Myles Cooper
Encyclopedia
Myles Cooper was a figure in colonial New York
. An Anglican priest, he served as the President of King's College (predecessor of today's Columbia University
) from 1763 to 1775, and was a public opponent of the American Revolution
.
in 1761, he attracted the influence of several high clergymen, including Thomas Secker
, Archbishop of Canterbury
, who recommended him for service in the American colonies. Cooper was thereby sent to New York
in 1762 to assist Samuel Johnson
, president of King's College, which was an Anglican establishment. Cooper was appointed professor of mental and moral philosophy, and a year later he had assumed the college presidency.
Still, the college prospered under Cooper's tenure, creating, among other things, the second medical college in the Americas, in 1767. Judge Thomas Jones wrote that "under his tuition was produced a number of young men superior in learning and ability to any that America had ever before seen," and George Washington
, whose stepson John Parke Custis attended King's, wrote of Cooper that he was "a gentleman capable of instructing him [Custis] in every branch of knowledge."
be merged into an "American University", the structure of which would be similar to Oxford or Cambridge. Under this scheme, the constituent colleges, including, among others, Harvard, Yale
, and the College of New Jersey (later Princeton
) would remain quasi-independent but would be controlled by King's, which would be elevated to university status and sanctioned as the only degree-granting institution in the colonies. Although Cooper obtained the support of the King's College Governors for the plan and left for England with a delegation to persuade King George III of its virtues and ask for his sanction in the form of a royal charter, neither Parliament nor the governing bodies of the other colleges ever took Cooper's plan seriously.
sympathies, did not take warm to the growing revolutionary spirit in the colonies. He authored, with several other Anglican clergy in New York, political tracts arguing that all forms of resistance to the Crown constituted treason. His pamphlet A Friendly Address to all Reasonable Americans on our Political Confusions; in which the Necessary Consequences of violently opposing the King's Troops, and of a General Non-importation, are fairly stated was later answered in best-selling tracts by Alexander Hamilton
and Charles Lee
.
For his Loyalism, Cooper, along with other prominent New York Tories, were issued death threats admonishing them "to flee for your lives, or anticipate your doom". Of Cooper, in particular, this party evidenced a desire of "seizing him in his bed, shaving his head, cutting off his ears, slitting his nose, stripping him naked, and setting him adrift". In May 1775 Cooper was confronted by an angry mob from which he managed to escape by boarding a British naval ship anchored in New York harbor. Rumors persist that this was due to the assistance of Alexander Hamilton
, though these have been shown to lack the weight of substantive evidence. Cooper fled to England that same month, where he engaged in numerous professions. His only subsequent association to America was his claim that he was owed pay for his tenure as college president, as well as a poem he composed about his flight.
Cooper died in Edinburgh
, Scotland
.
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
. An Anglican priest, he served as the President of King's College (predecessor of today's Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
) from 1763 to 1775, and was a public opponent of the American Revolution
American Revolution
The American Revolution was the political upheaval during the last half of the 18th century in which thirteen colonies in North America joined together to break free from the British Empire, combining to become the United States of America...
.
Early life
Cooper was educated at Queen's College, Oxford where he later served as chaplain. Ordained as a priest in the Church of EnglandChurch of England
The Church of England is the officially established Christian church in England and the Mother Church of the worldwide Anglican Communion. The church considers itself within the tradition of Western Christianity and dates its formal establishment principally to the mission to England by St...
in 1761, he attracted the influence of several high clergymen, including Thomas Secker
Thomas Secker
Thomas Secker , Archbishop of Canterbury, was born at Sibthorpe, Nottinghamshire.-Early life and studies:In 1699, Secker went to Richard Brown's free school in Chesterfield, staying with his half-sister and her husband, Elizabeth and Richard Milnes...
, Archbishop of Canterbury
Archbishop of Canterbury
The Archbishop of Canterbury is the senior bishop and principal leader of the Church of England, the symbolic head of the worldwide Anglican Communion, and the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of Canterbury. In his role as head of the Anglican Communion, the archbishop leads the third largest group...
, who recommended him for service in the American colonies. Cooper was thereby sent to New York
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
in 1762 to assist Samuel Johnson
Samuel Johnson (1696-1772)
The Reverend Doctor Samuel Johnson was a clergyman, educator, and philosopher in colonial British North America...
, president of King's College, which was an Anglican establishment. Cooper was appointed professor of mental and moral philosophy, and a year later he had assumed the college presidency.
