7 March 1818 A.D. LTCOL Anthony Gale, USMC—4th Commandant; Years of Service (1798-1820); Court-Martialed & Fired; Burial Site Unknown
7 March 1818 A.D. LTCOL
Anthony Gale, USMC—4th Commandant; Years of Service
(1798-1820); Court-Martialed &
Fired; Burial Site Unknown
Anthony Gale
Contents
Early life
Early career
Rise to Commandant
Trouble as Commandant
Court-Martial
Later life
See also
References
Bibliography
External links
Anthony Gale
From Wikipedia, the free
encyclopedia
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Anthony
Gale
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Anthony Gale Memorial,
Lincoln County Courthouse, Stanford, KY
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Born
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Died
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Allegiance
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Service/branch
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Years of service
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1798–1820
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Rank
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Commands held
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Battles/wars
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Anthony Gale was the fourth Commandant of the United States Marine Corps and the only one ever fired. Fewer records survive
concerning him than any other Commandant.[1] He is the only Commandant for whom the Marines neither know his burial location nor have a portrait
or likeness.
Contents
Early life
His date of birth is in
dispute. It is variously reported to be in 1761 [2][3] or on September 17, 1782 in Dublin, Ireland.[4][5] He was commissioned as asecond lieutenant on July 26, 1798.[6][7] According to a transcript of a 23 October 1838
letter to President Martin Van Buren, Anthony Gale writes (in part): “as a military man
that I embraced in my nineteenth year”, which would place his birth in
1779-1780.[8]
Born in Ireland to Anthony Gale and Ann Delany,[6] Gale declared his intent to become a United States citizen on June 15, 1798, and completed the naturalization process on November 27,
1801.[9] Ireland land records[10][11][12] involving his mother Ann Delany suggest Gale was
born in Queen’s County, Ireland, subsequently renamed County Laois.[13]
Gale married Catherine Swope
on January 4, 1800, in Cumberland County, Pennsylvania.[14] The couple settled in Philadelphia and had three children – Amelia, who died after
four weeks; a son, Washington Anthony; and another daughter, Emily, both of
whom survived into adulthood.[15]
Early career
Early in his Marine career, he
fought, in fairly quick succession, the French, the Barbary pirates, the British, and was a U.S. naval officer.[16] Angered by the mistreatment of a Marine sentry,
Gale killed Navy Lieutenant Allen MacKenzie in a duel.[4]This incident, perceived to be an affront to the Corps,[17] subsequently brought Commandant William W. Burrows'
approval for Gale's defense of his Corps' honor.[17] Later in his military career, Gale took “an active
and gallant part” during the siege of Fort McHenry in the War of 1812.[18]
Increasing rank brought other
difficulties.[19] In 1815, while commanding at Philadelphia, he fell out with Commandant Franklin Wharton over construction of barracks. Wharton had been accused of overspending on the
project, and he in turn charged Gale with building extravagant officers'
quarters. Gale asserted that he had been given no specific plans and that
Wharton had known what was being done. A court of inquiry cleared Gale, but he
was banished to a less desirable post in New Orleans, where he allegedly nursed a feeling of
persecution and began to drink heavily.[20]
Rise to Commandant
Brevet Major Gale, although next senior at the time of Wharton's death on September 1,
1818, had to battle for the job. At the time, the Corps was authorized only one lieutenant colonel and two majors. One could only rise in rank
by virtue of the death of a superior officer or the removal of a higher
officer.[21] When Wharton died, a scramble for the Commandant's
job ensued.[22]
Major Samuel Miller, the adjutant and inspector at the Marine Corps Headquarters, two days after notifying Navy Secretary Benjamin Williams Crowninshield of Wharton’s death, considering himself well suited
for the job, suggested that he conduct the affairs of the commandancy until a
successor was appointed.[3] Brevet Major Archibald Henderson asserted that as the senior line officer present, he should be Acting Commandant.[23] Henderson was also characteristically blunt in
assessing Gale's qualifications to the new Secretary of the Navy, Smith Thompson.[17] In an attempt to discredit Gale, in February, 1819,
Henderson and Miller participated in a court of inquiry resurrecting the old
charges concerning Gale’s tenure in Philadelphia. However, during his testimony, Henderson was
forced to admit that his knowledge of Gale’s misconduct was based on hearsay. Miller could similarly not provide firsthand evidence
of wrongdoing by Gale.[24] After the court of inquiry exonerated him of these
charges for the second time, Gale, with 21 years of service and therefore
senior, became Lieutenant Colonel Commandant on March 3, 1819,[25] ending a six-month period during which the Corps
had been leaderless.[26]
Trouble as Commandant
Shortly after Gale assumed his
post, Archibald Henderson circumvented Gale and wrote directly to Navy Secretary Smith Thompson requesting to join General Andrew Jackson who was serving as military governor in Florida.[27] Soon came more direct troubles with Smith Thompson, who frequently countermanded Gale's orders.[17] Finally, on August 8, 1820, Gale submitted a letter
analyzing the proper division of function between himself and the Secretary,
pointing out the impossibility of his position. It was also alleged that he
began to drink heavily at this time.[19] Eight days after his letter, Gale was notified that
the Secretary had unilaterally granted a four-week leave to one Marine captain
and had suspended Gale's order sending another captain to the Mediterranean.
Two weeks after that, on August 29, Gale was arrested and ordered to face court-martial.[28]
Court-Martial
The charges against Gale were
dated September 11, 1820. The first was that Gale was publicly intoxicated in
the city of Washington on six specified dates during August, including August
31, two days after his arrest.[29] The second charge was of conduct unbecoming an officer and a
gentleman. There were three
specifications: first, that Gale had visited a house of prostitution near the
Marine Barracks "in open and disgraceful manner" on that same August
31; second, that he had on September 1 - a date on which he was in custody -
called Lieutenant Richard M. Desha, the Corps' Paymaster and son of Congressman
Joseph Desha of Kentucky [22] - who had earlier charged Gale with
misappropriation [29] - "a damned rascal, liar and coward" and
threatening him with personal chastisement unless he would immediately
challenge and fight him;[30] and, finally, that he had declared in front of the
Marine Barracks "that he did not care a damn for the President, Jesus
Christ or God Almighty!" The third charge was that Gale had signed a false
certificate that said he had not used a Marine for personal services when in
fact he had had a man assigned as waiter and coachman from October 17, 1819,
until June 3, 1820. The fourth and final charge was that Gale had broken arrest
"at sundry times" between September 1 and 8 while he was confined to
quarters.[31]
Gale’s court-martial was marked by further irregularities. Major Miller,
one of Gale’s rivals for the post of Commandant, despite having written the
charges against Gale, was nonetheless appointed the prosecutor.[32] Furthermore, Lieutenant Desha, a witness against
Gale on the second charge, was appointed a supernumerary (or extra member) of the court, and was called to
sit on the court in judgment of Gale when regular court members failed to
appear. Desha objected to serving on the court under the circumstances, but the
court overruled his objection on the grounds that Desha, not Gale, had
objected.[33] The court found Gale guilty, President James Monroe approved the verdict, and Gale was removed from
office and dismissed from the Marine Corps on October 18, 1820.[34]
Later life
From Washington, Gale went first to Philadelphia where he spent several months in a hospital,[35] then took up residence in Stanford, Kentucky.[36][37] Armed with proof that he had been under the strain
of temporary mental derangement while Commandant [17] , he spent fifteen years attempting to have his court-martial decision reversed. Eventually, in 1835, the
government partially cleared him and awarded him a stipend of $15 a month which was later increased to $25 and
continued until his death.[38]
Gale’s death is reported to be
on December 12, 1843 [39] or December 12, 1842,[40] although most sources place his death in 1843.[41][42] Over the years, several efforts have been
undertaken by the Marines in an attempt to locate Commandant Gale’s final
resting place. All have proven unsuccessful.[4] In lieu of a monument at his gravesite, on March 6,
2010, various detachments of the Marine Corps League of Kentucky dedicated a
monument to Commandant Anthony Gale at the Lincoln County Courthouse in
Stanford, KY, nearby where he died and is likely buried. The Marine Corps
League, Department of Kentucky, has taken as an annual project the traditional
laying of the Commandant’s wreath at this memorial on each November 10, the
birthday of the Marines.[43]
See also
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References
1.
Jump up^ Jordan, Robert T. (2007, March). The Mystery of Lieutenant Colonel Commandant Anthony
Gale. Leatherneck Magazine, p. 46
2.
Jump up^ Millett, Allan Reed and Shulimson, Jack (2004). Commandants of the Marine Corps. Annapolis: Naval Institute Press, p. 45
3.
^ Jump up to:a b Bartlett, Merrill LtCol. USMC (Ret.) (1985,
June). Court-Martial of a Commandant, The Story of Lieutenant
Colonel Anthony Gale, Fourth Commandant of the Marine Corps, Proceedings Magazine
5.
Jump up^ Schuon, Karl (1963). U. S. Marine Corps Biographical Dictionary. New York: Franklin Watts, Inc., p. 83
7.
Jump up^ Ancestry.com. U.S. Marine Corps Muster Rolls, 1798-1940.
Provo, UT, USA: The Generations Network, Inc. (2007). Master Roll of a Detachment of Marines
under the Command of Lieutenant Anthony Gale. Original data: Muster Rolls of the U.S.
Marine Corps, 1798-1892; (National Archives Microfilm Publication T1118, 123
rolls); Records of the U.S. Marine Corps, Record Group 127; National Archives,
Washington, D.C
9.
Jump up^ United States District Court, Eastern District of
Pennsylvania (1801, 27 November). Petition of Anthony Gale to Become a
Citizen of the United States
10.
Jump up^ Gale, Thomas (1780). Marriage Settlement for Anne Delany. Register of the Registry of Deeds, Ireland,
Book 336, page 131, Document 224169, reproduced from LDS FHL British Film
#531707, Volume 336, 1780-1781
11.
Jump up^ Delany, Malachy (1773). Indentured Deed to Anne Delany. Register of the Registry of Deeds, Ireland,
Book 362, page 165, Document 243456, reproduced from LDS FHL British Film
#531955, Volumes 361-362, 1784-1785
12.
Jump up^ Delany, Malachy (1782). Indenture of Lease to Anne Delany. Register of the Registry of Deeds,
Ireland, Book 362, page 164, Document 243455, reproduced from LDS FHL British
Film #531955, Volumes 361-362, 1784-1785
13.
Jump up^ McCarthy, John Patrick (2006). Ireland: A Reference Guide from the
Renaissance to the Present. New York: Infobase Publishing, pp. 324-325.
14.
Jump up^ Ancestry.com. Cumberland County, Pennsylvania Church
Records [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: The Generations Network, Inc.
(2000). Original data: Transcribed from LDS Family History
Library copies of church records for this locality
17.
^ Jump up to:a b c d e United States Marine Corps History Division Who's Who in Marine Corps History
18.
Jump up^ Abbot, Willis John (1918). Soldiers of the Sea. New York: Dodd, Mead and Company, p. 79
21.
Jump up^ Long, Richard A. (Undated). Anthony Gale. Incomplete manuscript, USMC Archives,
Richard A Long Collection, Gale Series, Box 1, Folder 3, p. 8
25.
Jump up^ Thompson, Smith (1819, March 5). Letter to Anthony Gale, subject:
Appointment as Lieutenant Colonel Commandant of the U.S. Marine Corps
29.
^ Jump up to:a b Moskin, J. Robert (1977). The U.S. Marine Corps Story. New York: McGraw-Hill, p. 103
31.
Jump up^ Niles, William Ogden (1821) Niles Weekly Register, Volume XIX., Baltimore: Franklin Press, p. 132
35.
Jump up^ Pennsylvania Hospital Archives (1821). Alphabetical Listing/Index to Admissions,
ca. 1816-1826
36.
Jump up^ United States Census (1830). Subject: Anthony Gale. County of Lincoln, State of Kentucky, NARA
Roll: M19-38; Page: 360.
37.
Jump up^ United States Census (1840). Subject: Anthony Gale. County of Lincoln, State of Kentucky, Roll:
177, Pages: 88, 121.
39.
Jump up^ Bartlett, Court-Martial of a Commandant, The Story of Lieutenant
Colonel Anthony Gale, Fourth Commandant of the Marine Corps, Proceedings Magazine
42.
Jump up^ Nofi, Albert A. (1997). The Marine Corps Book of Lists. Cambridge, MA: Da Capo Press, p. 141
43.
Jump up^ Broihier, Michael (2010, March 11). Monument to ‘Lost
Commandant’ Unveiled. Interior Journal. p. A-10.
Bibliography
·
Bartlett, Merrill LtCol. USMC (Ret.) (June 1985).
"Court-Martial of a Commandant, The Story of Lieutenant Colonel Anthony
Gale, Fourth Commandant of the Marine Corps". Proceedings Magazine.
·
Jordan, Robert (March 2007). "The Mystery of Lieutenant Colonel Commandant
Anthony Gale". Leatherneck Magazine.
·
Millett, Allan Reed; Jack Shulimson (2004). Commandants of the Marine Corps. Annapolis: Naval Institute Press.
pp. 45–53. ISBN 0-87021-012-2.
·
Nofi, Albert A. (1997). The Marine Corps Book of Lists. Cambridge, MA: Da Capo Press. ISBN 0-938289-89-6.
External links
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Genealogy of Anthony Gale which discusses that Gale is descended from Piers
Butler, 8th Earl of Ormond, Edward I of England and Charlemagne.
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