly diverse in the types of information and statistics that they record, including casualties in battles, invalids in hospitals in New York and South Carolina, provisions, ordnance, supplies (including several returns of “intrenchment tools” at Yorktown), prisoners of war, and regular prisoners and their crimes. The returns also convey otherwise obscure statistics on African Americans, women, and children; officers frequently took a count of the number of women receiving provisions in New York or the number of African Americans assisting in various construction projects. The Subject and Name Index is particularly useful for locating a variety of returns and references to these groups in the collection.

Clinton's post-resignation papers (1782-1850)

The Henry Clinton papers also contain a considerable volume letters and documents which postdate his resignation as commander-in-chief. These are located in volumes 194-220, and span 1782-1850, with the bulk covering the years between 1782 and 1794. These materials focus primarily on Clinton's postwar career, including his pamphlet war with Cornwallis, his defense of his expenditures after a damaging report on them by the Commissioners of Public Accounts, his desire for the governorship of Gibraltar, and his interest in world politics, including the French Revolution, Third Mysore War, and the Northwest Indian War. Clinton's primary correspondents during this period are Peter Russell, the Duke of Newcastle, and Lord Lincoln (later the 3rd Duke of Newcastle). Of particular interest are Clinton's many defenses of his actions leading up to Yorktown, his discussions of the creation of the Commissary of Captures, and his expenditures as commander-in-chief.

Series II: Undated Materials

The Undated Materials series (Volumes 221-232) contains approximately 600 items, spanning roughly 1750-1795, with the bulk created during and slightly after the Revolutionary War. The documents, which are arranged alphabetically by author, are mainly correspondence and military items, but also include intelligence reports, memoranda, receipts, and other miscellaneous items. The series also contains numerous memorials requesting promotions or financial assistance from the British military.

The most frequent contributor to the series is Clinton himself, who produced the majority of the items in Volumes 222-226, or approximately 225 items. Clinton's letters and documents concern a wide variety of topics, including military strategy, his relationships with other military officers (particularly Cornwallis), defenses of his actions and expenditures during the war, his property in North America, and his health.

Other items of note include:

John André's autograph poem "The Frantick Lover" (221:3b)
An anonymous piece of pro-British propaganda entitled "Queries to a Renegado Rebel" (221:11)
Affidavit concerning burning of homes of Loyalists led by Brigadier-General Griffith Rutherford in Mecklenburg County, North Carolina (221:23)
Draft of a speech by Clinton to the House of Commons defending his wartime actions (223:2)
Postwar letter from Henry Clinton to Oliver Delancey concerning the plight of African American veterans of the Revolutionary War "deprived of their lands" in Nova Scotia (224:25)
Numerous proposals and plans, including Hector McAlester's plan for carrying out the war in Virginia (229:27)

Series III: Letter books and Other Correspondence

The Letter books and Other Correspondence series contains both bound and unbound correspondence which supplements and sometimes duplicates the correspondence found in the Chronological series. Contained in this series are the following 12 volumes: 235, 254-263, and 275.

Volume 235 spans 1793-1794 and contains 123 letters, primarily to Clinton from his sons, William Henry Clinton and Henry Clinton, both of whom served in the Flanders Campaign during the French Revolution. Letters mainly concern the younger Clintons' careers and family news. Clinton's youngest daughter, Harriot, wrote or co-wrote several of the letters.

Volume 254 contains 45 letters from Clinton to William Henry, Duke of Gloucester, spanning 1778-1789. Of these, Clinton wrote 31 during the period of the Revolutionary War, giving updates on the war effort and on mutual friends and acquaintances. The 14 post-war letters mainly concern Clinton's grievances over his reputation and defenses of his actions during the war, and mention his attempts to rehabilitate his reputation. Also included in the volume are typescripts for the letters. Gloucester's responses can be found in the Chronological series.

Volumes 255-256 contain five letter books spanning May 1778-May 1782 and comprising Clinton's letters to George Germain, Secretary of State. These bring together the letters from Clinton to Germain found within the Chronological series and provide Clinton's accounts of battles and engagements and his discussions of strategy during his time as commander-in-chief. In the subsequent volume (257) are two books of letters from Germain to Clinton, as copied by Clinton's secretary. These, too, duplicate the materials in the Chronological series. Likewise, the letter books in volumes 260-263 mainly unite duplicates of letters written by Clinton to Howe, Arbuthnot, Rodney, Graves, Hood, Digby, Phillips, Leslie, Arnold, and Cornwallis.

Volume 258 contains three items: Clinton's letter book of his correspondence to the Treasury (1781-1782), and two books of letters from the Treasury to Clinton, (1778-1782). All three letter books hold material which is not duplicated elsewhere in the collection. John Robinson, Secretary of the Treasury, is Clinton's correspondent throughout the three volumes. Robinson's letters primarily concern military expenditures--particularly those relating to provisioning, the keeping of prisoners, and quartering. Additionally, Robinson frequently requested justification for irregular spending and emphasized his problems in communicating with Clinton concerning these matters. The volume also contains copied meeting minutes of the Treasury Board, which Robinson provided for Clinton's perusal. Clinton's letters to Robinson describe and defend his expenditures, relay information uncovered by investigations into public accounts, and discuss and evaluate memorials addressed to him.

