A Message of the President of the United States to Congress Relative to France and Great-Britain, Delivered December 5, 1793. With the Papers Therein Referred to, To Which Are Added the French Originals.

George Washington, Edmond-Charles Genet, Thomas Jefferson, et al.

Published by Printed by Childs and Swaine, Philadelphia, PA, 1793

About this Item

First Edition. Original publisher's beige paper wrappers. Untrimmed Edition. A never-bound copy. 5 1/2" x 8 3/4." 102 pages, complete. "Published by Order of the House of Representatives." Printed by Childs and Swaine of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Pages are clean and intact overall except for slight wear to extremities, age toning, and slight offsetting from the printed text. Covers are intact overall but have chipping along the edges not affecting text, chipping and discoloration along spine, and extensive dampstaining and darkening to front and back. Fine internally. A Good copy overall. A pamphlet containing printed correspondence, namely, the Message of President George Washington which he delivered on December 5, 1793 and related Papers about the Citizen Genet Affair. Washington's two-page Message is followed by the collection of Papers. All of the Papers are in English (English translations of the French originals included). Much of the correspondence is from Edmond-Charles Genet (1763-1834), a French ambassador also known as Citizen Genet, and Thomas Jefferson, who was serving as Secretary of State at the time. The Citizen Genet Affair revolved around the eponymous Genet and his efforts to have the United States come to France's aid during its wars with Britain and Spain. Genet was the first Minister Plenipotentiary, or ambassador, of the newly-formed French Republic who had been sent to garner U.S. military support. The Citizen Genet Affair caused much tension between the U.S. and France because the U.S. was decidedly neutral at the time and Washington had issued a Proclamation of Neutrality earlier that year on April 22, 1793. Despite knowing of the U.S.' neutral stance, Genet proceeded to rally American citizens to join France's war and ignored Washington's proclamation. While many American citizens were sympathetic toward the French Revolution, others were not so convinced including leaders in the U.S. government who were becoming concerned with the revolution's increasing level of violence. American political leaders and Genet reached an impasse when Genet continued to violate American neutrality laws following formal complaints from the U.S. government. Eventually, Washington, Jefferson, and other American political leaders tried to have Genet recalled back to France. However, during Genet's absence, a French political faction known as The Mountain had gained control of the French Republic in 1794 which was even more radical than its predecessors. In this turn of events, it was likely that Genet would be executed should he return to France because The Mountain had already issued a warrant for his arrest. Consequently, Genet was granted political asylum from Washington after Alexander Hamilton lobbied for his safety. The outcome of the Citizen Genet Affair was that the U.S. maintained its neutrality and Washington was praised for his handling of handling of the situation. The Citizen Genet Affair was also instrumental in the passage of the Neutrality Act of 1794.

Seller Inventory # 025051

Bibliographic Details

• Title: A Message of the President of the United States to Congress Relative to France and Great-Britain, Delivered December 5, 1793. With the Papers Therein Referred to, To Which Are Added the French Originals.
• Publisher: Printed by Childs and Swaine, Philadelphia, PA
• Publication Date: 1793
• Binding: Soft cover
• Edition: 1st Edition
• Condition: Good
• Seller catalogs:
  • Literature
  • U.S. History
  • Foreign Lands