“Fly to the Bosom of Your God”: Alexander Hamilton’s Farewell Letters
Famous Lettres from history: Alexander Hamilton
The Shadow of a Duel
On the eve of July 11, 1804, Alexander Hamilton prepared to meet Vice President Aaron Burr in a duel that would end his life. Knowing he might not return, Hamilton wrote not one but two farewell letters to his wife, Elizabeth Schuyler Hamilton.
The first is deeply spiritual, a reconciliation with God and his conscience. The second is heartbreakingly intimate, a personal goodbye to Eliza and their children.
Together, they show Hamilton as both believer and husband: a man caught between eternity and love.
The First Farewell Letter (July 4, 1804)
[transcript]
“
July 4, 1804
This is my first letter, my dear Eliza.
The scruples of a Christian have determined me to expose my life to chance, rather than subject myself to the guilt of taking the life of another. I need not tell you of the pangs I feel from the idea of quitting you and exposing you to the anguish which I know you would feel. Nor could I dwell upon the tenderness of your heart, without pouring tears of blood.
But I trust in the mercy of Heaven, that I shall be spared to you and to my dear children. Yet in the contrary event, I charge you to bear my loss with fortitude, and to remember that you are a Christian. The God of all mercy will be your God and your portion. Take comfort in the hope of a happy meeting in a better world. Adieu best of wives and best of women. Embrace all my darling children for me.
Ever yours, A. H.
”
(Source: Library of Congress, Manuscript Division)
The First Farewell Letter (July 4, 1804) - penned by Alexander Hamilton for his wife Elizabeth Hamilton (1 of 2)
The Second Farewell Letter (July 10, 1804)
[transcript]
“
New York, July 10, 1804
My beloved Eliza
Mrs. Mitchel is the person in the world to whom as a friend I am under the greatest Obligations. I have not hitherto done my duty to her. But resolved to repair my omission as much as possible, I have encouraged her to come to this Country and intend, if it shall be in my power to render the Evening of her days comfortable.
But if it shall please God to put this out of my power and to inable you hereafter to be of service to her, I entreat you to do it and to treat her with the tenderness of a Sister.
This is my second letter.
The Scruples of a Christian have determined me to expose my own life to any extent rather than subject myself to the guilt of taking the life of another. This must increase my hazards & redoubles my pangs for you. But you had rather I should die innocent than live guilty. Heaven can preserve me and I humbly hope will; but in the contrary event, I charge you to remember that you are a Christian. God’s Will be done. The will of a merciful God must be good.
Once more Adieu My Darling darling Wife
- A. H.
“
(Transcription source: Founders Online / National Archives edition of The Papers of Alexander Hamilton).
( If anyone finds a picture of the second letter , please holler. We tried but couldn’t find one from any legitimate source )
Why These Letters Matter
The Christian Conscience
Both letters emphasize Hamilton’s faith. He chose to risk death rather than take another life, believing his conscience and God’s mercy mattered more than survival.
A Husband’s Love
In the end, Hamilton’s words are not those of a statesman or general. They are those of a man writing to his wife, desperate to leave her with comfort, love and the hope of reunion in eternity.
Echo of Tragedy
Within hours of sealing these letters, Hamilton was struck by Burr’s bullet and died the next day. His final writings became the last bridge between his life and Eliza’s grief.
Eliza’s Enduring Devotion
Elizabeth Schuyler Hamilton carried these letters with her grief for the rest of her life. She went on to outlive Alexander by fifty years, founding charities, preserving his legacy and ensuring their children grew up knowing their father’s honor.
The letters remained, for her, the most personal proof of his love. The words of a man who, even as he faced death, thought first of her and their children.
A Lettre Reflection
At Lettre, we believe that letters like these show history not in ink and parchment, but in blood and love. Hamilton’s two farewells reveal that even the greatest leaders sought strength in faith and family at the end.
They remind us that history is written not only in constitutions and battles, but in whispered prayers and trembling goodbyes.
Final Thoughts
Alexander Hamilton’s two farewell letters stand as some of the most intimate writings of America’s founding era. They are a record of a man divided between faith and duty, life and death, honor and love.
What survives is not just the story of a duel, but the voice of a husband whispering across time:
“Adieu, best of wives and best of women.”