Volume 275 contains a letter book used first by John André (primarily in June-September 1780), and subsequently by Frederick Mackenzie and Oliver Delancey (September 1780-January 1781). The letter book contains letters that André wrote to various military officers in his capacity as deputy adjutant general, including Wilhelm von Knyphausen, Peter Russell, James Robertson, and Alexander Leslie. The letters primarily concern matters related to the adjutant general corps, including leaves of absence, embarkations, and attachments and detachments of troops.

Series IV: Clinton's Notebooks and Manuscript Writings

The Clinton Notebooks and Manuscript Writings series covers volumes 236-242, 271, and 278-284, and 286, and contains both bound and unbound writings by Clinton on a variety of subjects, including his actions at Sullivan's Island and Yorktown, the culpability of Lord Charles Cornwallis in the British defeat, his wartime expenditures and the Commissioners of Public Accounts, the Seven Years War, post-Revolution foreign affairs, and his relationship with his mistress, Mary Baddeley.

Volumes 236-237 contain 164 documents written by Clinton concerning the Commissioners of Public Accounts. Though undated, Clinton likely wrote them circa 1782-1790; many are fragments and re-workings of a few themes. In these documents, Clinton repeatedly defended himself and justifies his wartime expenditures in response to criticisms made against him by the Commissioners of Public Accounts in their seventh report; the Commissioners criticized Clinton's expenditures and praised Cornwallis. Clinton addressed such topics as discrepancies between his expenditures as commander-in-chief and those of William Howe, Cornwallis' expenditures in the Southern District, and his perceived unfairness of investigations into military spending.

Volumes 238-240 contain a total of 264 documents, primarily written by Clinton about Cornwallis' actions during the war. Though only a few of the documents are dated, all appear to have been written after Clinton's return to England in 1782. Those that are dated range from 1783-1791, with most between 1786 and 1788. In these writings, Clinton discussed Cornwallis' actions leading up to the defeat at Yorktown, and repeatedly found reasons to blame him for that failure and the loss of the war. Frequent topics include Clinton's disapproval of Cornwallis' march into Virginia, Patrick Ferguson's defeat at King's Mountain, British intentions regarding Charleston, the establishment of a post at Yorktown, and the actions and intentions of the Royal Navy in the Chesapeake. Many of the documents refer directly to Clinton's Narrative of His Campaigns, Cornwallis' An Answer to that Part of the Narrative of Lieutenant-General Sir Henry Clinton, K.B..., and Clinton's subsequent pamphlet, Observations on Lord Cornwallis' Answer. Supplementing the large volume of Clinton memoranda are several letters of support from unidentified Clinton defenders.

Volumes 241-242 contain miscellaneous memoranda written by Clinton.

Topics include:

Loyalist Claims
Charleston Prize
Commissary of Capture
Tactics
Rochambeau's Narrative
Notes on histories of the war
Seven Years' War
Gibraltar
Benedict Arnold
Sullivan's Island Affair
Third Anglo-Mysore War
Foreign relations with Spain
French Revolution
Russian affairs

Volume 271 contains miscellaneous notes written by Clinton (ca. 1785) in a book of household inventories kept in the late 1760s and early 1770s. The notes concern his thoughts on Charles Stedman's history of the Revolutionary War, as well as brief notes on wartime expenditures, Charles Cornwallis, and other topics.

Volumes 278-283 relate to Clinton's 1783 book, entitled Narrative of Lieutenant-General Sir Henry Clinton, K.B. relative to his conduct during part of his command of the King's troops in North-America: particularly to that which respects the unfortunate issue of the campaign in 1781. These volumes include his notes, from which he drafted the Narrative (Volume 278), an extract of the work (Volume 279), and a manuscript version of it (Volumes 280-283). Several printed editions of the Narrative are also available (Volumes 294, 295, 303, and 304).

Volume 284 contains 13 notebooks kept by Clinton, spanning approximately 1759 to 1794 with several large gaps.

Notebooks have been assigned letters of the alphabet (A-M), and are arranged alphabetically according to these designations.

Notebook A: Notes on Seven Years' War (European theater), including Battle of Prague and Prussian military tactics
Notebook B: Clinton's 1771 observations on Gibraltar, where he was second in command of the garrison. He noted the soldiers' love of rum and the poor state of the fort's defenses. For unclear reasons, he wrote some entries in cipher
Notebook C, part one: Orders for June 6-July 2, 1759 in Werte, Germany
Notebook C, part two: Clinton's journal of the Siege of Boston, which covers August 19-September 29, 1775. In it, Clinton commented frequently on strategy and described his relationships with Thomas Graves and Thomas Gage
Notebook D: Undated list of acquaintances and Clinton's accounts with them
Notebook E: Memorandum on expenditures for Clinton's daughter, Augusta (1776) and notes on organization and tracking of his correspondence (ca. 1780s)
Notebooks F-H, J: Postwar notes defending his actions as commander-in-chief and blaming failures on Cornwallis [n.d.]
Notebook I: Clinton's comments on the objectives of the Seven Years' War
Notebook K: Clinton's thoughts on the French Revolution (1793)
Notebook L: Clinton's memorandum to his sons, in which he described his connection with his longtime mistress, Mary Baddeley, as well as her background and personal qualities, and her husband's complicity in the relationship. Clinton also admitted that he had "many children" with her, and mentioned an illegitimate daughter in Germany and his support of her
Notebook M: Miscellaneous notes on promotions and military actions during Seven Years' War in Germany (ca. 1759-1760)

