Ralph Izard
Encyclopedia
Ralph Izard was a U.S. politician
Politician
A politician, political leader, or political figure is an individual who is involved in influencing public policy and decision making...

. He served as President pro tempore
President pro tempore of the United States Senate
The President pro tempore is the second-highest-ranking official of the United States Senate. The United States Constitution states that the Vice President of the United States is the President of the Senate and the highest-ranking official of the Senate despite not being a member of the body...

 of the United States Senate
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...

 in 1794.

Early life

Izard was born at "The Elms" near Charleston, South Carolina
Charleston, South Carolina
Charleston is the second largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina. It was made the county seat of Charleston County in 1901 when Charleston County was founded. The city's original name was Charles Towne in 1670, and it moved to its present location from a location on the west bank of the...

. He was the son of Henry Izard and Margaret Johnson. His great-grandfather was Ralph Izard http://www.familysearch.org/eng/default.asp (1660-1710), who was born in Dorchester, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

 and settled in South Carolina. His maternal grandfather was Province of South Carolina
Province of South Carolina
The South Carolina Colony, or Province of South Carolina, was originally part of the Province of Carolina, which was chartered in 1663. The colony later became the U.S. state of South Carolina....

 Governor
Governor
A governor is a governing official, usually the executive of a non-sovereign level of government, ranking under the head of state...

 Robert Johnson
Robert Johnson (governor)
Robert Johnson was the British colonial Governor of the Province of South Carolina in 1717-1719, and again from 1729-1735. Governor Johnson ordered Colonel William Rhett to engage the notorious pirate Stede Bonnet's sloops in the Battle of Cape Fear River near Charleston in 1718...

. Izard's parents died when he was a small child, and only one of his siblings survived to adulthood. He spent most of his childhood and youth studying in England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

: he attended a school in Hackney, London, and matriculated as a fellow-commoner at Trinity Hall, Cambridge
Trinity Hall, Cambridge
Trinity Hall is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge, England. It is the fifth-oldest college of the university, having been founded in 1350 by William Bateman, Bishop of Norwich.- Foundation :...

. Izard returned to America in 1764, but did not remain in South Carolina for long. In 1767, he married Alice DeLancey of New York (a niece of James DeLancey
James DeLancey
James DeLancey served as chief justice, lieutenant governor, and acting colonial governor of the Province of New York.DeLancey was born in New York City on November 27, 1703, the first son of Etienne DeLancey and Anne-daughter of Stephanus Van Cortlandt...

). They had 13 children between the years of 1768 and 1792.

Career

He resided in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...

 in 1771 and moved to Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...

, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...

, in 1776. He was appointed commissioner to the Court of Tuscany
Tuscany
Tuscany is a region in Italy. It has an area of about 23,000 square kilometres and a population of about 3.75 million inhabitants. The regional capital is Florence ....

 by the Continental Congress
Continental Congress
The Continental Congress was a convention of delegates called together from the Thirteen Colonies that became the governing body of the United States during the American Revolution....

 in 1776, but was recalled in 1779. He returned to America in 1780 and pledged his large estate in South Carolina
South Carolina
South Carolina is a state in the Deep South of the United States that borders Georgia to the south, North Carolina to the north, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Originally part of the Province of Carolina, the Province of South Carolina was one of the 13 colonies that declared independence...

 for the payment of war ships to be used in the American Revolutionary War
American Revolutionary War
The American Revolutionary War , the American War of Independence, or simply the Revolutionary War, began as a war between the Kingdom of Great Britain and thirteen British colonies in North America, and ended in a global war between several European great powers.The war was the result of the...

. He was a member of the Continental Congress in 1782 and 1783. In 1788, he was elected to the United States Senate and served from March 4, 1789, to March 4, 1795, serving as President pro tempore of the Senate during the Third Congress.

Death and legacy

Izard retired from public life to the care of his estates and died near Charleston. He is interred in the churchyard of St. James Goose Creek Episcopal Church
St. James Church (Goose Creek, South Carolina)
St. James' Church, Goose Creek is a church near Goose Creek, South Carolina. Its decorations include cherubs in stucco and a pelican feeding her young.It was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1970....

, near Charleston.

