Elizabeth Schuyler Hamilton

For other people named Elizabeth Hamilton, see Elizabeth Hamilton (disambiguation).

Elizabeth Schuyler Hamilton
Elizabeth Schuyler Hamilton by Ralph Earl, 1787
Born	Elizabeth Schuyler (1757-08-09)August 9, 1757 Albany, Province of New York
Died	November 9, 1854(1854-11-09) (aged 97) Washington, D.C., U.S.
Spouse	Alexander Hamilton
Children	8
Parent(s)	Philip Schuyler Catherine Van Rensselaer Schuyler
Relatives	Angelica Schuyler Church (sister) Margarita "Peggy" Schuyler Van Rensselaer (sister) Philip Jeremiah Schuyler (brother)

Elizabeth Hamilton (née Schuyler; August 9, 1757 – November 9, 1854), sometimes called "Eliza" or "Betsey", was the wife of Alexander Hamilton, and co-founder and deputy director of the first orphanage in New York City.

Childhood and family

Elizabeth was born in Albany, New York, the second daughter of Philip Schuyler, an American Revolutionary War general, and Catherine Van Rensselaer Schuyler. The Rensselaers of the Manor of Rensselaerswyck were one of the richest and most politically influential families in the state of New York. She was a sister of Angelica Schuyler Church and Margarita Schuyler Van Rensselaer (Peggy).

Marriage to Hamilton

On December 14, 1780, Alexander Hamilton and Elizabeth Schuyler were married at Schuyler Mansion in Albany, New York.

During their marriage and after his death, Elizabeth Hamilton defended her husband against those who opposed him, supporting his claim of authorship of George Washington's "Farewell Address", refusing to accept his part of the Hamilton-Burr duel, and ignoring the sex scandals of his life, such as his affair with Maria Reynolds.

In one example, James Monroe accused Alexander of financial anomalies during the Reynolds affair. Elizabeth requested his apology, which he refused to give. Before his death, Monroe visited Elizabeth to resolve their discrepancy, but she gave the former president a cool reception and declined to accept his apology.

Widowhood

Elizabeth Hamilton petitions Congress to publish her husband Alexander Hamilton's writings (1846)

After Hamilton's death, Schuyler co-founded and served as deputy director New York's first private orphanage, the New York Orphan Asylum Society. The orphanage continues to exist as a social service agency for children.

After moving to Washington, DC in 1848, she helped Dolley Madison fundraise for the Washington Monument.

More than 50 years after her husband's death, she passed away in Washington, and was interred near him, in Trinity Churchyard at Wall Street and Broadway, in New York City.

Children

Elizabeth and Alexander Hamilton had eight children, though there is often confusion because two sons were named Philip:

• Philip (January 22, 1782 – November 23, 1801), died in a duel, just as his father would three years later.
• Angelica (September 25, 1784 – February 6, 1857)
• Alexander, Jr. (May 16, 1786 – August 2, 1875)
• James Alexander (April 14, 1788 – September 24, 1878)
• John Church (August 22, 1792 – July 25, 1882)
• William Stephen (August 4, 1797 – August 7, 1850)
• Elizabeth Holly (November 20, 1799 – October 17, 1859)
• Philip, also called Little Phil, (June 1, 1802 – July 9, 1884)

In popular culture

Doris Kenyon portrayed Eliza in the 1931 film Alexander Hamilton.

Eliza is portrayed by Phillipa Soo in Hamilton, a 2015 Broadway musical about the life of Alexander Hamilton. Eliza's depiction in the musical has attracted praise from critics and commentators for emphasizing her importance both in Alexander's life and her work in propagating his legacy, an approach it shares with its source material, Ron Chernow's 2004 biography of Alexander.

External links

• "Elizabeth Schuyler Hamilton". Published in American National Biography
• "Elizabeth Hamilton (1757–1854)". PBS American Experience