Nathaniel Rice (c. 1684-1753) was a British colonial administrator who served as the

acting Acting is an activity in which a story is told by means of its enactment by an actor who adopts a character—in theatre, television, film, radio, or any other medium that makes use of the mimetic mode. Acting involves a broad range of sk ...

governor of North Carolina The governor of North Carolina is the head of government of the United States, U.S. state of North Carolina. Seventy-five people have held the office since the first state governor, Richard Caswell, took office in 1777. The governor serves a ...

in 1734 and from 1752 to 1753.

Early life and career

In 1724, Rice joined the

Royal African Company The Royal African Company (RAC) was an English trading company established in 1660 by the House of Stuart and City of London merchants to trade along the West African coast. It was overseen by the Duke of York, the brother of Charles II of Eng ...

(RAC) and was appointed as the

factor Factor (Latin, ) may refer to: Commerce * Factor (agent), a person who acts for, notably a mercantile and colonial agent * Factor (Scotland), a person or firm managing a Scottish estate * Factors of production, such a factor is a resource used ...

for the

Cape Coast Castle Cape Coast Castle () is one of about forty slave fort, "slave castles", or large commercial forts, built on the Gold Coast (region), Gold Coast of West Africa (now Ghana) by European traders. It was originally a Portuguese "feitoria" or Factory ( ...

(a trading post of the RAC) as part of a three-man team headed by Captain-General John Tinker to administer the post's trade in gold, silver and

slaves Slavery is the ownership of a person as property, especially in regards to their labour. Slavery typically involves compulsory work, with the slave's location of work and residence dictated by the party that holds them in bondage. Enslavemen ...

. Rice returned to

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

in 1726 to marry Anne Gibbs, sister-in-law of politician

Martin Bladen Colonel Martin Bladen (1680–1746) was a British politician who sat in the Irish House of Commons from 1713 to 1727 and in the British House of Commons from 1715 to 1746. He was a Commissioner of the Board of Trade and Plantations, a Privy Coun ...

, a senior figure at the

Board of Trade The Board of Trade is a British government body concerned with commerce and industry, currently within the Department for Business and Trade. Its full title is The Lords of the Committee of the Privy Council appointed for the consideration of ...

. In 1730 Nathaniel Rice was appointed Secretary of the North Carolina Council, a posting he assumed in April 1731 at the beginning of

George Burrington George Burrington (Wiktionary:circa, ca. 1682 – 22 February 1759) was a British colonial official who served as the third and fifth List of governors of North Carolina (1712–1776), governor of North Carolina from 1724 to 1725 and 1731 to 17 ...

's second term as governor. Burrington's first term as governor in 1724-25 had been marked by aggressive behaviour and quarrelling with his senior councillor who, along with other assembly members had complained to London and got him removed from post. Despite this, he secured a second term as governor through the patronage of the

Duke of Newcastle Duke of Newcastle upon Tyne was a title that was created three times, once in the Peerage of England and twice in the Peerage of Great Britain. The first grant of the title was made in 1665 to William Cavendish, 1st Duke of Newcastle, Willi ...

and, during preparations to issue him instructions, Burrington had been asked to produce a list of 12 names to be his councillors but, when he only presented a list of 10, Martin Bladen inserted the names of William Smith (a London lawyer) and Nathaniel Rice (who was now Bladen's brother-in-law). Bladen had a particular interest in North Carolina, his father-in-law John Gibbs having been governor 1689-90 and he also owned land there; Bladen was hostile to the re-appointment of Burrington and Burrington was hostile to the idea that Bladen's brother-in-law was now his senior councillor.

Acting governor of North Carolina

Within a few months of Governor George Burrington being in post, most members of his administration and council complained of his behaviour and William Smith, the Chief Justice, resigned in protest and left for England to complain about the governor to Whitehall officials at the Board of Trade. In Smith's absence, Nathaniel Rice was appointed President of the Council towards the end of 1731. By the following year Rice, the

Attorney General In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general (: attorneys general) or attorney-general (AG or Atty.-Gen) is the main legal advisor to the government. In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have executive responsibility for law enf ...

and other members of the Council complained about the Governor's behaviour to the Duke of Newcastle. The complaints continued to flow in until finally Newcastle, in 1733, announced that Burrington would be replaced by a new governor - who did not arrive in post until the following year. Burrington had to remain in post for many months until his replacement arrived and when Smith returned from England to an enthusiastic reception from the Council, Burrington felt threatened. He removed the seals of office from Nathaniel Rice to prevent him carrying out his duties and then dissolved the council. Meanwhile, on 15 April 1734, when Burrington was in South Carolina, Nathaniel Rice - as next senior councillor - assumed the governorship in his absence. When the governor returned on 17 September 1734 he immediately suspended Rice from office, along with other councillors and alleged that Rice, Smith and Montgomery had attempted to assassinate him. By the end of September, however, Governor Burrington himself had been removed from office again, and a new governor,

Gabriel Johnston Gabriel Johnston (1699 – 17 July 1752) was a British colonial official who served as the sixth provincial governor of North Carolina from 1734 until his death in 1752. He was the longest serving governor, holding the office for 18 years ...

, had arrived to take charge who immediately reinstated all those councillors Burrington had suspended. Nathaniel Rice worked alongside Governor Johnston throughout his term. Rice was appointed a Commissioner of the Peace of New Hanover Precinct, a member of the General Court and Member of a Board of Commissioners to erect Fort Johnston. Burrington aside, Rice prospered in America where he probably had land acquisitions prior to his arriving in 1731 from his 1725 visit to South Carolina and he had a plantation on the south side of Old Town Creek in New Hanover County (most of the land owned by Nathaniel Rice later fell into newly formed Brunswick County, North Carolina), called 'Rice's Plantation'. Numerous land grants indicate he amassed some 6,000 acres of land and 17

. He was a vestryman at St Philip's Parish Church and was buried in the family vault near his home on 29 January 1753, Wilmington, North Carolina.

Personal life

Rice married at least twice: On 24 August 1726 he married Anne Gibbs at St Clement Danes Church in London and later married Mary Bursey, his last wife who survived him. He had one surviving son, John Rice, who was appointed Deputy Secretary of the province and also served as Clerk of Craven County, North Carolina. He may have had a second son Martin Rice, born 1729 in Salehurst Sussex, who probably died young. By his son John Rice, he had several grandchildren including grandson, John Rice, who married Abigail Sugg in 1773, was the first Clerk of Wake County, North Carolina, and a member of the North Carolina House of Commons for Wake County in 1777. Granddaughter, Sarah Rice, married John Hawks, architect of

Tryon Palace Tryon Palace, also called the Governor's House and the Governor's Palace, is a two-story building located in the eastern part of New Bern, North Carolina. The building is a faithful reconstruction of the original 1770 residence built by archite ...

in New Bern, North Carolina.Brunswick County, North Carolina Deeds Transcribed by Joseph Sheppard: Brunswick County Deed Book C, Page 45-47 and Page 274; Brunswick County Deed Book D, Page 231

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rice, Nathaniel 1680s births 1753 deaths Governors of the Province of North Carolina Members of the North-Carolina Provincial Council Presidents of the North-Carolina Provincial Council