Volume 286 contains two memoranda books, marked A and B. In Book A, Clinton recorded 16 pages of abstracts of letters he received in the autumn of 1777. The abstracts primarily convey intelligence concerning the Hudson Highlands in New York, but also contain several notes on military proposals and information on British troop numbers and positions. Book B contains writings and drafts of letters by Clinton on a number of military strategy and Revolutionary War topics, likely written ca. 1774-1776. Subjects include Clinton's observations of the Russian army, Lord Francis Rawdon's bravery during the Battle of Bunker Hill, commentary on the Siege of Boston, and miscellaneous remarks on military strategy.

Series V: Financial Materials

The Financial Materials series comprises volumes 249-253, and 264. Within Volume 249 are ten account books recording Clinton's personal and household spending for the years 1758, 1765, 1767, 1767-1774, 1773, 1775, 1787, and 1795. Also present is an account book for Isaac Holroyd, a relative of Harriot Carter, covering 1778-1781 and one for Henry Clinton, Jr., spanning 1814-1816. Bound financial accounts for the Clinton family can also be found in Volume 253, which covers 1789-1793. Supplementing these account books are three volumes of the Clinton family's unbound accounts for 1748-1781 (Volume 250), 1783-1805 (Volume 251), and 1782-1790 (Volume 252). A partial record of Clinton's military expenditures while serving as commander-in-chief can be found in Clinton's warrant book, located in Volume 264. The book contains several hundred warrants issued by Clinton from his headquarters in New York between January 5, 1780, and September 5, 1781. Most of the warrants authorize payments for rations and soldiers' salaries. Many more financial records, documenting both Clinton's personal and official expenditures, are located within the Chronological series.

Series VI: Orders, Reports, and Other Military Documents

The Orders, Reports, and Other Military Documents series comprises Volumes 233, 265-268, 272-273, 285, 287, and 289, and supplements the numerous military documents found throughout the Chronological series.

Volume 233 contains 54 undated returns of the Great Britain Army, relating statistics concerning personnel, ships, ordnance, and provisions. Unfortunately, all are undated, but they appear to relate primarily to the Revolutionary War period. Two items are of particular interest for the information they contain on African American regiments: one document records the supplies needed to clothe 500 members of the Black Pioneers Regiment (233:42), while another lists the names of African Americans in "Captain Martin's Company" of the Black Pioneers Regiment.

Volume 265 contains an orderly book for the 38th Regiment of Foot while stationed in New York, 1764-1775, which includes instructions on the distribution of provisions, a prohibition on the taking of boats by officers, and other matters of discipline. An order for May 18, 1775, instructs soldiers on what to do in case of attack by Americans in Boston. Volume 266 contains general orders by Clinton, 1778-1782, primarily concerning promotions, paroles, rulings on courts martial, assignment of recruits, invalids, and troop movements. Volume 267 contains seven volumes.

These include:

Reports on the distribution and recapitulation of British troops, 1779-1781
The minutes of the British "War Council" (duplicated in the Chronological series), in which Clinton, Robertson, Campbell, Knyphausen, Leslie, and Affleck debated the timing of sending reinforcements to Yorktown in 1781
Army promotions, by regiment
Lists of quarters occupied by various units and departments of the British Army
A copy of an oath of allegiance to the British and lists of names of inhabitants of various townships in the vicinity of New York City
Two volumes of information on ports and trading by colony, with notes on smuggling

Volume 268 contains the proceedings of a Board of General Officers at New York, appointed to assess wartime expenditures in late 1781. The report contains information on men, women, and children victualled with various regiments and departments; lists of ships and their masters; and comparative information on expenses between1775 and 1781.

The series also includes two Army lists (Volumes 272-273) that provide the names of general and staff officers for British regiments, Hessian corps, and provincial corps. The 1779 list is printed, and contains annotations by John André, while the 1781 list is a manuscript.

Volume 285 contains three of Clinton's military notebooks recording orders, instructions, tactics, and strategies, and covering Clinton's early military career in the 1740s and 1750s. These notebooks shed light on Clinton's military education and early experiences, and include his "thoughts on modern military authors," extensive rules for officers, several diagrams and drawings of battlefields, and accounts of the movements of the 1st Regiment of Foot Guards around Germany during the Seven Years War.

Volume 287 contains three orderly books produced during the 1750s.

These include:

Undated orders in French, issued by Louis Georges Érasme de Contades during the Seven Years' War
Clinton's orderly book for the 2nd Battalion, Coldstream Regiment of Foot Guards, of which he was captain (1751-1754)
Clinton's orderly book for the Coldstream Regiment of Foot Guards, 1753-1757

Volume 289 contains documents relating to the Brunswick Corps, 1789-1793, including accounts, returns, and orders. Nearly all are in French.