Presidency of King's College
Cooper was chosen to replace his predecessor in the position of College President primarily because the Governors of the institution believed he would be far easier to control. Indeed, Cooper was not entirely engaged in the educational mission of King's, possessing a larger cache of alcoholic beverages than books, and more frequently engaging in the urban life of New York.Still, the college prospered under Cooper's tenure, creating, among other things, the second medical college in the Americas, in 1767. Judge Thomas Jones wrote that "under his tuition was produced a number of young men superior in learning and ability to any that America had ever before seen," and George Washington
George Washington
George Washington was the dominant military and political leader of the new United States of America from 1775 to 1799. He led the American victory over Great Britain in the American Revolutionary War as commander-in-chief of the Continental Army from 1775 to 1783, and presided over the writing of...
, whose stepson John Parke Custis attended King's, wrote of Cooper that he was "a gentleman capable of instructing him [Custis] in every branch of knowledge."
Proposals
While in the American colonies Cooper floated several grandiose schemes that were never realized:The American Bishoprics
Cooper was reportedly more enamored with the Southern colonies than New York, and frequently took to "rambles" there. Desiring to resettle there, he proposed to his ecclesiastical superiors, in both 1768 and 1774, that two Anglican sees be established in North America, and that he be appointed bishop of the more southernly one.The American University
Though he was in the thrall of King's College's governors during much of his tenure, Cooper had novel plans for the fledgling institution. He proposed that the Colonial CollegesColonial colleges
The Colonial Colleges are nine institutions of higher education chartered in the American Colonies before the United States of America became a sovereign nation after the American Revolution. These nine have long been considered together, notably in the survey of their origins in the 1907 The...
be merged into an "American University", the structure of which would be similar to Oxford or Cambridge. Under this scheme, the constituent colleges, including, among others, Harvard, Yale
YALE
RapidMiner, formerly YALE , is an environment for machine learning, data mining, text mining, predictive analytics, and business analytics. It is used for research, education, training, rapid prototyping, application development, and industrial applications...
, and the College of New Jersey (later Princeton
Princeton University
Princeton University is a private research university located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. The school is one of the eight universities of the Ivy League, and is one of the nine Colonial Colleges founded before the American Revolution....
) would remain quasi-independent but would be controlled by King's, which would be elevated to university status and sanctioned as the only degree-granting institution in the colonies. Although Cooper obtained the support of the King's College Governors for the plan and left for England with a delegation to persuade King George III of its virtues and ask for his sanction in the form of a royal charter, neither Parliament nor the governing bodies of the other colleges ever took Cooper's plan seriously.
Revolution and flight
Cooper, who was a conservative with ToryTory
Toryism is a traditionalist and conservative political philosophy which grew out of the Cavalier faction in the Wars of the Three Kingdoms. It is a prominent ideology in the politics of the United Kingdom, but also features in parts of The Commonwealth, particularly in Canada...
sympathies, did not take warm to the growing revolutionary spirit in the colonies. He authored, with several other Anglican clergy in New York, political tracts arguing that all forms of resistance to the Crown constituted treason. His pamphlet A Friendly Address to all Reasonable Americans on our Political Confusions; in which the Necessary Consequences of violently opposing the King's Troops, and of a General Non-importation, are fairly stated was later answered in best-selling tracts by Alexander Hamilton
Alexander Hamilton
Alexander Hamilton was a Founding Father, soldier, economist, political philosopher, one of America's first constitutional lawyers and the first United States Secretary of the Treasury...
and Charles Lee
Charles Lee (general)
Charles Lee was a British soldier who later served as a General of the Continental Army during the American War of Independence. Lee served in the British army during the Seven Years War. After the war he sold his commission and served for a time in the Polish army of King Stanislaus II...
.
For his Loyalism, Cooper, along with other prominent New York Tories, were issued death threats admonishing them "to flee for your lives, or anticipate your doom". Of Cooper, in particular, this party evidenced a desire of "seizing him in his bed, shaving his head, cutting off his ears, slitting his nose, stripping him naked, and setting him adrift". In May 1775 Cooper was confronted by an angry mob from which he managed to escape by boarding a British naval ship anchored in New York harbor. Rumors persist that this was due to the assistance of Alexander Hamilton
Alexander Hamilton
Alexander Hamilton was a Founding Father, soldier, economist, political philosopher, one of America's first constitutional lawyers and the first United States Secretary of the Treasury...
, though these have been shown to lack the weight of substantive evidence. Cooper fled to England that same month, where he engaged in numerous professions. His only subsequent association to America was his claim that he was owed pay for his tenure as college president, as well as a poem he composed about his flight.
Cooper died in Edinburgh
Edinburgh
Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...
, Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
.
External links
- Biographical Sketches of King's College Notables
- King's College Timeline
- "Myles Cooper: Ecclesiastical Placeman" from "Tory Prologue: King’s College in Revolutionary America 1754 - 1776" by Robert A. McCaughey