Izard was one of the founders of the College of Charleston
College of Charleston
The College of Charleston is a public, sea-grant and space-grant university located in historic downtown Charleston, South Carolina, United States...

. His children and relations married well:
  • His son Ralph, was a naval hero of Tripoli
    First Barbary War
    The First Barbary War , also known as the Barbary Coast War or the Tripolitan War, was the first of two wars fought between the United States and the North African Berber Muslim states known collectively as the Barbary States...

    . The World War II USS Izard
    USS Izard (DD-589)
    USS Izard , a Fletcher-class destroyer, was a ship of the United States Navy named for Lieutenant Ralph Izard ,...

     was named after him. (Ralph's wife was a niece of Arthur Middleton
    Arthur Middleton
    Arthur Middleton , of Charleston, South Carolina, was a signer of the United States Declaration of Independence....

    .)
  • A son, Major General George Izard, was a Governor
    Governor
    A governor is a governing official, usually the executive of a non-sovereign level of government, ranking under the head of state...

     of Arkansas
    Arkansas
    Arkansas is a state located in the southern region of the United States. Its name is an Algonquian name of the Quapaw Indians. Arkansas shares borders with six states , and its eastern border is largely defined by the Mississippi River...

    .
  • A daughter, Anne, married William Allan Deas {1764-1863} with whom they had a son, the painter, Charles Deas
    Charles Deas
    Charles Deas , was an American painter noted for his oil paintings of Native Americans and fur trappers of the mid-19th century.-Biography:...

    . William's brother was Col James Sutherland Deas {1784-1864} who was the father of CS General Zachariah Cantey Deas
  • A daughter Charlotte married William Loughton Smith {a son of S.C. Assemblyman Benjamin Smith}; William L. Smith was also a brother-in-law of South Carolina Congressman Isaac Motte
    Isaac Motte
    Isaac Motte was an American soldier and statesman from Charleston, South Carolina. He served as a Colonel in the Revolutionary War and represented South Carolina in the Continental Congress from 1780 to 1782....

    .
  • A cousin Sarah Izard married South Carolina
    South Carolina
    South Carolina is a state in the Deep South of the United States that borders Georgia to the south, North Carolina to the north, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Originally part of the Province of Carolina, the Province of South Carolina was one of the 13 colonies that declared independence...

     Loyalist Governor Lord William Campbell.
  • One niece was a daughter-in-law of Loyalist Governor
    Governor
    A governor is a governing official, usually the executive of a non-sovereign level of government, ranking under the head of state...

     of Georgia
    Georgia (U.S. state)
    Georgia is a state located in the southeastern United States. It was established in 1732, the last of the original Thirteen Colonies. The state is named after King George II of Great Britain. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January 2, 1788...

     James Wright (governor)
    James Wright (governor)
    James Wright was an American colonial lawyer and jurist who was the last British Royal Governor of the Province of Georgia. He was the only Royal Governor of the Thirteen Colonies to regain control of his colony during the American Revolutionary War.James Wright was born in London to Robert Wright...

    .
  • Another niece was a daughter-in-law of Congressman of South Carolina
    South Carolina
    South Carolina is a state in the Deep South of the United States that borders Georgia to the south, North Carolina to the north, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Originally part of the Province of Carolina, the Province of South Carolina was one of the 13 colonies that declared independence...

     Thomas Pinckney
    Thomas Pinckney
    Thomas Pinckney was an early American statesman, diplomat and veteran of both the American Revolutionary War and the War of 1812.-Early life in the military:...

    .
  • A great-grandson of Ralph Izard was Charles Manigault Morris
    Charles Manigault Morris
    Charles Manigault Morris was an officer in the United States Navy and later in the Confederate States Navy. He was a son of Colonel Lewis V. Morris of New York and his wife Elizabeth Manigault of South Carolina...

     who was also a great-grandson of Lewis Morris
    Lewis Morris
    Lewis Morris was an American landowner and developer from Morrisania, New York. He signed the U.S. Declaration of Independence as a delegate to the Continental Congress for New York....

    . A cousin of Chalres Manigault Morris was General Arthur Middleton Manigault
    Arthur Middleton Manigault
    -External links:...

     who was descended from Mary Izard-cousin of Ralph Izard

External links

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