Series VII: Intelligence

The Intelligence series comprises Volumes 234, 274, 276, and 291 and supplements the large amount of intelligence materials found throughout the Chronological series. Forty-seven intelligence items, comprising both tools and accounts, have been brought together in Volume 234. This includes 37 reports (one with invisible ink on the verso), 5 ciphers, 2 codes, 2 masks (used to reveal hidden messages in letters), and a narrow strip of paper containing intelligence, which could be easily concealed. In addition to providing numerous examples of the information with which the British worked, this volume sheds light on the many varied methods used to convey sensitive and secret reports. Items range in date from 1777-1781, and contain intelligence gathered on the positions of American troops, the location of the French navy, the names of English and Hessian deserters, and of suspected American sympathizers. The documents also reveal information on several spies, including a female agent, whom other spies had "trusted often" (234:27). Other reports provide geographical details on locations such as Massachusetts and New Hampshire, and information on the number and location of enemy ordnance. Several documents refer to Native Americans, including General John Sullivan's attacks on the British-allied Iroquois (234:10).

Volume 274 contains John André's intelligence book for the years 1779-1780, featuring dozens of brief intelligence reports delivered by spies, deserters, and loyalists, and recorded by André. In addition to André's entries in the book, there are several unbound reports in his hand and letters from George Beckwith, James Delancey, and Gabriel George Ludlow, laid into the volume. The entries mainly concern such matters as the location, numbers, weaponry, and provisions of the American forces; they pertain primarily to New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, and Rhode Island. The volume ends at July 23, 1780, and makes no mention of the Arnold-André affair.

Also of note are Virginia War Office letter books (Volume 276), which were captured by the British around 1781; they provided intelligence concerning American war efforts in Virginia. The volume contains two letter books, covering 1777-1781. Book I spans October 15, 1777-November 1780, and consists of copies of 28 documents issued by Patrick Henry and Thomas Jefferson, governors of Virginia in 1776-1779 and 1779-1781, respectively. Ten of the items are commissions appointing American representatives to various locations, including the Netherlands, Italy, France, and St. Eustatius. Other items include Jefferson's proclamation regarding land for returning soldiers near the Ohio River (pp. 31-33), articles of agreement between the Commonwealth of Virginia and a French representative regarding trade between Virginia and France (pp. 34-36), and orders allowing the Commonwealth government to impress various goods for the supplies of the militia (pp. 39, 41-42).

Book II covers November 8, 1779-November 20, 1780, and contains approximately 106 resolutions, statements of approval, and letters. The majority of the resolutions deal with the finances and supplies for the war, with several documents at the end of the letter book addressing the disposition of hospitals. Many of the entries in late 1779 and early 1780 concern the construction of defenses against the British, as well as the maneuvering of supplies and men away from the coast and up the James and York Rivers. All but a few of the documents are dated from the War Office in Williamsburg, then Virginia's capital. The back of the book contains 29 pages of accounts for the War Office, spanning October 7, 1779-January 1781.

Some items of note include:

A document stating the duties of the Commissary of Stores and the amounts of rum, coffee, sugar, and tea given to men of specific ranks within the army (November 11, 1779)
A document containing specific instructions and preparations for fortifying Virginia against an anticipated winter attack from the British (November 16, 1779)
A small chart and prose explanation of the assignment of hospital staff and supplies to various Virginia regiments and the United States Navy (January 28, 1780)

Series VIII: Other Clinton Family Members

The Other Clinton Family Members Materials series series comprises items created by several of Clinton's relatives. Volume 288 contains the military notebook of Clinton's son, William Henry Clinton (1769-1846). William wrote in the book periodically between 1793 and 1801, while he served in several campaigns during the French Revolution as captain and later as lieutenant-colonel of the First Regiment of Foot Guards, and then as aide-de-camp to the Duke of York. The book contains Clinton's account of the Siege of Dunkirk in 1793, as well as lengthy descriptions of the Brittany coast, Île d'Yeu, and Madeira. These give accounts of the geography, infrastructure, agriculture, inhabitants, and governments of these areas. The last three pages of the volume describe a successful experiment to melt ice in the Netherlands.

Also of note are 12 oversize journals kept by Henry Clinton's sister-in-law, Elizabeth Carter (Volume 290). Along with her sister Martha (ca. 1745-1783), Elizabeth Carter (1741-1817) cared for Henry Clinton's children and household after their sister Harriot Clinton's death and during Clinton's tenure in North America. The journals contain nearly 800 pages of entries, covering 1774-1795, and are a rich source of information on the Clintons' and Carters' home life. Elizabeth rarely committed detailed observations to paper, but she was a precise recorder of daily events, especially the movements and activities of various members of the household. In her journals, Carter expressed deep devotion to Clinton's children, and noted milestones like losing teeth and the boys' transition to long pants, as well as details about their health and educational activities. She also kept track of the letters she received from Clinton, whom she frequently called "my dearest Genl." (September 6, 1776), and the family's many social visits, particularly to the Duke of Newcastle. Though Carter lived until 1818, the journal ends the day before Clinton's death, December 23, 1795. Volume 290 also contains the only item in the collection written by Clinton's wife, Harriot--a diary of very short entries noting financial transactions and a few activities for 1767-1772. It includes payments to a nurse and for household items, as well as several references to the Clinton children. The Harriot Clinton and Elizabeth Carter diaries are described in a separate finding aid.

Series IX: Books

The collection contains 14 books and pamphlets, mainly related to Clinton and his colleagues' postwar reputations. See Volumes 291-305 in the box and folder listing for titles.

