Thomas Hickey (soldier)

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Thomas Hickey (died 28 June 1776) was a Continental Army soldier who was executed for mutiny and sedition early in the American Revolutionary War.

In 1776, after the conclusion of the Boston campaign, General George Washington and the Continental Army marched to New York City and prepared for an anticipated attempt by the British Army to occupy the city. The Royal Governor of New York, William Tryon, had been driven out of the city by American Patriots and was compelled to seek refuge on a ship in New York Harbor. Nevertheless, the city had many residents who favored the British side, known as Loyalists.

Thomas Hickey was a private in the Commander-in-Chief's Guard, a unit formed on 12 March 1776, to protect General Washington, his official papers, and the Continental Army's cash. That spring, Hickey and another soldier were arrested for passing counterfeit money. While incarcerated, Hickey revealed to another prisoner, Isaac Ketchum, that he was part of a wider conspiracy of soldiers who were prepared to defect to the British once the expected invasion came. Arrested by civilian authorities, Hickey was turned over to the Continental Army for trial. He was court-martialed and found guilty of mutiny and sedition. He was executed before a crowd of 20,000 spectators.

Hickey was the only person put on trial for the conspiracy. During the trial, David Mathews, the Mayor of New York City, was accused of funding the operation to bribe soldiers to join the British. Although the charge was never proven, Mathews and twelve others were briefly imprisoned. The conspiracy became greatly exaggerated in rumor, and was alleged to include plans to kidnap Washington, assassinate his officers, and blow up the Continental Army's ammunition magazines. The false rumors greatly damaged the reputation of Loyalists throughout the nascent United States.