Description
Mrs. Schuyler Burning Her Wheat Fields by Emanuel Leutze depicts Catherine Schuyler destroying crops to keep the advancing British army from harvesting them. During the Revolutionary War, John Schuyler was appointed a major-general under General Washington. In 1777, General Burgoyne and his British troops attempted to make their way down the Hudson Valley, but met a great deal of resistance from the Americans who were creating road blocks, destroying provisions, and doing anything necessary to make Burgoyne's trip difficult. On her husband's orders, Mrs. Schuyler bravely made her way to their estate near Albany to burn the vast and profitable wheat fields, and to request that his tenants do the same in order to prevent the British from harvesting them. The image is illustrating the bravery in her actions, by setting the fire herself, and by passing on her husband's orders to his tenants.
