Robert Livingston | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Portrait byGilbert Stuart | |
| 7thUnited States Minister to France | |
| In office December 6, 1801 – November 18, 1804 | |
| President | Thomas Jefferson |
| Preceded by | Charles Cotesworth Pinckney |
| Succeeded by | John Armstrong |
| 1stUnited States Secretary of Foreign Affairs | |
| In office October 20, 1781 – June 4, 1783 | |
| Appointed by | Congress of the Confederation |
| Preceded by | Position established |
| Succeeded by | John Jay |
| 1stChancellor of New York | |
| In office July 30, 1777 – June 30, 1801 | |
| Appointed by | GovernorWilliam Tryon |
| Governor | George Clinton John Jay |
| Preceded by | Position established |
| Succeeded by | John Lansing |
| Recorder of New York City | |
| In office October 13, 1773 – 1774 | |
| Preceded by | Thomas Jones |
| Succeeded by | John Watts Jr. |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1746-11-27)November 27, 1746 New York City,New York,British America |
| Died | February 26, 1813(1813-02-26) (aged 66) Clermont, New York, U.S. |
| Political party | Democratic-Republican |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 2 |
| Relatives | Robert Livingston (father) Edward Livingston (brother) Robert Livingston (grandfather) |
| Education | Columbia College (BA) |
| Signature | .png) |
Robert Robert[a] Livingston (November 27, 1746 (Old Style November 16) – February 26, 1813) was an American lawyer, politician, and diplomat fromNew York, as well as aFounding Father of the United States. He was known as "The Chancellor" after the high New York state legal office he held for 25 years. He was a member of theCommittee of Five that drafted theDeclaration of Independence, along withThomas Jefferson,Benjamin Franklin,John Adams, andRoger Sherman, but was recalled by the state of New York before he could sign the document. Livingston administered theoath of office toGeorge Washington when heassumed the presidency April 30, 1789. Livingston was also elected as a member of theAmerican Philosophical Society in 1801.[1]
Livingston was the eldest son of JudgeRobert Livingston (1718–1775) and Margaret (néeBeekman) Livingston, uniting two wealthyHudson River Valley families. He had three brothers and five sisters, all of whom wed and made their homes on the Hudson River near the family seat atClermont Manor. Among his siblings were his younger brother,Edward Livingston (1764-1836), who also served as U.S. Minister to France andSecretary of State, his sisterGertrude Livingston (1757–1833), who married GovernorMorgan Lewis (1754–1844), sister Janet Livingston (d. 1824), who marriedRichard Montgomery (1738–1775), sister Alida Livingston (1761–1822), who marriedJohn Armstrong, Jr. (1758–1843) (who succeeded him as U.S. Minister to France), and sister Joanna Livingston (1759–1827), who marriedPeter R. Livingston (1766–1847).[2]
His paternal grandparents wereRobert Livingston (1688–1775) of Clermont and Margaret Howarden (1693–1758). His great-grandparents wereRobert Livingston the Elder (1654–1728) andAlida (néeSchuyler)Van Rensselaer Livingston, daughter ofPhilip Pieterse Schuyler (1628–1683). His grand-uncle wasPhilip Livingston (1686–1749), the 2nd Lord ofLivingston Manor.[3] Livingston, a member of a large and prominent family, was known for continually quarreling with his relatives.[4]
Livingston graduated fromKing's College[b] in June 1765 and was admitted to the bar in 1773.[5][6]
In October 1773, Livingston was appointedrecorder of New York City but soon thereafter identified himself with the anti-colonialWhig Party and was replaced a few months later byJohn Watts, Jr.
On July 30, 1777, Livingston became the firstchancellor of New York, which was then the highest judicial officer in the state. Concurrently, he served from 1781 to 1783 as the firstUnited States Secretary of Foreign Affairs under theArticles of Confederation. Livingston administered the presidential oath of office to George Washington at hisfirst inauguration on April 30, 1789, atFederal Hall inNew York City, which was then the nation's capital.
