Christmas Eve at West Point

It was Christmas Eve, 1826, and Captain Ethan Allen Hitchcock of the U.S. Military Academy had one wish: a silent night. As West Point faculty member, Hitchcock was already on alert. Colonel Sylvanus Thayer, the academy’s iron-fisted superintendent, had warned that some cadets might try to celebrate the holiday in less-than-sober fashion. But as Hitchcock drifted off to sleep in the North Barracks, the halls were quiet.

Or so it seemed. Little did he suspect that the stage had already been set for what would go down in history as the infamous West Point Eggnog Riot.

A Not-So-Dry Christmas Plan

West Point in the early 19th century was not a place for tomfoolery. Colonel Thayer, nicknamed “The Father of West Point,” had spent the last decade transforming the academy from a loose, unruly institution into a disciplined training ground for future Army officers. How strict was he? Well, he banned everything from playing cards and tobacco to novels. Yes, dear reader, even a riveting page-turner was considered a gateway to moral chaos.

Thayer’s alcohol policies were no exception. Following a particularly boisterous Fourth of July celebration in 1825—complete with a cadet-led “snake dance” and the commandant being carried around like a trophy—Thayer declared war on booze. Possession of “any spirituous or intoxicating liquor” became strictly forbidden. Yet some cadets, undeterred, vowed not to let Thayer ruin their Christmas spirit.

Thus began Operation Eggnog: a covert mission to smuggle gallons of whiskey, brandy, rum, and wine into the North Barracks. Local grog shops happily obliged, and three cadets went so far as to row across the Hudson River to a tavern on the opposite bank to fetch even more supplies. Among the revelers? A teenage cadet named Jefferson Davis—yes, that Jefferson Davis, future president of the Confederacy.

Jefferson Davis, Tavern Enthusiast

If there was one thing young Jefferson Davis enjoyed at West Point, it was sneaking off campus for a drink. In fact, Davis had already been caught at Benny Havens’s infamous tavern, a local watering hole so popular with cadets that Edgar Allan Poe would later call its proprietor “the sole congenial soul in the entire God-forsaken place.”

Learn about the tragedies that defined the life of Jefferson Davis.

Davis’s escapades nearly got him expelled, but his otherwise decent conduct saved him. That didn’t stop him, though. Just a few months before Christmas 1826, Davis was hospitalized after sprinting back to campus from Havens’s tavern and tumbling 60 feet down a ravine. He survived, perhaps fortified by the spirits.

So naturally, Davis was among the first to raise a glass of eggnog as the Christmas party began in the North Barracks.

“Put Away the Grog, Captain Hitchcock Is Coming!”

The party started small but grew as the night wore on. By 4 A.M., it had escalated into a full-blown eggnog-fueled rager. The noise became impossible to ignore, rousing Captain Hitchcock from his much-desired sleep. He trudged into the halls to investigate and promptly discovered 13 cadets—Davis among them—partying in Room 5.

At this point, Davis made his move, bursting through the doorway to warn his fellow partiers: “Put away the grog, Captain Hitchcock is coming!” Unfortunately for Davis, Hitchcock was already standing right there.

Hitchcock ordered Davis to his room and read the Riot Act to the others, a bit of legal mumbo-jumbo that declared any gathering of 12 or more to be an unlawful assembly. Surely that would be enough to end the fun, right?

Nope.

The Eggnog Riot Ensues

The cadets, feeling particularly festive—and possibly quite drunk—didn’t take kindly to Hitchcock’s interference. They pelted his door with sticks and hurled rocks through his windows. Others charged through the halls armed with swords, muskets, and bayonets. Someone even fired a pistol in the chaos. Hitchcock tried to break down one door, only to be met with more resistance.

Davis, meanwhile, either had the good sense to stay put or had passed out in his room. Whatever the case, he missed the worst of the melee, which only ended when the commandant, William Worth, arrived to restore order.

Christmas Morning Hangover

When the Christmas morning reveille sounded at 6:05 A.M., the cadets in the South Barracks arose bright-eyed and ready to face the day. The North Barracks, on the other hand, looked—and smelled—like a disaster zone. Broken windows, smashed furniture, torn banisters, and shattered dishes littered the building.

Learn about Harvard’s long history of food fights.

The cadets themselves didn’t look much better. Nearly one-third of West Point’s 260 students had participated in what would go down in history as the Eggnog Riot.

Court-Martial and Consequences

With the academy in shambles, Thayer had to act. Expelling nearly 100 cadets wasn’t feasible—West Point was still in its infancy, and losing so many students would have been catastrophic. Instead, Thayer placed 22 of the most egregious offenders, including Davis, under house arrest the day after Christmas.

Investigations followed, and by late January, the courts-martial began. Nineteen cadets and one soldier faced charges. Davis, as luck (or quick compliance) would have it, escaped serious punishment and was released from house arrest after six weeks. Cadet Robert E. Lee—yes, that Robert E. Lee—testified during the proceedings, speaking in defense of some classmates but firmly distancing himself from the mischief.

By mid-March, the trials concluded. All 19 cadets were found guilty and sentenced to dismissal. Eight received clemency, and five later managed to graduate. Another 53 cadets were given lesser punishments.

The Eggnog Legacy

The Eggnog Riot of 1826 remains one of the most infamous incidents in West Point history. Considering that it was the focal point of the greatest act of treason in the nation’s history when Benedict Arnold turned it over to the British, that’s saying a lot.

It’s a story of rebellion, questionable decision-making, and, above all, an unshakable commitment to holiday cheer. Jefferson Davis would go on to lead a far grimmer rebellion decades later, but as a cadet, he was simply one of many young men who overestimated their ability to handle eggnog spiked with whiskey.

And poor Captain Hitchcock? He probably never heard the phrase “silent night” without shuddering ever again.

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