Sir John Colleton, 1st Baronet (1608–1666) served King

Charles I Charles I may refer to: Kings and emperors * Charlemagne (742–814), numbered Charles I in the lists of Holy Roman Emperors and French kings * Charles I of Anjou (1226–1285), also king of Albania, Jerusalem, Naples and Sicily * Charles I of ...

during the

English Civil War The English Civil War (1642–1651) was a series of civil wars and political machinations between Parliamentarians ("Roundheads") and Royalists led by Charles I ("Cavaliers"), mainly over the manner of Kingdom of England, England's governanc ...

. He rose through the Royalist ranks during the conflict, but later had his land-holdings seized when the Cavaliers were finally defeated by Parliamentary forces. Following the Restoration of the Monarchy in 1660, he was one of eight individuals rewarded with grants of land in Carolina by King Charles II for having supported his efforts to regain the

throne A throne is the seat of state of a potentate or dignitary, especially the seat occupied by a sovereign on state occasions; or the seat occupied by a pope or bishop on ceremonial occasions. "Throne" in an abstract sense can also refer to the monar ...

Origins

He was the second son of Peter Colleton (d.1622) of Exeter in Devon,

Sheriff of Exeter A sheriff is a government official, with varying duties, existing in some countries with historical ties to England where the office originated. There is an analogous, although independently developed, office in Iceland that is commonly transla ...

in 1618, who was born in the parish of Monkenzeale who following his death in 1622 was buried at St Olave's Church in Exeter. His mother was Ursula Hull, a daughter of Henry Hull (or Hall) of Exeter, who married John Colleton in 1578 at St Kerrian's Church in Exeter. John's sister Elizabeth Colleton was the wife of Sir Hugh Croker,

Mayor of Exeter This is a chronological list of the Mayors and Lord Mayors of the city of Exeter, England. The role of Mayor was granted the dignity and style of Lord Mayor by letters patent dated 1 May 2002 as the result of a competition to celebrate the Go ...

, a younger son of the Croker family of Lyneham, Yealmpton, in Devon.

Career

Civil War

He was a Royalist and very active at the beginning of the Civil War, serving as a Captain of foot-soldiers. He received a commission for Colonel from Sir John Berkeley (later Baron Berkeley of Stratton), general of the royalist forces in Devon, signed by the Prince of Wales, and successfully raised a regiment within ten days. He spent £40,000 of his own money in the king's service, and lost a further £7,000 through plunder and sequestration. Eventually he fled to the Island of

Barbados Barbados is an island country in the Lesser Antilles of the West Indies, in the Caribbean region of the Americas, and the most easterly of the Caribbean Islands. It occupies an area of and has a population of about 287,000 (2019 estimate). ...

. After the Restoration of the Monarchy in 1660 Berkeley petitioned King Charles II on his behalf as follows:
:''These are humbly to certify your sacred majesty, that John Colleton, some time of Exeter, Esq; engaged for your majesty's royal father, in the beginning of his troubles, raised and commanded a regiment under me, consisting of about 1,100 men well armed, without any charge to his then majesty or compulsion of his people, which was very 'costly to him, he neither receiving any pay or free quarter to my knowledge, and the soldiers very little of either; that he furnished moneys and arms to a good value when he was driven from his habitation and estate in Cornwall before the battle of Stratton, for which, I am confident, he hath not had satisfaction; that he being chosen a commissioner by the county of Exon for the carrying on the service of your majesty's royal father in the associated counties of the west, did there in good service. That he did, at several other times, procure and lend moneys, and procure and furnish good store of arms and ammunition when his majesty's affairs were in great straits, and gave credit, and stayed long for considerable sums yet unpaid of many of them, whereby a good sum must be due unto him. That he suffered much by your majesty's enemies by being of your part, I believe to the value of above sixty thousand pounds, and he was well contented to stay for his disbursements, and bore his sufferings chearfully, proposing to himself no other satisfaction that I could perceive, than your majesty's restauration. That after your majesty's exile, he was ever active and helpful to your majesty's agents in England in his person and with his purse, which I myself know to be true, and have been informed thereof by divers others. That he forsook England for many years, to avoid the oaths, subscriptions, etc., imposed upon your subjects by your enemies, destructive to your majesty's interest, as I found by him, in Holland, in the year 1650, and returned not until your majesty's restauration. That he hath kept his loyalty unspotted to the last, as far as I can be informed or understand. I am sure he hath done your majesty faithful and good service many ways, and all this in order to his duty and allegiance, without any respect to reward or gain that I could perceive by him. 12th of Dec. 1660. - Jo. Berkeley''.