Series X: Maps

The Maps series contains 380 maps used by Clinton and other British military officers, spanning 1750-1806, with the bulk created during the American Revolution. Of these, 335 are manuscript and 45 are printed; they vary greatly in size, from sketches occupying only six square inches, to larger wall maps covering 6 square feet. Henry Clinton created 22 of the maps and sketches himself; the other most frequently represented cartographers are Claude Joseph Sauthier (10 maps), John Hills (9), Edward Fage (8), John Montresor (8), Joseph F.W. Des Barres (6), Abraham d'Aubant (5), and Patrick Ferguson (5).

Over 300 of the maps depict locations in North America, including their geographic, demographic, and military features. The most common subjects are New York (98 maps), New Jersey (46), Rhode Island (44), South Carolina (27), Virginia (26), Massachusetts (24), North Carolina (11), and Pennsylvania (8). In addition to such features as roads, waterways, towns, and boundaries, many maps show extant military works and proposed locations for forts, works, batteries, and barracks. Others reveal troop movements and formations during battles and sieges, including Saratoga, Monmouth, Camden, Guilford Courthouse, and Yorktown. A few maps also convey information on Native Americans, including the boundaries of Creek land, the locale of the Battle of the Wabash (St. Clair's defeat) in 1791, and the locations of Cherokee villages.

Approximately 75 maps in the collection represent areas outside North America. These include maps associated with various campaigns in the French Revolution, the Third Anglo-Mysore War in India, and the European theater of the Seven Years' War.

For a complete list of the 380 maps in the Henry Clinton papers, search for "Clinton maps" (include the quotes) in the University of Michigan online catalog.

Series XI: Miscellany

The Miscellany series includes Volumes 243-248, containing approximately 735 undated, miscellaneous items. The series covers a range of topics, including postwar defenses of Clinton's actions as commander-in-chief written by Clinton and others, comments on world politics, a few pieces of wartime intelligence, notes on military tactics, and scattered discussion of strategy in North America.

Some highlights include:

A manuscript giving details on Fort Putnam and other works near West Point, and a possible plan of assault (243:6)
Intelligence from two African Americans, identified as “Murphy & Abraham” (243:24)
Descriptions of military maneuvers for training British troops, including rudimentary drawings (246:45-46)

In addition to this finding aid, three other research aids have been created for the Henry Clinton papers: The Subject Index provides access to the large number of people, events, places, and themes represented in the Henry Clinton papers, the Geographic Index catalogs references to specific places, and the Volume Descriptions provide brief overviews of the content of each volume in the collection.

The Manuscripts Division has also created a list of the names of letter-writers in the collection: Henry Clinton Papers Contributor List.

Biographical / Historical:

Sir Henry Clinton was born in England on April 16, 1730, the son of George Clinton (1686-1761) and Anne Carle (1696-1761). His father served 35 years in the Royal Navy and as governor of Newfoundland (1733-41) and New York (1743-1753), and was the uncle of Henry Fiennes Clinton, 2nd duke of Newcastle. Clinton's mother was the daughter of Major-General Peter Carle. George and Anne Clinton had two additional children: Mary (1727-1813) and Lucy (1729-1750).

Henry Clinton's first military experience came in 1745, when he became a lieutenant of fusiliers in an independent company of infantry. He obtained a commission as a captain the following spring and was involved in the occupation of the French fortress of Louisbourg on Cape Breton during King George's War. By the autumn of 1748, Clinton had risen to the rank of captain lieutenant, and in the summer of 1749 he was promoted to captain and granted leave to go to France.

During this period, the Duke of Newcastle secured Clinton a commission in the Coldstream Guards, where Clinton served from 1751 to 1758. After his time in the unit, he joined the 1st Foot Guards from 1758 to 1762, where he was promoted lieutenant-colonel. During the Seven Years' War, Clinton served with his regiment in Germany, where he was aide-de-camp to Prince Charles of Brunswick. Promoted to colonel, he was wounded in late August 1762 in the Battle of Friedberg, and returned to England where he continued his military career, becoming colonel of the 12th Regiment of Foot in 1766. In 1772, he entered Parliament on behalf of his cousin, the 2nd Duke of Newcastle; in the same year, Clinton was promoted to major general, and in February 1775 he accepted an appointment as third in command of British forces in North America under Thomas Gage and William Howe.

Arriving in Boston on May 25, 1775, Clinton immediately became involved in planning and executing British military strategy. Though successful in persuading a council of war to fortify Dorchester Heights, his recommended action against Nook's Hill was never carried out, and his relationships with Gage and Howe became increasingly strained. Clinton found himself unable to dissuade Gage from launching the attack on Charlestown Neck in the Battle of Bunker Hill that contributed to high British casualties. On September 26, following a lack of success against the rebels, Gage was ordered to transfer his command to Howe, and Clinton became second in command.

After being appointed to lead a detachment of Howe's forces in North Carolina, Clinton sailed from Boston in January 1776. In June of that year, Clinton led a joint force of Howe's detachment and forces newly arrived from England in an assault against Sullivan's Island, which commanded the entrance to Charleston, South Carolina. The attack failed, in part because of a miscalculation of water depth, and Clinton returned north, arriving in Sandy Hook with Charles Cornwallis and a contingent of 45 ships and 3,000 troops. Clinton was present at the Battle of Long Island on August 27, but was unable to convince Howe to accept his plans to destroy Washington's army. He was, however, able to capture Rhode Island on December 8, where he set up winter quarters.

