Implicated in former Vice President Aaron Burr’s conspiracy to establish an independent nation made up of western U.S. States and territories, Wilkinson entirely blamed Burr: producing a doctored letter purportedly from Burr but in Wilkinson’s handwriting. The Grand Jury ruled Burr had intended treason but committed no overt act of war. Concealing this treasonous plan almost undid Wilkinson too, but a lack of hard evidence prevented his indictment. Ironically, having seen through Wilkinson’s subterfuge, jury foreman John Randolph described him as “a mammoth of iniquity… The only man that I ever saw who was from the bark to the very core a villain.”

Burr resembled a victim more than a conspirator, later escaping to Europe. Wilkinson, perceived as exactly the opposite, came off very badly. Things were also getting considerably worse for him.

Other heavy blows quickly followed. Wilkinson was removed as Territorial Governor in 1805 accused of heavy-handed administration and abuse of power. Two Congressional inquiries, a military Court of Inquiry in 1809 and court-martial in 1811 further diminished his standing. Wilkinson’s reputation was permanently tarnished. Historian Robert Leckie described him as “a general who never won a battle or lost a court-martial”, while historian Frederick Turner was less kind: “the most consummate artist in treason that the nation ever possessed”.

Wilkinson’s career ended sourly. Two failed campaigns in the War of 1812 saw him investigated again, this time for incompetence. Wilkinson was cleared yet again but discharged on June 15, 1815. He went to Mexico in 1822 hoping to become advisor to Emperor Agustin, but Agustin abdicated in 1823. Wilkinson himself died on December 28, 1825 in Mexico City and was not unmasked as one of America’s worst traitors until 1854 by historian Charles Gayarré.

Some historians argue to this day about Wilkinson’s true motives, with one faction pointing out the futility of his attempts to separate Kentucky from the burgeoning Union as a sign that he wasn’t truly trying to betray the United States. However, the payments from Spain that went on for years, Wilkinson’s willingness to betray friends to get ahead, and his failures in military service paint a rather damning picture of a man ready to bend the rules to get the best for himself. Wilkinson’s name remains one of the most cursed of the post-Revolutionary era.

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