 Irving, a close friend of James Kirke Paulding, the U.S. Secretary of the Navy under Martin Van Buren, supported the War of 1812.Irving contributed several essays and poems to "Salmagundi", written primarily by Washington Irving and James Kirke Paulding.In 1793, Irving was married to Julia Paulding (1768–1823), the daughter of William Paulding Sr. (one of the first members of the Provincial Congress), and sister of his friend James Kirke Paulding and William Paulding Jr. (a U.S. Representative, Mayor of New York City, and Adjutant General of New York).