Baron Von Steuben (1730 - 1794)

By Charles Willson Peale
1781 – 1782

General Von Steuben was born in Magdeburg, Germany. He entered the Prussian army officer corps and served in the Seven Years War. He subsequently joined Frederick the Great's military staff and was later appointed to the Prussian court of Hollenzollen Hechingen. In 1777, Von Steuben traveled to Paris to offer his military service to Benjamin Franklin and Silas Deane, America's foreign commissioners. The Continental Army, impressed with his title and his refusal to accept a salary while in service, sent him to George Washington at Valley Forge.

Although he spoke no English, Von Steuben trained the amateur American soldiers in military discipline and battle readiness. This rigorous training saved the troops from complete defeat during the Battle of Monmouth. In 1779, Von Steuben prepared his Regulations for the Order and Discipline of the Troops of the United States. This text remained America's official military manual for over three decades. The artist Charles Willson Peale, a frequent visitor to the Continental Army's Valley Forge encampment, admired Von Steuben's "...skill and perservering industry [which] effected during the continuance of the troops at Valleyforge a most important improvement in all ranks of the army..."

Later in the war, Von Steuben commanded the Army supply center in Virginia and fought at Yorktown. Afterward, Washington employed him in a variety of duties. Von Steuben helped found the Society of the Cincinnati. After the war, the New York lesgislature granted him an estate. Von Steuben received a small pension from the United States government. However, he relied on friends like Alexander Hamilton to settle his mounting debts. Von Steuben died on November 28, 1794.

Oil on canvas
L 58.4, W 50.8 cm
Independence National Historical Park, INDE 11876