Washington's Headquarters is a relatively small house by twenty first century standards, but during it's time as Washington's base of operations, it was a mansion. The parlor has two windows out of style choice despite the cost of the extra firewood it would take to heat the room. The house itself was built in a traditional Dutch style and owned by Jonathan Hasbrouck's widow Catherine Dubois Hasbrouck. In this house, Washington established a number of traditions we still follow. It was here that Washington refused to become a monarch in the budding nation, cementing the use of democracy. He quelled a rebellion forming amongst the discontented officers of the continental army, and designed and awarded the first Purple Heart medals.

	Washington's desk at the Newburgh Headquarters.

Learning about the Huddy Affair, our first international incident, was enlightening. The wrongful hanging of a prisoner by Loyalists and the angry retaliation of Patriots gave way to the first international crises of the new nation which fell to General George Washington to solve. The petty arguments that arose between neighbors, both here and broad, fueled the flame between loyalists and patriots. Local militias drove the war in a way the Continental Army could not. The militias acted as a police force for their respective towns. Although the militias' primary duty was to keep the peace, and prevent slave uprisings and attacks from Indians, several, such as those led by Joshua Huddy made direct attacks on the British force. Due to the sheer number of militias and difficulty Congress was having with the Continental Army, militias had a certain freedom that the army did not and they used this freedom to their own benefit and personal gain. Patriots were able to take revenge on their Loyalist neighbors over past disputes with the premise of working to free the United States from tyrannical rule.

Loyalist militias also used past vendettas as excuses to attack Patriots. Joshua Huddy attacked and killed Richard Lippincott's brother, and Lippincott had Huddy wrongfully hanged in the name of Philip White. The Patriots, upon hearing of this wrongful execution, demanded recompense and randomly chose Charles Asgill should Lippincott not be delivered to the Patriots. Asgill happened to be the son of an influential couple, who had access to royal courts and were able to influence key figures in the hierarchy of the French court that their son should be freed or else France ought to withdraw their support.

The personal vendettas that drove representatives on both sides of the conflict escalated to the point that France threatened to pull out of their support of us, and several countries announced they would refuse to view the new United States as a nation, all because of a wrongful execution and a random choice of their revenge. This is a prime example of how strong tensions and emotions can escalate a situation far beyond what could be imagined at the onset.