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Primary sourcePainting1786

Major General Friedrich Wilhelm Augustus, Baron von Steuben

Ralph Eleaser Whiteside Earl · 1786

An 1786 portrait of Steuben by Ralph Earl, showing him as a celebrated figure in postwar New York.

This postwar portrait shows Steuben honored as a celebrated figure in New York after the Revolutionary War.

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Oil portrait of an older man with white powdered hair in a dark navy coat with gold epaulettes and tan high-collared lapels and waistcoat. He wears orange-and-red decorations and a star-shaped order on his chest and holds a sword hilt. Behind him are trees and a distant river with sailboats.
Ralph Eleaser Whiteside Earl, Major General Friedrich Wilhelm Augustus, Baron von Steuben, 1786. Yale University Art Gallery.

About this source

What it is

This oil portrait of Friedrich Wilhelm von Steuben was painted in 1786 by the artist Ralph Eleaser Whiteside Earl. It is held by the Yale University Art Gallery.

Why it matters

Painted after the Revolutionary War had ended, this portrait shows Steuben as a respected public figure living in New York, wearing a European order of honor. It reflects how former military leaders were honored and remembered in the years after independence was won.

Look closer

  • How does this postwar portrait differ from a wartime portrait of the same person?
  • What might the decorations and sword in the painting be meant to communicate about Steuben's status?
  • Why might an artist include a landscape with a river and sailboats in the background?

This painting is part of the curated material that grounds the AI version of Friedrich von Steuben on Humy.ai — when students ask about related events, the AI can quote it and cite it.

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Regulations for the Order and Discipline of the Troops of the United States

Friedrich Wilhelm von Steuben · 1779

Oil portrait of an 18th-century man with powdered gray hair, wearing a dark blue coat with gold epaulettes and gold-yellow waistcoat, a red sash and star-shaped order badge, against a dark background.Painting

Primary source

Baron Frederick William von Steuben

Charles Willson Peale · 1780

Large painting of a battlefield scene with a grey, stormy sky. On the left, British redcoat troops stand in lines beside a white flag. On the right, American troops in blue and buff stand beside a striped flag. In the center, a mounted commander on a white horse, with a figure in red uniform walking in front, faces the lines.Painting

Secondary source

Surrender of Lord Cornwallis

John Trumbull · 1819

Handwritten letter in brown ink on aged paper, dated Montpellier 12 March 1773 at top right, addressed 'Monsieur' and written in French in cursive script. It is signed at the bottom right with a closing phrase and the name 'de Steuben'.Letter

Primary source

Letter from Montpellier

Friedrich Wilhelm von Steuben · 12 March 1773

Handwritten cursive signature in black ink reading 'Baron de Steuben' on a white background.Document

Secondary source

Signature of Friedrich Wilhelm von Steuben

Friedrich Wilhelm von Steuben

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