Silas Deane is one of the unsung heroes of the Revolutionary War. He was a member of the First Continental Congress representing the state of Connecticut. He was twice married, wealthy (after marrying two wealthy widows), graduated from Yale summa cum laude, traveled extensively to France with his good friend and colleague Benjamin Franklin. With the Treaty of Alliance delegation, Deane secured France’s involvement and support of the colonists troopes in their fight against Great Britain. An ill-timed letter written by Deane, urging that America should surrender to the Brits, turned the American people against Deane. He was branded a spy (it didn’t help that one of his friends was Benedict Arnold) and he was denied passage home to defend himself. He came to an untimely end when……well, I guess you will just have to take the tour
Silas Deane was obviously not a looker!