Angelica Schuyler: A Revolutionary Life and Her Charged Relationship with Alexander Hamilton

Early Life and Dutch Colonial Influence

• 💡 Angelica Schuyler, born in 1756, was the eldest of the Schuyler children and was described as "left to nature" in her youth, enjoying an Arcadian childhood.
• 📌 As part of the prominent Schuyler family in Dutch New York, she and her sisters were expected to make good marriages and manage households, but also had rights to own property and sign legal documents due to Dutch law.

Marriage to John Barker Church

• 💍 Amidst the American Revolution, Angelica eloped with John Carter (later revealed as John Barker Church), a mysterious Englishman auditing her father's accounts.
• 💰 Church, an auditor for the Continental Congress, amassed a fortune supplying the American and French armies, a wealth Angelica enjoyed spending.
• ✈️ In 1783, Angelica moved to Europe with Church, not returning to America for over 15 years, and later discovered his name was John Barker Church and he had fled England due to bankruptcy, not a duel.

Social Life and European Glamour

• ✨ Angelica loved fashion, opera, and theater, possessing a glamorous style evident in portraits and her social engagements.
• 🏡 She and John Barker Church purchased a beautiful estate outside London called "Down Place," which they lavishly decorated and used for entertaining.

Political Influence and Mover-and-Shaker Persona

• 🚀 Angelica was highly self-aware, confident, and vain, desiring prominence and influence.
• ⚠️ She was involved in a plot to help the imprisoned Marquis de Lafayette escape Austrian custody, a complex scheme that ultimately failed but placed her at the center of action.
• 🤫 In one instance, she inadvertently aided a friend's escape by revealing her husband was alive, leading to the friend fleeing with military secrets.

Relationship with Alexander Hamilton

• 💬 Angelica and Alexander Hamilton, who was married to her sister Eliza, shared a relationship documented through highly suggestive letters.
• 💌 Angelica's letters to Hamilton expressed deep affection and a playful, yet intense, desire, such as "I love your husband very much, and if you were as generous as the old Romans, you would lend him to me for a little while."
• 🚢 Their correspondence took on a "superheated quality" after Angelica's six-month stay in New York alone with Hamilton while Eliza was upstate, leading to speculation of an illicit relationship.