By: History.com Editors

1777

George Washington learns of effort to discredit him

History.com Editors

Published: November 13, 2009

Last Updated: January 31, 2025

In a letter that General George Washington receives on November 4, 1777, he is informed that a conspiracy is afoot to discredit him with Congress and have him replaced by General Horatio Gates. Thomas Conway, who would be made inspector general of the United States less than two months later on December 14, led the effort; as such, it became known as the Conway Cabal.

Conway, who was born in Ireland but raised in France, entered the French army in 1749. He was recruited to the Patriot cause by Silas Deane, the American ambassador to France, and after meeting with Washington at Morristown in May 1777, he was appointed brigadier general and assigned to Major General John Sullivan’s division.

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After George Washington took office on April 30, 1789, at Federal Hall in New York City, a variety of challenges, he was faced with a variety of tough challenges, both foreign and domestic.

Conway served admirably under Sullivan at the battles of Brandywine, in September 1777, and Germantown, in October 1777, before becoming involved in an unconfirmed conspiracy to remove General Washington from command of the Continental Army.

After the Continental Army suffered several defeats in the fall of 1777, some members of Congress expressed displeasure with Washington’s leadership and Conway began writing letters to prominent leaders, including General Horatio Gates, that were critical of Washington. After Washington got wind of Conway’s letter to General Gates, he responded with a letter to Congress in January 1778. Embarrassed, Conway offered his resignation in March 1778 by way of apology, and was surprised and humiliated when Congress accepted. After General John Cadwalader wounded him in a duel defending Washington’s honor, Conway returned to France, where he died in exile in 1800.

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1791

Native Americans deliver crushing defeat at the Battle of the Wabash

On November 4, 1791, a multitribal confederation, formed to resist colonial expansion into their historical homelands, routs a large contingent of U.S. troops along the Wabash River in western Ohio. This one-sided clash, known as the Battle of the Wabash or St. Clair’s Defeat, would be the biggest victory ever won by Native Americans over […]

1842

Abraham Lincoln marries Mary Todd

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1918

Poet Wilfred Owen killed in action

On November 4, 1918, just one week before the armistice was declared, ending World War I, the British poet Wilfred Owen is killed in action during a British assault on the German-held Sambre Canal on the Western Front. Born in 1893, Owen was teaching English to children near Bordeaux, France, when war broke out in […]

1922

Entrance to King Tut’s tomb discovered

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1924

California legalizes professional boxing after 10-year ban

On November 4, 1924, California voters pass a measure to legalize professional boxing, a sport outlawed in the state because of safety concerns since 1914. “Manly Art Returns,” reads a headline in one newspaper. From 1914 to 1924, professional boxing had become a national phenomenon, spearheaded by champions such as heavyweight Jack Dempsey and lightweight […]

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1928

One of New York’s most notorious gamblers is shot to death

Arnold Rothstein, New York’s most notorious gambler, is shot during a poker game at the Park Central Hotel in Manhattan on November 4, 1928. He died in the hospital two days later. From an early age, Rothstein had a talent for playing numbers. As a teenager, he built a small fortune gambling in craps and […]

1948

T.S. Eliot wins Nobel Prize in Literature

On November 4, 1948, T.S. Eliot wins the Nobel Prize in Literature, for his profound effect on the direction of modern poetry. Eliot was born in St. Louis, Missouri, to a long-established family. His grandfather had founded Washington University in St. Louis, his father was a businessman, and his mother was involved in local charities. […]

1956

Soviets put a brutal end to Hungarian revolution

A spontaneous national uprising that began 12 days before in Hungary is viciously crushed by Soviet tanks and troops on November 4, 1956. Thousands were killed and wounded and nearly a quarter-million Hungarians fled the country. The problems in Hungary began in October 1956, when thousands of protesters took to the streets demanding a more […]

1960

Jane Goodall observes a chimpanzee making and using tools

In a groundbreaking discovery, primatologist Jane Goodall witnesses a chimpanzee in the act of making and using tools on November 4, 1960—an ability previously believed to be exclusive to humans.  At the time of the observation, Goodall, a 26-year-old English primatologist, was conducting research at Gombe Stream National Park in Northern Tanzania, where she closely […]

1963

General Minh takes over leadership of South Vietnam

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1979

Iran hostage crisis begins after U.S. embassy in Tehran is stormed

Student followers of the Ayatollah Khomeini send shock waves across America when they storm the U.S. embassy in Tehran on November 4, 1979. The radical Islamic fundamentalists took 90 hostages. The students were enraged that the deposed Shah had been allowed to enter the United States for medical treatment and they threatened to murder hostages if […]

1990

“Dances with Wolves” premieres in Los Angeles

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1995

Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin assassinated

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2008

Barack Obama elected as America’s first Black president

On November 4, 2008, Senator Barack Obama of Illinois defeats Senator John McCain of Arizona to become the 44th U.S. president, and the first African American elected to the White House. The 47-year-old Democrat garnered 365 electoral votes and nearly 53 percent of the popular vote, while his 72-year-old Republican challenger captured 173 electoral votes […]

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2008

Proposition 8 is passed in California, banning same-sex marriage

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2016

Paris Agreement comes into effect

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Citation Information

Article title
George Washington learns of effort to discredit him
Website Name
History
Date Accessed
March 25, 2025
Publisher
A&E Television Networks
Last Updated
January 31, 2025
Original Published Date
November 13, 2009

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