Prologue: the Strange Death of Silas Deane Summary and Analysis

"After the Fact opens with a prologue about the life of the 18th-century figure Silas Deane. Deane was the son of a blacksmith who grew up in Connecticut and studied law at Yale. He went into business and later politics and was sent by Congress to France to represent the American colonies in 1776 in an attempt to arrange a formal alliance against Great Britain.

While in France, Deane and his secretary, Edward Bancroft engaged in private business enterprises that appeared to some to be exploiting his position for his own personal gain. He lost favor in America and went into exile in Great Britain. After several years Deane, nearly broke, arranged to return to America with the help of his friend, Bancroft. While on the ship journey back he...