Gouverneur Morris

Gouverneur Morris (January 31, 1752 – November 6, 1816) was an American statesman, a Founding Father of the United States, and a signatory to the Articles of Confederation and the United States Constitution.

He wrote the Preamble to the United States Constitution and has been called the "Penman of the Constitution".

While most Americans still thought of themselves as citizens of their respective states, Morris advanced the idea of being a citizen of a single union of states.

He was also one of the most outspoken opponents of slavery among those who were present at the Constitutional Congress.

Morris was born on January 31, 1752, the son of Lewis Morris Jr. (1698–1762) and his second wife, Sarah Gouverneur (1714–1786).

Morris's first name derived from his mother's surname; she was from a Huguenot family that had first moved to Holland and then to New Amsterdam.

In both Dutch and French, Gouverneur means "Governor".

Morris's half-brother Lewis Morris was a signer of the Declaration of Independence.

Another half-brother, Staats Long Morris, was a Loyalist major-general in the British Army during the American Revolution, and Morris's grandfather, Lewis Morris, was the chief justice of New York and British governor of New Jersey.

His nephew, Lewis Richard Morris, served in the Vermont Legislature and in the United States Congress.

His grandnephew was William M. Meredith, who was United States Secretary of the Treasury under Zachary Taylor.

Morris's father, Lewis Morris, was a wealthy landowner and judge.

Gouverneur Morris was born on the family estate, Morrisania, on the north side of the Harlem River, which was then in Westchester County but is now part of the Bronx.

Morris, a gifted scholar, enrolled at King's College, now Columbia University in New York City, at age 12.

He graduated in 1768 and received a master's degree in 1771.

He studied law with Judge William Smith and attained admission to the bar in 1775.

On May 8, 1775, Morris was elected to represent his family household in southern Westchester County (now Bronx County), in the New York Provincial Congress.

As a member of the congress, he, along with most of his fellow delegates, concentrated on turning the colony into an independent state.

However, his advocacy of independence brought him into conflict with his family, as well as with his mentor, William Smith, who had abandoned the Patriot cause when it pressed toward independence.

After the Battle of Long Island in August 1776, the British seized New York City.

Morris's mother, a Loyalist, gave his family's estate, which was across the Harlem River from Manhattan, to the British for military use.

Morris was a member of the New York State Assembly in 1777–78.

Morris was appointed as a delegate to the Continental Congress and took his seat in Congress on 28 January 1778.

He was selected to a committee in charge of coordinating reforms of the military with George Washington.

After witnessing the army encamped at Valley Forge, he was so appalled by the conditions of the troops that he became the spokesman for the Continental Army in Congress and subsequently helped enact substantial reforms in its training, methods, and financing.

He also signed the Articles of Confederation in 1778 and was its youngest signer.

In 1778, when the Conway Cabal was at its peak, some members of the Continental Congress attempted a no-confidence vote against George Washington.

If it had succeeded, Washington would have been court-martialed and dismissed as Commander-in-Chief of the Continental Army.

He represented Pennsylvania at the 1787 Constitutional Convention in which he advocated a strong central government.

He served on the committee that wrote the final draft of the United States Constitution.

After the ratification of the Constitution, Morris served as Minister Plenipotentiary to France.

He criticized the French Revolution and the execution of Marie Antoinette.

Morris returned to the United States in 1798 and won election to the Senate in 1800.

He represented New York in the United States Senate from 1800 to 1803.

Morris was born into a wealthy landowning family in what is now New York City.

After attending King's College (now Columbia University) he studied law under Judge William Smith and earned admission to the bar.

He was elected to the New York Provincial Congress before serving in the Continental Congress.

After losing re-election to Congress, he moved to Philadelphia and became the assistant U.S. Superintendent of Finance.

Affiliating with the Federalist Party, he lost re-election in 1803.

After leaving the Senate, he served as chairman of the Erie Canal Commission.