ALLEGHANY CORP /DE
EX-10.1: AGREEMENT
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<DESCRIPTION>EX-10.1: AGREEMENT
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<DIV align="right" style="font-size: 10pt; margin-top: 12pt">Exhibit&nbsp;10.1
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<DIV align="center" style="font-size: 10pt; margin-top: 18pt">April&nbsp;15, 2008
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<DIV align="left" style="font-size: 10pt; margin-top: 6pt">Mr.&nbsp;Weston M. Hicks<BR>
56 Twin Oak Road<BR>
Short Hills, NJ 07078

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<DIV align="left" style="font-size: 10pt; margin-top: 6pt">Dear Weston:</DIV>


<DIV align="left" style="font-size: 10pt; margin-top: 6pt">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Reference is made to the letter agreement, dated October&nbsp;7, 2002 (the &#147;Letter Agreement&#148;),
confirming the terms of your employment with Alleghany Corporation (&#147;Alleghany&#148;), and the
Restricted Stock Unit Matching Grant Agreement, dated October&nbsp;7, 2002 (the &#147;Matching Agreement&#148;),
granting you restricted stock unit matching grants.
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<DIV align="left" style="font-size: 10pt; margin-top: 6pt">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;In order to conform the provisions of your Letter Agreement and the Matching Agreement with
the requirements of Section&nbsp;409A of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, and the Treasury
Regulations thereunder (collectively, the &#147;Code&#146;), you and Alleghany agree that your Letter
Agreement and Matching Agreement shall be amended, effective as of January&nbsp;1, 2008, as follows:
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<DIV align="left" style="font-size: 10pt; margin-top: 6pt">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;1.&nbsp;The second sentence of the paragraph of the Letter Agreement, denominated &#147;Severance
Protection,&#148; shall be amended to read as follows:
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<DIV align="left" style="font-size: 10pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-left: 2%">&#147;Such payments will be subject to normal withholding and other taxes, and will be
paid in accordance with Alleghany&#146;s normal payroll practice applicable to senior
executives of Alleghany, as in effect on December&nbsp;31, 2008.&#148;
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<DIV align="left" style="font-size: 10pt; margin-top: 6pt">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;2.&nbsp;A new paragraph, designated &#147;<U>Meaning of Termination,</U>&#148; is added to the Letter
Agreement, which paragraph shall read as follows:
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<DIV align="left" style="font-size: 10pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-left: 2%">&#147;<U>Meaning of Termination</U>. References to your employment being
&#147;terminated&#148; and other words of similar import shall be interpreted and
applied consistent with Section&nbsp;409A of the Code.&#148;
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<DIV align="left" style="font-size: 10pt; margin-top: 6pt">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;3.&nbsp;A new paragraph, designated &#147;<U>Required Deferral</U>,&#148; is added to the Letter Agreement,
which paragraph shall read as follows:
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<DIV align="left" style="font-size: 10pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-left: 2%">&#147;<U>Required Deferral</U>. Notwithstanding anything herein to the contrary,
if on the date your employment is terminated you are a &#147;specified
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<DIV align="left" style="font-size: 10pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-left: 2%">employee,&#148; then any payments that are required to be made to you pursuant to
this Agreement as a result of your employment being terminated that
constitute the deferral of compensation (within the meaning of Treasury
Regulation&nbsp;Section&nbsp;1.409A-1(b)) and that would in the absence of this
paragraph have been paid to you within six months and one day of the date
your employment is terminated (the &#147;Deferred Compensation Payments&#148;) shall
not be paid to you at the time herein provided but shall instead be
accumulated and paid to you in a lump sum with interest thereon at a rate
equal to the yield per annum on 6-month Treasury bills (secondary market) on
the date your employment is terminated (as reported by the Federal Reserve
Board) from the date payment would have been made to you hereunder until the
date paid, such payment to be made on the earlier of (i)&nbsp;the day after the
date that is six (6)&nbsp;months from the date your employment terminated or (ii)
if you shall die prior to the expiration of such six (6)&nbsp;month period, as
soon as practicable following the date of your death (with payment being
made to your estate). For these purposes, you will be a &#147;specified
employee&#148; if, on the date your employment is terminated you are an
individual who is, under the method of determination adopted by the
Compensation Committee of the Board of Directors of Alleghany (the
&#147;Committee&#148;) designated as, or within the category of employees deemed to
be, a &#147;specified employee&#148; within the meaning and in accordance with