Created a baronet

In recompense for his service during the Civil War, King Charles II in 1661 created him a baronet with territorial designation "of London". And in further recompense for his great services, in conjunction with the Duke of Albemarle, Earl Clarendon, Earl Craven, and four other noble persons, granted by

letters patent Letters patent ( la, litterae patentes) ( always in the plural) are a type of legal instrument in the form of a published written order issued by a monarch, president or other head of state, generally granting an office, right, monopoly, tit ...

to them, their heirs, and successors, large dominions in Carolina, and the Bahama Islands.

Grants in Carolina

In 1663 King Charles II granted Colleton and another seven persons, called Lords Proprietors, the land called Carolina, named in honor of his father King Charles I. Colleton brought a group of settlers from the Caribbean Isle of

, who brought with them

slaves Slavery and enslavement are both the state and the condition of being a slave—someone forbidden to quit one's service for an enslaver, and who is treated by the enslaver as property. Slavery typically involves slaves being made to perf ...

from

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...

thus introducing slavery to Carolina. These settlers introduced the cultivation of

rice Rice is the seed of the grass species ''Oryza sativa'' (Asian rice) or less commonly ''Oryza glaberrima'' (African rice). The name wild rice is usually used for species of the genera '' Zizania'' and ''Porteresia'', both wild and domesticated, ...

to the area.

Colleton County Colleton County is in the Lowcountry region of the U.S. state of South Carolina. As of the 2020 census, the population was 38,604. Its county seat is Walterboro. The county is named after Sir John Colleton, 1st Baronet, one of the eight Lords ...

South Carolina )'' Animis opibusque parati'' ( for, , Latin, Prepared in mind and resources, links=no) , anthem = " Carolina";" South Carolina On My Mind" , Former = Province of South Carolina , seat = Columbia , LargestCity = Charleston , LargestMetro = ...

, is named after him as is Colington, North Carolina.

Marriage and children

In 1634 at St Mary Arches Church in Exeter, he married Katherine Amey, a daughter of Thomas Amey of Exeter, by whom he had children as follows: * Sir Peter Colleton, 2nd Baronet (1635–1694), eldest son and heir. He was awarded the title of

Landgrave Landgrave (german: Landgraf, nl, landgraaf, sv, lantgreve, french: landgrave; la, comes magnus, ', ', ', ', ') was a noble title used in the Holy Roman Empire, and later on in its former territories. The German titles of ', ' ("margrave"), a ...

, pre-Revolutionary, English colonial titles of nobility in the

lowcountry The Lowcountry (sometimes Low Country or just low country) is a geographic and cultural region along South Carolina's coast, including the Sea Islands. The region includes significant salt marshes and other coastal waterways, making it an import ...

of Carolina, during the late 17th and early 18th centuries. *John Colleton (d.1668) of

St John's College, Oxford St John's College is a constituent college of the University of Oxford. Founded as a men's college in 1555, it has been coeducational since 1979.Communication from Michael Riordan, college archivist Its founder, Sir Thomas White, intended to pro ...

, who died unmarried. *Thomas Colleton (born 1636) of Barbados, created a Landgrave. He married a member of the Mead family, by whom he had children including Elizabeth Colleton, wife of Colonel Thomas Garth and mother of John Garth (1701–1764), a

Member of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members ofte ...

for

Devizes Devizes is a market town and civil parish in Wiltshire, England. It developed around Devizes Castle, an 11th-century Norman castle, and received a charter in 1141. The castle was besieged during the Anarchy, a 12th-century civil war between S ...

in Wiltshire, whose sons included General

George Garth George Garth (1733–1819) was a British General, a commander in the American Revolutionary War, and Colonel of the 17th Regiment of Foot. Life He was son of John Garth MP and Rebecca, the daughter of John Brompton and granddaughter of Sir ...

