Politics bring strange bedfellows and they have
rarely brought stranger ones than the democracy of young America
and the political despotism, linked with idealism, of the ancient
monarchy of France.
The British did not evacuate New York until Carleton had gathered
there the Loyalists who claimed his protection. These unhappy
people made their way to the seaports, often after long and
distressing journeys overland. Charleston was the chief rallying
place in the South and from there many sad-hearted people sailed
away, never to see again their former homes. The British had
captured New York in September, 1776, and it was more than seven
years later, on November 25, 1783, that the last of the British
fleet put to sea. Britain and America had broken forever their
political tie and for many years to come embittered memories kept
up the alienation.
It was fitting that Washington should bid farewell to his army at
New York, the center of his hopes and anxieties during the
greater part of the long struggle. On December 4, 1783, his
officers met at a tavern to bid him farewell. The tears ran down
his cheeks as he parted with these brave and tried men. He shook
their hands in silence and, in a fashion still preserved in
France, kissed each of them.
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