Frederick Gotthold Enslin

Gotthold Frederick Enslin
Born
Gotthold Friderich Enslin

(1755-08-11)August 11, 1755
Oberkochen, Germany
DiedJuly or August, 1800 (age 44-45)
Boston, Massachusetts
OccupationsSoldier, Bookkeeper

Lieutenant Gotthold Frederick Enslin was a Continental Army officer who was the focus of one of three possible cases of sodomy documented in the Continental Army under General George Washington.[1][2]

Early life and family

"Gotthold Friderich Ensslin" was christened the day after his birth in the Lutheran Church in Oberkochen, Wuerttemberg, Germany on 11 August 1755, son of Pastor Johann Friderich Ensslin and Magdalena Elisabetha Venningerin.[3] He seems to have arrived in Philadelphia on the ship Union from Rotterdam on 30 September 1774.[4]

Military Career and Case

Enslin joined the Continental Army in March 1777, in an independent company affixed first to the 6th Virginia Regiment[5] and later to Malcolm's Additional Continental Regiment.[6]

The case began with a charge against an ensign for slander against another soldier.[7] At Valley Forge, Pennsylvania, in February 1778, Ensign Anthony Maxwell was brought before a brigade court-martial charged with "propagating a scandalous report prejudicial to the character of Lieut. Enslin." Maxwell was ultimately acquitted of the charge.[1]

In March 1778, Enslin was brought to trial before a general court-martial. According to General Washington's report: "...Lieutt. Enslin of Colo. Malcolm's Regiment tried for attempting to commit sodomy ..." Washington's secretary continues to describe the results of the trial: "His Excellency the Commander in Chief approves the sentence and with Abhorrence & Detestation of such Infamous Crimes orders Lieut. Enslin to be drummed out of Camp tomorrow morning...."[8]

The diary of Lieutenant James McMichael records the sentence being carried out on 15 March 1778:

March 15. — I this morning proceeded to the grand parade, where I was a spectator to the drumming out of Lieut. Enslin of Col. Malcom's regiment. He was first drum'd from right to left of the parade, thence to the left wing of the army; from that to the centre, and lastly transported over the Schuylkill with orders never to be seen in Camp in the future. This shocking scene was performed by all the drums and fifes in the army— the coat of the delinquent was turned wrong side out."[9]

Later Life

Enslin moved to Boston, where he married a widow named Elizabeth Geyer, née Cooler,[10] and worked as a bookkeeper.[11] Their home was among those affected by the fire of 1787,[12][13] though it appears they were able to rebuild and return. He died in the summer of 1800, age 44 or 45.[14]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 Benemann, William (2006), Male-Male Intimacy in Early America: Beyond Romantic Friendships, Haworth Press, ISBN 1-56023-345-1
  2. ↑ "Court-Martial record of Lieutenant Frederick Gotthold Enslin, March 10, 1778". National Archives Foundation. Archived from the original on 2023-08-07. Retrieved 2023-08-07.
  3. ↑ I. Daniel Rupp, A collection of upwards of thirty thousand names of German, Swiss, Dutch, French and other immigrants in Pennsylvania from 1727-1776, p. 416. Philadelphia: Stuart Leary, 1927.
  4. ↑ Shilts, Randy (2005). Conduct Unbecoming: Gays and Lesbians in the U.S. Military. Macmillan. ISBN 978-0-312-34264-7.
  5. ↑ Muster Rolls, July 1777, Samuel Kearsley’s Company, US, Revolutionary War Rolls, 1775-1783; Wright Jr., Robert K. The Continental Army. Center of Military History, United States Army (Washington D.C., 1983), 287.
  6. ↑ Muster Rolls, July 1777, Samuel Kearsley’s Company, US, Revolutionary War Rolls, 1775-1783; Wright Jr., Robert K. The Continental Army. Center of Military History, United States Army (Washington D.C., 1983), 323.
  7. ↑ "Amending America: LGBTQ Human and Civil Rights". National Archives. 2016-08-15. Retrieved 2023-08-07.
  8. ↑ The Writings of George Washington from the Original Manuscript Sources 1745-1799, Vol. 11, John C. Fitzpatrick, Ed., United States Government Printing Office, 1934.
  9. ↑ James McMichael, Pennsylvania Archives (Second Series), William Henry Egle, ed., v.15, p. 217. Harrisburg, PA: E.K. Meyers, State Printer, 1890.
  10. ↑ Boston Marriage Publications, 1782-1798, 6:52.
  11. ↑ Boston (Mass.). Assessing Dept, City of Boston tax records 1797-98, 819.
  12. ↑ Boston Gazette, April 23, 1787
  13. ↑ Massachusetts Centinel, April 21, 1787, p. 3.
  14. ↑ Suffolk, Massachusetts, United States records, images 22-26.
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