Treasury Regulation&nbsp;Section&nbsp;1.409A-1(i). The Committee shall determine in
its sole discretion all matters relating to who is a &#147;specified employee&#148;
and the application of and effects of the change in such determination.&#148;
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<DIV align="left" style="font-size: 10pt; margin-top: 6pt">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;4.&nbsp;The restricted stock unit matching grant agreement in the form of Exhibit&nbsp;C attached to the
Letter Agreement and the Matching Agreement are both amended by adding new paragraphs (e)&nbsp;and (f)
to Section&nbsp;4, <U>Vesting of Restricted Stock Units</U>, which paragraphs shall read as follows:
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<DIV align="left" style="font-size: 10pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-left: 2%">&#147;(e) Notwithstanding anything herein to the contrary, if on the date Participant&#146;s
employment is terminated Participant is a &#147;specified employee,&#148; then any payments
that are required to be made to Participant pursuant to this Agreement as a result
of Participant&#146;s employment being terminated that constitute the deferral of
compensation (within the meaning of Treasury Regulation&nbsp;Section&nbsp;1.409A-1(b)) and
that would in the absence of this paragraph (e)&nbsp;have been paid to Participant within
six months and one day of the date Participant&#146;s employment is terminated (the
&#147;Deferred Compensation Payments&#148;) shall not be paid to Participant at the time
herein provided but shall instead be accumulated and paid to Participant in a lump
sum with interest thereon at a rate equal to the yield per annum on 6-month Treasury
bills (secondary market) on the date Participant&#146;s employment is terminated (as
reported by the Federal Reserve Board) from the date payment would have been made to
Participant hereunder
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<DIV align="left" style="font-size: 10pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-left: 2%">until the date paid, such payment to be made on the earlier of (i)&nbsp;the day after the
date that is six (6)&nbsp;months from the date Participant&#146;s employment terminated or
(ii)&nbsp;if Participant shall die prior to the expiration of such six (6)&nbsp;month period,
as soon as practicable following the date of Participant&#146;s death (with payment being
made to Participant&#146;s estate). For these purposes, Participant will be a &#147;specified
employee&#148; if, on the date Participant&#146;s employment is terminated Participant is an
individual who is, under the method of determination adopted by the Committee,
designated as, or within the category of employees deemed to be, a &#147;specified
employee&#148; within the meaning and in accordance with Treasury Regulation&nbsp;Section
1.409A-1(i). The Committee shall determine in its sole discretion all matters
relating to who is a &#147;specified employee&#148; and the application of and effects of the
change in such determination.
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<DIV align="left" style="font-size: 10pt; margin-top: 6pt; margin-left: 2%">(f)&nbsp;References to Participant&#146;s employment being &#147;terminated&#148; and other words of
similar import shall be interpreted and applied consistent with Section&nbsp;409A of the
Code.&#148;
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<DIV align="left" style="font-size: 10pt; margin-top: 6pt">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Except as herein above amended, the Letter Agreement and the Matching Agreement shall remain
in full force and effect.
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<DIV align="left" style="font-size: 10pt; margin-top: 6pt">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;If the foregoing accurately express our mutual agreement regarding the amendment of your
Letter Agreement and the Matching Agreement, please execute the enclosed copy of this letter in the
space provided below and return it to me.
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    <TD colspan="3" align="left">Sincerely yours,<BR>
<BR>
ALLEGHANY CORPORATION<BR>
&nbsp;</TD>
    <TD>&nbsp;</TD>
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    <TD align="left">&nbsp;</TD>
    <TD valign="top">By:&nbsp;&nbsp;</TD>
    <TD colspan="2" style="border-bottom: 1px solid #000000" align="left">/s/ Dan R. Carmichael
&nbsp;</TD>
    <TD>&nbsp;</TD>
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    <TD align="left">&nbsp;</TD>
    <TD>&nbsp;</TD>
    <TD colspan="2" align="left">Dan R. Carmichael&nbsp;</TD>
    <TD>&nbsp;</TD>
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    <TD align="left">&nbsp;</TD>
    <TD>&nbsp;</TD>
    <TD colspan="2" align="left">Chairman of Compensation Committee&nbsp;</TD>
    <TD>&nbsp;</TD>
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    <TD colspan="5">&nbsp;</TD>
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    <TD colspan="3" align="left">AGREED AND ACCEPTED:<BR>
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    <TD>&nbsp;</TD>
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    <TD colspan="2" style="border-bottom: 1px solid #000000" align="left">/s/ Weston M. Hicks
&nbsp;</TD>
    <TD>&nbsp;</TD>
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    <TD colspan="2" align="left">Weston M. Hicks&nbsp;</TD>
    <TD>&nbsp;</TD>
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