Robert Hunter (general)
Encyclopedia
General Robert Hunter was colonial governor of New York
and New Jersey
from 1710 to 1720.
A Scot, the son of James Hunter and his wife Margaret Spalding, Hunter had been apprenticed to an apothecary before running away to join the British Army. He became an officer and married a woman of high rank. He was a man of business whose first address to the Assembly was barely 300 words long. In it, he told that "If honesty is the best policy, plainness must be the best oratory".
He was appointed Lieutenant Governor of Virginia in 1707, but captured by a corsair on his way to Virginia, taken to France, and exchanged for the French Bishop of Quebec. He was then appointed Governor of New York and sailed to America with 3000 Palatinate refugees as settlers in 1710. He was succeeded as Governor by Peter Schuyler as acting governor from 1719 to 1720 and finally by William Burnet
, whose post as Comptroller of Customs was given to Hunter in exchange. Hunter was then Governor of Jamaica
from 1727 until his death (in Jamaica).
His play, Androboros
, written in 1714, was the first known play to be written and published in the North American British Colonies.
He was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society in May,1709.
Province of New York
The Province of New York was an English and later British crown territory that originally included all of the present U.S. states of New York, New Jersey, Delaware and Vermont, along with inland portions of Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Maine, as well as eastern Pennsylvania...
and New Jersey
Province of New Jersey
The Province of New Jersey was one of the Middle Colonies of Colonial America and became the U.S. state of New Jersey in 1776. The province had originally been settled by Europeans as part of New Netherland, but came under English rule after the surrender of Fort Amsterdam in 1664, becoming a...
from 1710 to 1720.
A Scot, the son of James Hunter and his wife Margaret Spalding, Hunter had been apprenticed to an apothecary before running away to join the British Army. He became an officer and married a woman of high rank. He was a man of business whose first address to the Assembly was barely 300 words long. In it, he told that "If honesty is the best policy, plainness must be the best oratory".
He was appointed Lieutenant Governor of Virginia in 1707, but captured by a corsair on his way to Virginia, taken to France, and exchanged for the French Bishop of Quebec. He was then appointed Governor of New York and sailed to America with 3000 Palatinate refugees as settlers in 1710. He was succeeded as Governor by Peter Schuyler as acting governor from 1719 to 1720 and finally by William Burnet
William Burnet (administrator)
William Burnet was a British civil servant and colonial administrator who served as governor of New York and New Jersey and Massachusetts .-Early life:...
, whose post as Comptroller of Customs was given to Hunter in exchange. Hunter was then Governor of Jamaica
Jamaica
Jamaica is an island nation of the Greater Antilles, in length, up to in width and 10,990 square kilometres in area. It is situated in the Caribbean Sea, about south of Cuba, and west of Hispaniola, the island harbouring the nation-states Haiti and the Dominican Republic...
from 1727 until his death (in Jamaica).
His play, Androboros
Androboros
Androboros is a play by Robert Hunter written in 1714 when Hunter was serving as the colonial governor of New York and New Jersey. It survives as the earliest known play ever written and published in the North American British colonies...
, written in 1714, was the first known play to be written and published in the North American British Colonies.
He was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society in May,1709.
See also
- List of Governors of New Jersey
- List of Colonial Governors of New York
- AndroborosAndroborosAndroboros is a play by Robert Hunter written in 1714 when Hunter was serving as the colonial governor of New York and New Jersey. It survives as the earliest known play ever written and published in the North American British colonies...
External links
- Biography of Robert Hunter, New Jersey State LibraryNew Jersey State LibraryThe New Jersey State Library, based in Trenton, New Jersey, was established in 1796 to serve the information needs of New Jersey's Governor, Legislature and courts. The State Library is also responsible to assist in the provision of library and information services to all New Jersey...
- Colonial Governors of New York
- Robert Hunter Papers,1699-1744 New-York Historical SocietyNew-York Historical SocietyThe New-York Historical Society is an American history museum and library located in New York City at the corner of 77th Street and Central Park West in Manhattan. Founded in 1804 as New York's first museum, the New-York Historical Society presents exhibitions, public programs and research that...