After being granted leave, Clinton arrived in England on February 28, 1777, where he was invested with the Order of the Bath in April and briefed on the British government's plans for the prosecution of the war. Upon his return to New York in July, he learned of the campaign planned by Howe and Burgoyne in his absence, in which Howe would move against Philadelphia and New York while Burgoyne simultaneously invaded from Canada. Clinton failed to convince Howe that the government expected him instead to cooperate with a British force moving south from Canada in a campaign along the Hudson River, and was left to hold New York City while Howe proceeded to Pennsylvania. In early October, Clinton embarked with three thousand troops, intent on going up the Hudson to meet Burgoyne's forces, and on October 5 he was able to capture the Highland forts. A displeased Howe stripped Clinton of his troops, which, combined with Burgoyne's defeat at Saratoga, prompted Clinton to request to resign. Howe could not, however, grant Clinton's resignation as he had already submitted his own and needed to keep Clinton as his presumptive successor. On February 4, 1778, George Germain accepted Howe's resignation and informed Clinton of his promotion to commander-in-chief of the British forces in North America.

After France announced its treaty with the United States on March 13, 1778, Clinton was ordered to send five thousand troops to capture the French colony of St. Lucia and three thousand more to reinforce the Floridas and Britain's position in Nova Scotia and Newfoundland. He evacuated Philadelphia in June and subsequently marched to New Jersey, where, on June 28, he engaged Continental troops at the Battle of Monmouth, the only battle that he commanded during the war. After an inconclusive result, Clinton and his army were ferried to New York to which, after a brief stint in Rhode Island, Clinton returned in September. In November, he sent seven thousand men south in a successful attempt to assist loyalists in the restoration of royal government in Georgia. Despite the promise of success, Clinton remained in New York through the spring and summer of 1779, capturing Stony Point and Verplanck's Point in May, but primarily awaiting reinforcements before embarking on any large military action. When these reinforcements did arrive in late August, Clinton prepared to meet the incoming French forces by withdrawing his forces from the Points and, on October 7, evacuating Rhode Island.

On December 26, 1779, Clinton embarked with Mariot Arbuthnot for South Carolina in an attempt to capture Charleston. The British Army landed near Charleston on February 14, 1780, and besieged the city in an attempt to capture both the city and the large American army quartered there. After Charleston's surrender on May 12, Clinton established the British hold on the South by building armed camps in the South Carolina interior and raising local Loyalist units. Before leaving, Clinton appointed Lord Cornwallis to take command of the British forces in the southern provinces, which numbered approximately 6,500 troops. Clinton returned to New York on June 18, but gradually saw his movements restricted by the arrival of French troops at Rhode Island. Consequently, he moved his army southward, inadvertently focusing the war on Virginia.

Meanwhile, Cornwallis attempted to invade North Carolina, necessitating the transfer of significant reinforcements from Clinton's army. After defeating Horatio Gates at the Battle of Camden, Cornwallis was able to take his remaining force to Virginia, leaving the interior of South Carolina exposed and greatly angering Clinton, who still did not intend to concentrate the war effort on the southern colonies. With the knowledge that the approaching French fleet would make British forces in the Chesapeake vulnerable, Clinton nonetheless allowed Cornwallis to establish a base at Yorktown, where Cornwallis was eventually forced to surrender on October 19, 1781. On that same day, Clinton and Admiral Thomas Graves embarked from Sandy Hook with the intention of engaging the French fleet and relieving Cornwallis position, but the defeat at Yorktown irrevocably handed victory to the Americans.

Clinton's active military career was effectively ended after the defeat at Yorktown, and on April 27, 1782, he received Lord Germain's dispatch accepting his resignation; a day later he was notified that Sir Guy Carleton was appointed his successor. Clinton returned to England in June 1782, where he found his reputation severely undermined by his failure in America and where he subsequently undertook various efforts to defend his actions in the war. His efforts to rehabilitate his reputation included writing pamphlets against Cornwallis and a long unpublished manuscript apologia. Despite his unpopularity, Clinton secured a seat in Parliament from 1790-1794, representing Launceston, Cornwall. On December 23, 1795, after receiving the governorship of Gibraltar, but before he could embark, Clinton died at Portland Place, his home in London.

On February 12, 1767, Clinton married Harriot Carter (ca. 1746-1772), with whom he had at least four children: Augusta (1768-1852), William Henry (1769-1846), Henry (1771-1829), and Harriot (1772-1812). Before their marriage, they may have had an additional child, Frederick, who died in 1774. Clinton also had a daughter, Sophia, with a German woman named Elizabeth Preussen, and several children with his longtime mistress, Mary Baddeley.

Acquisition Information:

1928, 1937, 1950, 1958, 1958, 1959, 1963, 1963, 1963, 2013. M-42, M-334, M-777, M-1079, M-1082, M-1123, M-1236, M-1237, M-1274, M-5016 .

Processing information:

Cataloging funded by the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) and the "We the People" project.