In 1789, Livingston joined the Jeffersonian Republicans (later known as theDemocratic-Republicans), forming an uneasy alliance with his previous rivalGeorge Clinton andAaron Burr, then a political newcomer.[7] Livingston opposed theJay Treaty and other initiatives of theFederalist Party, founded and led by his former colleaguesAlexander Hamilton andJohn Jay. He ran forgovernor of New York as a Democratic-Republican, unsuccessfully challenging incumbent governor John Jay in the1798 election.[8]
After serving as chancellor for almost 24 years, Livingston left office on June 30, 1801. During that period, he became nationally known by his title alone as "The Chancellor", and even after leaving office, he was respectfully addressed as Chancellor Livingston for the remainder of his life.
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On June 11, 1776, Livingston was appointed to a committee of theSecond Continental Congress, known as the Committee of Five, which was given the task of drafting the Declaration of Independence. After establishing a general outline for the document, the committee decided that Jefferson would write the first draft.[9] The committee reviewed Jefferson's draft, making extensive changes,[10] before presenting Jefferson's revised draft to Congress on June 28, 1776. Before he could sign the final version of the Declaration, Livingston was recalled by his state. However, he sent his cousin,Philip Livingston, to sign the document in his place. Another cousin,William Livingston, would go on to sign the United States Constitution.
Following Thomas Jefferson's election asPresident of the United States, once Jefferson became president on March 4, 1801, he appointed LivingstonU.S. minister to France. Serving from 1801 to 1804, Livingston negotiated theLouisiana Purchase. After the signing of the Louisiana Purchase agreement in 1803, Livingston made this memorable statement:
We have lived long but this is the noblest work of our whole lives ... The United States takes rank this day among the first powers of the world.[11]
During his time as U.S. minister to France, Livingston metRobert Fulton, with whom he developed the first viable steamboat, theNorth River Steamboat, whose home port was at the Livingston family home of Clermont Manor in the town ofClermont, New York. On her maiden voyage, she left New York City with him as a passenger, stopped briefly at Clermont Manor, and continued toAlbany up the Hudson River, completing in just under 60 hours a journey that had previously taken nearly a week bysloop sailboat. In 1811, Fulton and Livingston became members of theErie Canal Commission.
Livingston was aFreemason, and in 1784, he was appointed the firstGrand Master of theGrand Lodge of New York, retaining this title until 1801. The Grand Lodge's library in Manhattan bears his name. The Bible Livingston used to administer the oath of office to President Washington is owned by St. John's Lodge No. 1 and is still used today when the Grand Master is sworn in, and, by request, when a President of the United States is sworn in.
On July 4, 1786, he was part of the second group elected as honorary members of the New YorkSociety of the Cincinnati, along with Chief JusticeRichard Morris, JudgeJames Duane, Continental CongressmanWilliam Duer, and JusticeJohn Sloss Hobart.[12]
On September 9, 1770, Livingston married Mary Stevens (1751–1814), the daughter ofContinental CongressmanJohn Stevens and sister of the inventorJohn Stevens III.[13] Following their marriage, he built a home south of Clermont, called Belvedere, which was burned to the ground along with Clermont in 1777 by the British Army under GeneralJohn Burgoyne. In 1794, he built a new home called New Clermont, which was subsequently renamed Arryl House, a phonetic spelling of his initials "RRL", which was deemed "the most commodious home in America" and contained a library of four thousand volumes.[14][15] Together, Robert and Mary were the parents of:[2]
Livingston died a natural death aged 66 on February 26, 1813, and was buried in the Clermont Livingston vault at St. Paul's Church in Tivoli, New York.
Through his eldest daughter Elizabeth he was the grandfather of four:
 Robert Livingston Issue of 1904 |  Map of Louisiana Purchase Issue of 1904 |  |
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| Party political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Democratic-Republican nominee forGovernor of New York 1798 | Succeeded by |
| Legal offices | ||
| Preceded by | Recorder of New York City 1773–1774 | Succeeded by |
| New office | Chancellor of New York 1777–1801 | Succeeded by |
| Political offices | ||
| New office | United States Secretary of Foreign Affairs 1781–1783 | Succeeded by |
| Diplomatic posts | ||
| Preceded by | United States Minister to France 1801–1804 | Succeeded by |
| Envoys to France (1776–1779) |  | |
|---|---|---|
| Ministers Plenipotentiary to France (1778–1815) | ||
| Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary to France (1816–1893) | ||
| Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to France (1893–present) | ||
| International | |
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| National | |
| Artists | |
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