Representative Charles John Biddle

Charles John Biddle (April 30, 1819 – September 28, 1873) was an American soldier, lawyer, congressman, and newspaper editor. He was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, into a prominent family; his father was Nicholas Biddle, the influential financier who served as president of the Second Bank of the United States, and his uncle, Richard Biddle, was a member of the United States House of Representatives. Growing up in this politically and financially distinguished environment, Charles Biddle was exposed early to public affairs and national issues that would shape his later career.

Biddle pursued a rigorous education and attended the College of New Jersey (now Princeton University), from which he graduated in 1837. He studied law following his graduation and was admitted to the bar in 1840. Establishing himself in Philadelphia, he began the practice of law, entering a profession that was then closely intertwined with politics and public life. His legal training and family background together prepared him for the multiple roles he would later assume as a soldier, legislator, and editor.

With the outbreak of the Mexican–American War, Biddle left civilian life to enter military service. He served as a captain and company commander in the Regiment of Voltigeurs and Foot Riflemen, a light infantry unit of the United States Army. During the campaign in Mexico he distinguished himself for bravery, and he was brevetted to the rank of major for gallantry in the Battle of Chapultepec in September 1847, one of the decisive engagements of the war. At the close of the conflict, he returned to Philadelphia and resumed the practice of law, continuing his professional career while maintaining the public reputation he had earned through military service.

Following the onset of the American Civil War in 1861 and President Abraham Lincoln’s call for volunteers, Biddle again entered military service. In May 1861 he was appointed a lieutenant colonel in the Pennsylvania Reserves, a key component of the state’s early contribution to the Union war effort. Later that same month he was promoted to colonel and placed in command of the 42nd Pennsylvania Volunteers Infantry (13th Reserves), also known as the 1st Pennsylvania Rifles, a regiment noted for its sharpshooters and active field service. During this period he was tendered a commission as a brigadier general, a mark of confidence in his leadership, but he declined the appointment. He resigned from the army in February 1862, concluding his active military career.

As a member of the Democratic Party representing Pennsylvania, Biddle contributed to the legislative process during one term in office. While still in uniform, he was elected in October 1861 as a Democrat to the Thirty-seventh United States Congress to fill the vacancy caused by the resignation of Representative Edward J. Morris. His service in Congress occurred during a significant period in American history, as the nation was engulfed in civil war and fundamental questions of Union, civil liberties, and wartime policy were debated. In this capacity, he participated in the democratic process and represented the interests of his Pennsylvania constituents at a time when the state played a crucial role in the Union war effort. After completing his service in the House of Representatives, he returned to private life and did not seek a prolonged congressional career.

In the years following his congressional service and the Civil War, Biddle became one of the proprietors and editor-in-chief of the Philadelphia Age, a leading Democratic newspaper in the city. He retained this position for the remainder of his life, exerting considerable influence on public opinion through his editorial work. His literary output was devoted primarily to the columns of the Age, where he addressed political, historical, and contemporary issues from a Democratic perspective. His only separate publication was an historical essay, The Case of Major André, which he read before the Historical Society of Pennsylvania. In this carefully prepared work, Biddle vindicated the action of General George Washington in approving the execution of British Major John André during the Revolutionary War, responding directly to a passage in Lord Mahon’s History of England that had condemned the execution as the greatest blot on Washington’s record. The essay was later praised by the London Critic as a fair refutation of Lord Mahon’s charge, enhancing Biddle’s reputation as a serious commentator on historical questions.

Charles John Biddle spent his final years continuing his editorial and intellectual work in Philadelphia. He remained a figure of note in the city’s legal, political, and journalistic circles, drawing on his experiences as a soldier in two wars, a practicing attorney, a member of Congress, and a newspaper editor. He died in Philadelphia on September 28, 1873, the city of both his birth and his principal life’s work, leaving a record of service in law, arms, politics, and letters that reflected the traditions of his distinguished family and the turbulent era in which he lived.