Provisional Army of the United States
Provisional Army of the United States | |
---|---|
Founded | May 1798 |
Disbanded | June 1800 |
Country | United States |
Type | Army |
Size | 12 regiments of infantry 6 troops of cavalry Note: only 7 officers actually commissioned |
The Provisional Army of the United States was a
History
The Provisional Army of the United States was created as a second standing army to exist simultaneously with the
The
The Provisional Army of the United States was officially dissolved on June 15, 1800.[2]
Organization
The commanding officer of the Provisional Army was George Washington, who was commissioned at the rank of lieutenant general and to the post of "Commander in Chief of all the Armies of the United States," which gave him titular authority over both the Provisional Army of the United States and the United States Army.[7] The aging Washington accepted the appointment conditional to his ability to remain in secluded retirement at Mount Vernon until he was actually needed.[1] The Provisional Army's other officers included Major General Alexander Hamilton (Inspector General), Brigadier General William North (Adjutant General), and Dr. James Craik (Physician General).[2]
On paper, the Provisional Army was organized into one cavalry regiment and twelve infantry regiments.[2]
By the beginning of 1799 the officers had been appointed and in May 1799 recruiting began. By the time the Provisional Army was disbanded in June 1800, about 4,100 men had been mobilized, assembled in camps, and given from six to twelve months' training. Hamilton directed the preparation of new drill regulations to replace Steuben's, but before the task was finished the French crisis had ended and the Provisional Army was discharged.[dubious ]
The Mid Atlantic 12th, 13th and 14th regiments were organized into the Union Brigade and encamped in huts they erected in Plainfield New Jersey in the fall of 1799 until the disbandment in June 1800. The New England regiments were similarly encamped in Massachusetts and the southern regiments at Harper’s Ferry.
See also
Notes
- ^ The Eventual Army of the United States itself existed simultaneously with the Additional Army of the United States, which, unlike the Provisional Army and the Eventual Army, was not separate from the United States Army but was an expansion of the regular forces with personnel recruited for limited duration. The confusing proliferation of "armies" resulted in their frequent misidentification, occasionally even by Hamilton himself.[1][6]
References
- ^ JSTOR 364841.
- ^ JSTOR 20086163.
- US Army Center of Military History. United States Army. Retrieved November 5, 2018.
- U.S. Army Center of Military History. p. 36.
- ^ a b c "Introductory Note: To James Gunn, [22 December 1798]". Founders Online. National Archives and Records Administration. Retrieved November 5, 2018.
- JSTOR 2207665.
- ISBN 978-1416575887.