biography
| sex:
| male
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| lived:
| (1744–1800)
|
| biography:
| American soldier and governor, born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA. One of the most radical members of the First Continental Congress, he became quartermaster general of the Continental army (1775–8). After supporting a plot to replace George Washington with General Horatio Gates, he disavowed it, but under criticism for his actions as quartermaster, he resigned. A Democratic-Republican in the Confederation Congress (1782–4), he attended the Constitutional Convention in 1787 and supported the new Constitution. He became governor of Pennsylvania (1790–9) and pursued Jeffersonian policies. Reluctantly calling for action against those involved in the so-called Whiskey Rebellion (1794), he dealt leniently with its leaders. |
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