Arrangement:

The Henry Clinton papers were arranged into their current order and individually numbered in the mid-20th century.

This order has been maintained; however, the items have been grouped intellectually into the following eleven series:

Chronological Materials
Undated Materials
Letter books, Memoranda, and Other Correspondence
Clinton Notebooks and Manuscript Writings
Financial Materials
Orders, Reports, and Other Military Documents
Intelligence
Other Clinton Family Members Materials
Books
Maps
Miscellany

Rules or Conventions:

Finding aid prepared using Describing Archives: A Content Standard (DACS)

Additional Descriptive Data:

Alternate Locations

Three hundred and eighty Clinton-related maps are housed in the Map Division and have been individually cataloged. Search "Clinton maps" in the University Library's online catalog to view their catalog records.

Related Materials

The Clements Library has a number of collections with letters to and from Henry Clinton:

Collections containing letters written by Clinton

The James Douglas papers contain one letter written by Henry Clinton to [William Henry, Duke of Gloucester, 1788].
The Thomas Gage papers contain two letters written by Henry Clinton: to Thomas Gage, August 26, 1775, and to William Legge, October 8, 1775.
The George Germain papers contain seven letters written by Henry Clinton: to John Burgoyne, October 8, 1777; to John Burgoyne, October 1777; to George Washington, March 31, 1779; to an unknown recipient, June 15, 1780; to George Germain, July 4, 1780; to George Germain, July 27, 1778-September 1, 1780; to Marriot Arbuthnot, December 8, 12, 13, 1780. The collection also contains copies of several letters between Clinton and Marriot Arbuthnot, June 22, 1780-August 11, 1780.
The Freiherr von Jungkenn papers contain one letter written by Henry Clinton to [Johann Christoph von] Huyne, May 13, 1780.
The Frederick Mackenzie papers contain two letters written by Henry Clinton: to Marriot Arbuthnot, June 1, 1780, and to [Roger Morris], undated. The collection also contains orders for the British Army written by Henry Clinton, from May 11, 1778-November 2, 1778.
The James McHenry papers contain one letter written by Henry Clinton to George Germain, January 30, 1780.
The James Moncrieff papers include correspondence between Moncrieff and Sir Henry Clinton.
The Schoff Revolutionary War collection contains one letter written by Henry Clinton to an unknown recipient, May 5, 1776.
The Shelburne papers contain seventeen letters written by Henry Clinton: to Charles Grey, July 3, 1779; to William Phillips, April 26, 1781; to William Phillips, April 30, 1781; to Charles Cornwallis, June 11, 1781; to an unknown recipient, July 28, 1781; to an unknown recipient, August 20, 1781; to an unknown recipient, October 19, 1781; to C. J., December 7, 1781; to Alexander Leslie, December 20, 1781 (two items); to G. G., December 1781; and six written to George Germain between March 18, 1782 and April 12, 1782.
The John Graves Simcoe papers contain five letters written by Henry Clinton: to George Germain, November 8 and December 8, 1781; to Henry Seymour Conway, 1782; to an unknown recipient, March 1789; to an unknown recipient, April 20, 1790; to John Graves Simcoe, June 10, 1785 and 1792.
The Thomas Townshend, 1st Viscount Sydney papers contain one letter written by Henry Clinton to [William Petty, 2nd Earl of Shelburne], July 1, 1782.
The Benjamin and William Oliver Vaughan papers contain four letters written by Henry Clinton: one to an unknown recipient, February 21, 1780, and three to John Vaughan dated April 27, 1780, May 25, 1780, and November 2, [1780].

Collections containing letters written to Clinton

The George Clinton papers contain ten letters written to Henry Clinton from a variety of correspondents, including nine written by George Clinton between September 20, 1749 and May 14, 1753, a letter from J[ohn] A[yscough] dated November 24, 1752, and a letter from Robert Morris dated January 13, [1750].
The Thomas Gage papers contain one letter addressed to Henry Clinton, from Henry Moore, November 30, 1767.
The George Germain papers contain ten letters written to Henry Clinton: from George Germain, [1777-1778]; from George Germain, March 8, 1778-September 27, 1779; from Thomas DeGrey, September 28, 1779; from Marriot Arbuthnot, October 18, 1779; from George Germain, 1778-1779; from Charles Cornwallis, June 30, 1780; from Francis Rawdon, October 28, 1780; from George Brydges Rodney, November 4, 1780; from Marriot Arbuthnot, December 9, 12, 13, 1780; from William Knox, July 24, 1781. Additionally, the Germain secret dispatch book contains numerous dispatches addressed to Henry Clinton, encompassing the period from March 8, 1778, to January 2, 1782. These were primarily written by Germain himself but also by Thomas DeGrey (January 23, 1779), King George III (March 21, 1778 and July 22, 1779), and William Knox (December 6, 1778, and January 23, 1779).
The Nathanael Greene papers contain two letters written to Henry Clinton: from Thomas Burke, November 6, 1781, and from Welbore Ellis, March 6, 1782.
The Freiherr von Jungkenn papers contain one letter written to Henry Clinton, from Charles Cornwallis, [October 20, 1781].
The William Knox papers contain two letters written to Henry Clinton: from George Germain, [December 28, 1780], and from William Knox, [1780].
The Frederick Mackenzie papers contain six letters written to Henry Clinton: from Alexander Innes, April 30, 1778; from George Germain, January 23, 1779; from George Germain, November 4, 1779; from James Robertson, March 17, 1782; from James Robertson, March 22, 1782; and from [Frederick Mackenzie], March 1782.
The James McHenry papers contain one item written to Henry Clinton, by [James McHenry], October 26, 1779.
The James Moncrieff papers contain several letters written to Henry Clinton between February 10, 1781, and March 13, 1782. These letters appear in his letter books.
The Shelburne papers contain twenty-two letters written to Henry Clinton: from Alexander Leslie, February 2, 1782 and February 18, 1782; from Charles Cornwallis, April 23, 1781 and May 26, 1781; from the Georgia Council, December 31, 1781; from James Wright, January 2, 1782; from Welbore Ellis, February 12, 1782; from the South Carolina police and forwarded by Alexander Leslie, February 18, 1782; from Archibald Campbell, March 8, 1782; from James Robertson, March 21, 1782 and March 22, 1782; from an unknown author, March 30, 1782. Additionally, ten letters written to Henry Clinton by George Germain are in the Shelburne papers, July 4, 1780-February 6, 1782.
The John Graves Simcoe papers contain three letters written by John Graves Simcoe to Henry Clinton: August 23, 1781, and June 15, 1785, [1790], and one undated.