(c.1733–1819) who served in the

American War of Independence The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was a major war of the American Revolution. Widely considered as the war that secured the independence of t ...

, a Colonel of the

17th Regiment of Foot 17 (seventeen) is the natural number following 16 and preceding 18. It is a prime number. Seventeen is the sum of the first four prime numbers. In mathematics 17 is the seventh prime number, which makes seventeen the fourth super-prime, ...

and Charles Garth (1734–1784), Colonial Agent for the

Provinces A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or state. The term derives from the ancient Roman ''provincia'', which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire's territorial possessions outsi ...

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...

and

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean to it ...

, between 1763 and 1765, who succeeded his father as a Member of Parliament for Devizes, and served as Recorder of Devizes. * James Colleton (died c.1706) of Barbados, created a Landgrave. He was a governor of the English proprietary

Province of Carolina Province of Carolina was a province of England (1663–1707) and Great Britain (1707–1712) that existed in North America and the Caribbean from 1663 until partitioned into North and South on January 24, 1712. It is part of present-day Alaba ...

from 1686 to 1690. He married Anne Kendall, a daughter of James Kendall (1647–1708),

Governor of Barbados This article contains a list of viceroys in Barbados from its initial colonisation in 1627 by England until it achieved independence in 1966. From 1833 to 1885, Barbados was part of the colony of the Windward Islands, and the governor of Barbad ...

. His son John Colleton of Barbados married Elizabeth Ernle, widow of Thomas Drax of Drax Hall, Barbados and of Ellerton Abbey, Yorkshire, a sister of

Sir Edward Ernle, 3rd Baronet Sir Edward Ernle, 3rd Baronet (c. 1673 – 1729) of Charborough in Dorset, of Brimslade Park and Etchilhampton, both in Wiltshire, was an English Whig politician who sat in the English House of Commons, English and British House of Commons betwe ...

(c. 1673–1729) who married the heiress of

Charborough House Charborough House, also known as Charborough Park, is a Grade I listed building, the manor house of the ancient manor of Charborough. The house is between the villages of Sturminster Marshall and Bere Regis in Dorset, England. The grounds, wh ...

in Dorset. John's son was James Edward Colleton (c.1709–1790), a

for

Lostwithiel Lostwithiel (; kw, Lostwydhyel) is a civil parish and small town in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom at the head of the estuary of the River Fowey. According to the 2001 census it had a population of 2,739, increasing to 2,899 at the 2011 ce ...

in Cornwall, who married Lady Anne Cowper, a daughter of

William Cowper, 1st Earl Cowper William Cowper, 1st Earl Cowper, ( ; 10 October 1723) was an English politician who became the first Lord High Chancellor of Great Britain. Cowper was the son of Sir William Cowper, 2nd Baronet, of Ratling Court, Kent, a Whig member of parl ...

. *Katherine Colleton (born 1638), eldest daughter, born in the parish of St Olave's, Exeter. *Anne Colleton (born 1640), 2nd daughter, who married firstly "General Stewart", secondly Humphry Selwood. *Elizabeth Colleton (1644–1646), 3rd daughter, died in infancy, buried at St Olave's, Exeter.Vivian

Notes

{{Reflist

References

* Divine, Robert A. America: Past and Present. 6th ed. New York: Pearson Longman, 2003. * {{Rayment-bt, date=March 2012 * LB Namier, The English Historical Review, volume 54, 1939. * The Annual Register, Edmund Burke, 1830 * Blackwoods Edinburgh Magazine, 1819, page 506
{{s-start {{s-reg, en-bt {{succession box, title=

Baronet A baronet ( or ; abbreviated Bart or Bt) or the female equivalent, a baronetess (, , or ; abbreviation Btss), is the holder of a baronetcy, a hereditary title awarded by the British Crown. The title of baronet is mentioned as early as the 14t ...

(of London), years=1661–1666, before=New creation, after= Peter Colleton {{s-end {{Lords Proprietors of Carolina, state=expanded {{Authority control {{DEFAULTSORT:Colleton, John 1608 births 1666 deaths Baronets in the Baronetage of England British people of Barbadian descent Colony of Barbados people Cavaliers Lords Proprietors of Carolina British slave owners