Edmund Randolph

Randolph was born on August 10, 1753 to the influential Randolph family in Williamsburg in the Colony of Virginia. He was educated at the College of William and Mary. After graduation he began reading law with his father John Randolph and uncle, Peyton Randolph. In 1775, with the start of the American Revolution, Randolph's father remained a Loyalist and returned to Britain; Edmund Randolph remained in America where he joined the Continental Army as an aide-de-camp to General George Washington.[1]

Upon the death of his uncle Peyton Randolph in October 1775, Randolph returned to Virginia to act as executor of the estate, and while there was elected as a representative to the Fourth Virginia Convention. He was later mayor of Williamsburg, and then Attorney general of Virginia, a post he held until 1786.[1] He was married on August 29, 1776 to Elizabeth Nicholas, the daughter of Robert C. Nicholas, and had a total of six children, including Peyton Randolph, Governor of Virginia from 1811 to 1812.[2]

Miss Nicholas was daughter of the Hon. Robert Carter Nicholas, State Treasurer. Randolph wrote to his children after his wife's death:

"We were both born in the city of Williamsburg, within twelve hours of each other; myself on the 10th of August 1753, and she on the 11th. My aunt Randolph, who saw each of us soon after our birth, facetiously foretold that we should be united in marriage-a circumstance which, improbable at the time from the dissensions of our families, seemed daily to grow into an impossibility from their increasing rancor. In childhood we were taught the elements of reading at the same school... she won me by the best of all graces, cheerfulness, good sense, and benevolence. I do not recollect that I reflected much upon that range of qualities, which I afterwards found to be constituents of nuptial happiness; but Providence seemed to be kinder to me than my most deliberate judgment could have been... I desired nothing more than that she should sincerely persuade herself that she would be happy with me."[8]

On August 29, 1776, they were joined in wedlock. The relations between Randolph and his wife had always been true and tender. So free from friction had been the course of their united lives that his daughters could not forget the single instance of misunderstanding. Mrs. Randolph having related some incident, her husband hastily exclaimed: "That is mere gossip." The lady repaired to her room and did not answer her husband's gentle knock. Randolph then said, "Betsey, I have urgent business in town, but I shall not leave this house until permitted to apologize to you."[9] The door opened, and the unprecedented scene ended.

On March 6, 1810, a blow came from which Randolph could not recover; his wife died. After Mrs. Randolph's burial, the heartbroken husband wrote some account of her and of their married life, which was addressed to his children as "the best witnesses of the truth of the brief history."[9]

In part of this account Randolph wrote, "My eyes are every moment beholding so many objects with which she was associated; I sometimes catch a sound which deludes me so much with the similitude of her voice; I carry about my heart and hold for a daily visit so many of her precious relics; and, above all, my present situation is so greatly contrasted by its vacancy, regrets, and anguish, with the purest and unchequered bliss, so far as it depended on her, for many years of varying fortune, that I have vowed at her grave daily to maintain with her a mental intercourse."[9]

A scandal involving an intercepted French message led to Randolph's resignation as Secretary of State in August 1795. Randolph had been tasked with maintaining friendly relations with France.[1] The British Navy had intercepted correspondence from the French ministe Joseph Fauchet to his superiors and turned it over to Washington, who was dismayed that the letters reflected contempt for the United States and that Randolph had been primarily responsible. The letters implied that Randolph had exposed the inner debates in the cabinet to France and had told it that the administration was hostile to the country. At the very least, Elkins and McKitrick conclude, there "was something here profoundly disreputable to the government's good faith and character."

Washington immediately overruled Randolph's negative advice regarding the Jay Treaty. A few days later, Washington, in the presence of the entire cabinet, handed the minister's letter to Randolph and demanded an explanation for it. Randolph was speechless and immediately resigned. Chernow and Elkins[10][11] conclude that Randolph was not bribed by France but "was rather a pitiable figure, possessed of some talents and surprisingly little malice, but subject to self-absorbed silliness and lapses of good sense."

However, Randolph's own published Vindication illustrates his concerns regarding both public and private perceptions of his character, which held great value in the 18th century. In the event, Randolph secured a published retraction from Fauchet.[1]

After his resignation, Randolph was held personally responsible for the loss of a large sum of money during his administration of the state department. He was eventually adjudged to owe the government more than $49,000, which he paid.[1]

Grave of Edmund Randolph

After leaving the federal cabinet, Randolph returned to Virginia to practice law, where he was a leader of the state bar.[1] His most famous case was defending Aaron Burr at his trial for treason in 1807.

In 1791, Randolph was elected to the American Philosophical Society.[12]

Randolph lived his final years as a guest of his friend Nathaniel Burwell at Carter Hall, near Millwood, Virginia, in Clarke County. He suffered from paralysis in his final years and died at 60 on September 12, 1813. He is buried nearby at the Burwell family cemetery adjacent to "Old Chapel."

Randolph County, West Virginia was formed in 1787 and named in Randolph's honor.[13] Randolph County, Illinois was also named after him Randolph, who was the governor of Virginia when the state ceded what was then sometimes called Illinois County, Virginia (a title disputed by Pennsylvania and others) to the new federal government, which created the Northwest Territory. Randolph County's motto is "where Illinois began" because it was one of the first two settled counties in the territory. It contains Kaskaskia, the first seat of Illinois County, which later became the capital of Illinois Territory's capital and ultimately the state's first capital.

The Edmund J. Randolph Award is the highest award given by the US Department of Justice to persons who make "outstanding contributions to the accomplishments of the Department's mission."[14]

• Conway, Moncure D. Omitted Chapters of History: Disclosed in the Life and Papers of Edmund Randolph. Vol. 2. New York: G.P. Putnam's Sons, 1888. Print.
• Gutzman, Kevin R.C. "Edmund Randolph and Virginia Constitutionalism." The Review of Politics 66.3 (2004): 469–497. JSTOR. Web. February 5, 2015.
• Maier, Pauline. Ratification: The People Debate the Constitution, 1787–1788. New York: Simon & Schuster, 2010. Print.
• Stewart, David O. (2007), The Summer of 1787, New York: Simon & Schuster, ISBN 978-0-7432-8692-3

• Reardon, John J. (1975). Edmund Randolph: a biography. Macmillan. ISBN 978-0026012003. Retrieved May 25, 2011. Edmund Randolph.
• Randolph, Edmund (1855) [1795]. A Vindication of Edmund Randolph (new ed.). Richmond: Charles H. Wynne, printer. Retrieved May 25, 2011. Edmund Randolph. written by himself, with a preface by P.V. Daniel, Jr.
• Randolph, Edmund (1795). Vindication of Mr. Randolph's resignation. Philadelphia: Samuel Harrison Smith. Retrieved May 25, 2011.
• An Impartial Statement of The Controversy, Respecting the Decision of the Late Committee of Canvassers, Containing, The Opinions of Edmund Randolph, Esq. Attorney General of The United States, and Several Other Eminent Law Characters. New York: Thomas Greenleaf. 1792. Retrieved January 29, 2020.

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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Edmund Randolph.

• United States Congress. "Edmund Randolph (id: R000043)". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.
• A Guide to the Executive Papers of Governor Edmund Randolph, 1786–1788 at The Library of Virginia