Everything about Jacob Leisler totally explained
Jacob Leisler (ca.
1640 -
May 16,
1691) was a
German-born
American colonist. Beginning in 1689, he led an insurrection dubbed
Leisler's Rebellion in
colonial New York, seizing control of the colony until he was captured and executed in
New York City for
treason against
William and Mary.
Biography
Leisler was probably born in
Frankfurt-am-Main, Germany, about 1640, the son of a
Calvinist pastor. He went to
New Netherland (New York) in 1660, married a wealthy widow in 1663, engaged in trade, and soon accumulated a fortune.
The rebellion
The
English Revolution of 1688 divided the people of
New York into two ill-defined factions. Past historians have stressed the generality of the small shopkeepers, small farmers, sailors, poor traders and artisans allied against the
patroons, rich
fur-traders, merchants, lawyers and crown officers; however, recent scholarship has produced a more muddy picture of the true divisions. The former were led by Leisler, the latter by
Peter Schuyler (1657-1724),
Nicholas Bayard (c. 1644 1707),
Stephen van Cortlandt (1643-1700), William Nicolls (1657-1723) and other representatives of the aristocratic
Hudson Valley families.
The Leislerians claimed greater loyalty to the
Protestant succession. When news of the imprisonment of
Gov. Andros in
Massachusetts was received, they took possession on
May 31,
1689, of
Fort James (at the southern end of
Manhattan Island), renamed it Fort William, and announced their determination to hold it until the arrival of a governor commissioned by the new sovereigns. Thus began
Leisler's Rebellion. The aristocrats also favoured the Revolution, but were unsure as to how they should act because of the meddling of
Increase Mather in London. This caused a declaration of William and Mary's ascendancy to be delayed for quite some time. When news finally reached New York it was uncertain and from a weak source; therefore, Lieutenant-Governor
Francis Nicholson decided to suppress the information until a formal declaration made its way across the Atlantic.
Leisler as acting lieutenant-governor
Nicholson sailed for England on
June 24, a committee of safety was organized by the popular party, and Leisler was appointed commander-in-chief. Under authority of a letter from the home government addressed to Nicholson, or in his absence, to such as for the time being takes care for preserving the peace and administering the laws in His Majesty's province of New York, he assumed the title of lieutenant-governor in December 1689, appointed a council and took charge of the government of the entire province.
He summoned the first Intercolonial Congress in America, which met in New York on
May 1,
1690, to plan concerted action against the
French and
Native Americans. Colonel Henry Sloughter was commissioned governor of the province on
September 3,
1689, but didn't reach New York until
March 19,
1691.
Leisler and the Huguenots
Acting on behalf of a group of
Huguenots in New York, Leisler brokered the purchase of the land upon which they'd settle. In 1689 John Pell, Lord of Pelham Manor, officially deeded 6,100 acres (25 km²)to Leisler for the establishment of a Huguenot community. In addition to the purchase money, Leisler and his heirs and assigns were to yield and pay unto John Pell and his heirs and assigns (Lords of the Pelham Manor) one "Fat Calf" yearly as acknowledgment of their feudal obligation to the Manor.
End of the rebellion
In the meantime British Major
Richard Ingoldesby and two companies of soldiers had landed (
January 28,
1691) and demanded possession of the fort. Leisler refused to surrender it, and after some controversy an attack was made on
17 March in which two soldiers were killed and several wounded.
When Sloughter arrived two days later, Leisler hastened to give over to him the fort and other evidences of authority. He and his son-in-law,
Jacob Milborne, were charged with treason for refusing to submit to Ingoldesby, were convicted, and on the
16 May 1691 were executed. He was
drawn and quartered.
In 1695, by parliamentary act, Leisler's name was cleared and his estate restored to his heirs. In 1698, the governor authorized the reburial of Leisler from the potter's field to the Dutch church. One-quarter of New York City's population turned out for the reburial.
Further Information
Get more info on 'Jacob Leisler'.
|
External Link Exchanges
Do you know how hard it is to get a link from a large encyclopaedia? Well we're different and will prove it. To get a link from us just add the following HTML to your site on a relevant page:
<a href="http://jacob_leisler.totallyexplained.com">Jacob Leisler Totally Explained</a>
Then simply click through this link from your web page. Our crawlers will verify your link, extract the title of your web page and instantly add a link back to it. If you like you can remove the words Totally Explained and embed the link in article text.
As long as your link remains in place, we'll keep our link to you right here. Please play fair - our crawlers are watching. Your site must be closely related to this one's topic. Any kind of spamming, dubious practises or removing the link will result in your link from us being dropped and, potentially, your whole site being banned. |