Bibliography

Gruber, Ira D., 'Clinton, Sir Henry (1730--1795).' In Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, 2004; online edition, Jan 2008, accessed October 5, 2010.

Willcox, William Bradford. Portrait of a General: Sir Henry Clinton In the War of Independence. New York: Knopf; [distributed by Random House], 1964.

Henry Clinton Timeline
Date	Event
1730 April 16	Henry Clinton is born
1767 February 12	Clinton marries Harriet Carter
1772 August	Harriet (Carter) Clinton dies
1775 May 25	Clinton arrives in Boston
1775 September 26	Thomas Gage transfers command to William Howe; Clinton becomes second-in-command
1776 January	Clinton departs Boston for Cape Fear, North Carolina
1776 May 31	Clinton and Peter Parker depart Cape Fear for Charleston, South Carolina
1776 June 28	Clinton participates in failed assault against Sullivan's Island, South Carolina
1776 August 1	Clinton and Charles Cornwallis arrive in Sandy Hook, New York, with 45 ships and 3,000 troops
1776 August 27	Clinton participates in the Battle of Long Island
1776 December 8	Clinton captures Rhode Island
1777 January 13	Clinton sails for England
1777 February 28	Clinton arrives in England
1777 April 11	Clinton invested with the Order of the Bath
1777 Early July	Clinton arrives in New York
1777 October 3-4	Clinton departs for Verplanck's Point with 3,000 troops
1777 October 5	Clinton captures the Highland forts
1777 October 22	William Howe submits his resignation
1777 Winter	Clinton remains in New York
1778 February 4	George Germain accepts Howe's resignation; Clinton is informed of his promotion to commander-in-chief
1778 May 8	Clinton assumes position as commander-in-chief at Philadelphia
1778 June 18	Clinton evacuates Philadelphia
1778 June 28	Clinton commands at Battle of Monmouth Court House
1778 July 5	Clinton and his army are ferried to New York
1779 May 30	Clinton captures Stony Point and Verplanck's Point
1779 October 7	Clinton orders the evacuation of Rhode Island
1779 December 26	Clinton and Mariot Arbuthnot depart for South Carolina
1780 February 14	The British Army lands at Charleston and besieges the city
1780 May 12	Charleston surrenders
1780 June 8	Clinton and Arbuthnot depart Charleston for New York; Cornwallis placed in command of British forces in the southern provinces
1780 June 17	Clinton and Arbuthnot arrive in New York
1781 April 23	Cornwallis announces his move into Virginia
1781 October 19	Clinton and Admiral Thomas Graves depart Sandy Hook; Cornwallis surrenders at Yorktown, Virginia
1782 April 27	Clinton receives Lord Germain's acceptance of his resignation
1782 May 5	Sir Guy Carleton assumes position as commander-in-chief
1782 May 13	Clinton sails for England
1782 June	Clinton arrives in England
1784	Clinton publishes a defense of himself and responds to the seventh report of the Commissioners of Public Accounts
1795 December 23	Henry Clinton dies

In addition to this finding aid, three other research aids have been created for the Henry Clinton papers:

The Subject Index provides access to the large number of people, events, places, and themes represented in the Henry Clinton papers.
The Geographic Index catalogs references to specific places.
The Volume Description provides brief overviews of the content of each volume in the collection.

The Manuscripts Division has also created a list of the names of letter-writers in the collection: Henry Clinton Papers Contributor List.

Other Finding Aids:

The Harriot Clinton and Elizabeth Carter diaries are described in a separate finding aid.

In addition to this finding aid, three other research aids have been created for the Henry Clinton papers:

The Subject Index provides access to the large number of people, events, places, and themes represented in the Henry Clinton papers; the Geographic Index catalogs references to specific places; and the Volume Descriptions provide brief overviews of the content of each volume in the collection.

The Manuscripts Division has also created a list of the names of letter-writers in the collection: Henry Clinton Papers Contributor List.

Alternative Form Available: