Esther de Berdt
Encyclopedia
American Revolutionary War
The American Revolutionary War , the American War of Independence, or simply the Revolutionary War, began as a war between the Kingdom of Great Britain and thirteen British colonies in North America, and ended in a global war between several European great powers.The war was the result of the...
as a civic leader for soldiers' relief, who formed and led the Ladies Association of Philadelphia to provide aid for George Washington
George Washington
George Washington was the dominant military and political leader of the new United States of America from 1775 to 1799. He led the American victory over Great Britain in the American Revolutionary War as commander-in-chief of the Continental Army from 1775 to 1783, and presided over the writing of...
's troops during the war.
Early life
Esther de Berdt was born in LondonLondon
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, into a family descended of Protestant
Protestantism
Protestantism is one of the three major groupings within Christianity. It is a movement that began in Germany in the early 16th century as a reaction against medieval Roman Catholic doctrines and practices, especially in regards to salvation, justification, and ecclesiology.The doctrines of the...
refugees from Ypres
Ypres
Ypres is a Belgian municipality located in the Flemish province of West Flanders. The municipality comprises the city of Ypres and the villages of Boezinge, Brielen, Dikkebus, Elverdinge, Hollebeke, Sint-Jan, Vlamertinge, Voormezele, Zillebeke, and Zuidschote...
, who had fled the "Spanish Fury" led by the Duke of Alba
Fernando Álvarez de Toledo, 3rd Duke of Alba
Don Fernando Álvarez de Toledo y Pimentel, 3rd Duke of Alba was a Spanish general and governor of the Spanish Netherlands , nicknamed "the Iron Duke" in the Low Countries because of his harsh and cruel rule there and his role in the execution of his political opponents and the massacre of several...
. Her family called her Hette or Hettie and she loved books very much. At the age of twenty-three Esther married Joseph Reed
Joseph Reed (jurist)
Joseph Reed was a Pennsylvania lawyer, military officer, and statesman of the Revolutionary Era. He served as a delegate to the Continental Congress and, while in Congress, signed the Articles of Confederation...
, an American who had studied law in London. Thereafter, she and her widowed mother followed him to Philadelphia in the American colonies. Joseph became a prosperous lawyer and a local political leader, and the couple entertained members of the Continental Congress, including George Washington and John Adams
John Adams
John Adams was an American lawyer, statesman, diplomat and political theorist. A leading champion of independence in 1776, he was the second President of the United States...
. Reed later served as Washington's secretary and aide-de-camp.
Role in Revolutionary War
Though she was English by birth, Esther was exceptionally devoted to the revolutionary cause. During the Revolutionary War, she helped organize a women's group in Philadelphia which raised more than $7000 in support of the war. At the suggestion of General Washington, the group then used the funds to purchase linenLinen
Linen is a textile made from the fibers of the flax plant, Linum usitatissimum. Linen is labor-intensive to manufacture, but when it is made into garments, it is valued for its exceptional coolness and freshness in hot weather....
and sew clothing for American troops. De Berdt had wanted to give the men gold or silver coins, something above and beyond what they would normally receive, but Washington feared the money would be used for liquor, and that the men, used to receiving paper money, each volunteer seamstress, whether married or unmarried, sew her name into the clothing she made. More than 2,200 shirts for the soldiers were created from the funds and the labor of these women. For de Berdt's efforts in support of the American cause, she was recognized as a Daughter of Liberty
Daughters of Liberty
The Daughters of Liberty were a successful Colonial American group, established somewhere from 1769-1770, that consisted of women who displayed their patriotism by participating in boycotts of British goods following the passage of the Townshend Acts. Using their feminine skills of the time, they...
.
Unfortunately, Reed did not live to see her efforts fully realized. Reed died on September 18th, 1780, at the young age of 34. The daughter of Benjamin Franklin
Benjamin Franklin
Dr. Benjamin Franklin was one of the Founding Fathers of the United States. A noted polymath, Franklin was a leading author, printer, political theorist, politician, postmaster, scientist, musician, inventor, satirist, civic activist, statesman, and diplomat...
, Sarah Franklin Bache
Sarah Franklin Bache
Sarah Franklin “Sally” Bache was the daughter of Benjamin Franklin and Deborah Read.Known as "Sally" throughout her life, she was an ardent American patriot during the Revolutionary War through relief work and as her father's political hostess...
, took over Reed’s position and finished the patriotic project. Though she did not see the project finished, Reed’s efforts did not go unacknowledged. She was recognized as a Daughter of Liberty
Daughters of Liberty
The Daughters of Liberty were a successful Colonial American group, established somewhere from 1769-1770, that consisted of women who displayed their patriotism by participating in boycotts of British goods following the passage of the Townshend Acts. Using their feminine skills of the time, they...
, and women in several states, including Maryland, New Jersey, and Virginia, followed her example by starting similar fundraising organizations. Her commitment to the Revolution is especially noteworthy because she was British; she had lived in America only a few years before the war against her homeland began. In writing about her reasons for this unusual action, Esther Reed made it clear that freedom was her motivation, and that women also were capable of publishing political thought.
During an evacuation of Philadelphia she fled with her six children to Flemington, New Jersey. She is buried in the Arch Street Presbyterian Church cemetery in Philadelphia. Her epitaph reads:
In memory of Esther, the beloved wife of Joseph Reed
President of this State, who departed this life
On the 18th of September, A.D. 1780, aged 34 [sic] years.
Reader! If the possession of those virtues of the heart
Which make life valuable, or those personal endowments which
Command esteem and love, may claim respectful and affectionate
Remembrance, venerate the ashes here entombed.
If to have the cup of temporal blessings dashed
In the period and station of life in which temporal blessings
May be best enjoyed, demands our sorrow, drop a tear, and
Think how slender is that thread on which the joys
And hopes of life depend.