I Pledge My Life, My Fortune, My Sacred Honor

Fifty-Six Men Risked ALL For Their Countrymen’s Freedom

This time of year, I think of what the 56 brave British subjects gave us 249 years ago.  On the fourth of July, 1776 thirteen united colonies declared themselves to be free and independent states.  We were no longer the ugly stepchildren of the British Empire.  We were AMERICANS!

Compared to most of their fellow subjects, these fifty-six men were benefiting handsomely under British rule.  To a man, they were educated, landed gentlemen, well-to-do merchants and/or professional men.  They all knew, by placing their names on the Declaration of Independence, they were risking their lives, their wealth, and their futures. At least one lost his wife.

THESE FIRST THREE NEW AMERICANS WOUND UP IN THE SAME PRISON

EDWARD RUTLEDGE (1749-1800) Lawyer, South Carolina

At age 26 Rutledge was the youngest delegate to sign the Declaration of Independence.  During the American Revolution, Rutledge served alongside his brother John representing South Carolina in the Continental Congress (1774-1776). 

In May 1780, Rutledge was captured along with his co-signers of the Declaration of Independence, Arthur Middleton and Thomas Heyward during the siege of Charleston and were taken to St. Augustine, Florida. They were released during a prisoner exchange in July 1781.

THOMAS HEYWARD, JR. (1746-1809) Lawyer, Judge, South Carolina

As a member of the Continental Congress representing South Carolina, Heyward signed both the Declaration of Independence and Articles of Confederation.  He was the last delegate to sign the Declaration of Independence.

On August 27, 1780, British troops took him from his Charleston home and confiscated most of his property.  Hours after being arrested, he and 28 other "ringleaders of the rebellion" were relocated to a guard ship in the harbor. On September 4th, they were transported to St. Augustine, Florida, and remained there for about 11 months until they were freed in a prisoner exchange.

ARTHUR MIDDLETON (1743-1787), Lawyer, South Carolina

Middleton was elected as a delegate to the Continental Congress held in 1776 and remained until 1777. His estate was ravaged by British troops in 1779. When the British overran Charleston in 1780, he was captured, transported to St. Augustine, Florida and held prisoner for more than a year.  Most of his fortune was destroyed during the Revolution.

FRANCIS LEWIS (1713-1803) Merchant, New York

Lewis served in the Continental Congress from 1774 to 1779. In 1775, he purchased an estate on Long Island, and relocated his family there for their protection.  The home was destroyed by British soldiers, who also arrested his wife, Elizabeth, and denied her adequate food for weeks while in captivity.  Her hardships in captivity ruined her health and led to her death in 1778 after being released in a prisoner exchange.

RICHARD STOCKTON (1730-1781), Merchant, Lawyer, New Jersey

Stockton was the son of a wealthy landowner who donated land and helped create what is now Princeton University.

Along with fellow signer, George Clymer of Pennsylvania, he undertook an exhausting two-month journey to Fort Ticonderoga, New York.  On his return to Princeton, New Jersey, he traveled 30 miles east to the home of a friend to evacuate his family to safety. While there, on November 30, 1776, he and the friend were captured, dragged from their beds by British Loyalists, stripped of their property and force-marched to British troops.  

Stockton was placed in irons and treated as a criminal.  He was then moved to Provost Prison in New York, where he was intentionally starved and subjected to freezing cold weather.  After nearly five weeks of brutal treatment, Stockton was released on parole with his health ruined.  His Princeton estate was occupied by General Charles Cornwallis.  Stockton was paroled on January 13, 1777.

HOW MANY WEALTHY AMERICANS TODAY WOULD RISK ALL FOR THE BENEFIT OF THEIR COUNTRYMEN?  I CAN THINK OF ONLY ONE: PRESIDENT DONALD J. TRUMP