Benjamin George Eyre (June 1, 1747July 11, 1789), was a figure of the

American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was a major war of the American Revolution. Widely considered as the war that secured the independence of ...

. Eyre served as a Lieutenant Colonel in the Continental Army, commanding the Second Battalion of the Pennsylvania Militia.

Biography

Benjamin was the brother to

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and

Jehu Eyre Jehu Eyre or Ayer (January 10, 1738 – July 23, 1781) was an American businessman, veteran of the French and Indian War and American Revolutionary War, and member of the influential Eyre family, which played a major role in the American Revolut ...

, also both major players in the Revolution. Apocryphally, his family was descended, through his father, from the royal

House of Wessex The House of Wessex, also known as the Cerdicings and the West Saxon dynasty, refers to the family, traditionally founded by Cerdic, that ruled Wessex in Southern England from the early 6th century. The house became dominant in southern England aft ...

. The Eyre family as a whole played a pivotal role in the war (most notably through their invaluable contributions to the

U.S. Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage o ...

, which they essentially founded) and Washington mentioned them several times in his personal correspondences.

Shipbuilder

Benjamin Eyre was commissioned by the

Continental Congress The Continental Congress was a series of legislative bodies, with some executive function, for thirteen of Britain's colonies in North America, and the newly declared United States just before, during, and after the American Revolutionary War. ...

to build the frigate ''General Greene'', a service for which he was paid 56,561 pounds. Large contracts such as this one during the Revolutionary War era helped the Eyres' shipping company,

Eyre and Massey Eyre may refer to: Name *Eyre (given name) *Eyre (surname) Places Australia National * Eyre Highway, a highway connecting South Australia and Western Australia South Australia * Eyre Peninsula (disambiguation) *Eyre, South Australia, a suburb ...

, to become one of the largest in the world and bolstered the political and financial situation of the

Eyre family The Eyre family refers to the descendants of George Eyre and Mary Smith Eyre who comprised a political and business dynasty prominent in the Northeastern United States from the colonial era to the early 20th century. During the American Revolutiona ...

Revolutionary

As aide-de-camp to General George Washington, he was so close to the future

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that he was once given an expensive punch-bowl by him. The punchbowl was loaned to the American Wing of New York's Metropolitan Museum in 1928 and donated by the surviving heirs in 1973. A large color photo can be seen in the magazine American Heritage, August 1955. The bowl depicted the China international trade and includes one of the first illustrations of the American flag, along with other international standards. The Eyre brothers were major ship builders.

Legacy

A portrait of him standing alongside Washington can be found at

Princeton University Princeton University is a private research university in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and one of the n ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Eyre, Benjamin Eyre family 1747 births 1789 deaths People from Burlington, New Jersey Continental Army officers from New Jersey People of colonial New Jersey American people of English descent