Ralph Burton (d. 1768 in Scarborough,

Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ; abbreviated Yorks), formally known as the County of York, is a historic county in northern England and by far the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its large area in comparison with other English counties, functions have ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...

) was a

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English ...

soldier and

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

settler. Burton's military career began in the 2nd Troop of

Horse Grenadier Guards The Horse Grenadier Guards, usually referred to ''Horse Grenadiers'' were a series of cavalry troops in the British Household Cavalry between 1687 and 1788, who used grenades and other explosives in battle. Originally attached to the Horse Gua ...

, where he rose to the rank of Major, serving under

George Augustus Eliott George Augustus Eliott, 1st Baron Heathfield, (25 December 1717 – 6 July 1790) was a British Army officer who served in three major wars during the eighteenth century. He rose to distinction during the Seven Years' War when he fought in ...

, the defender of Gibraltar In 1754, Burton was appointed Lieutenant Colonel of the

48th Foot The 48th (Northamptonshire) Regiment of Foot was a regiment of the British Army, raised in 1741. Under the Childers Reforms it amalgamated with the 58th (Rutlandshire) Regiment of Foot to form the Northamptonshire Regiment in 1881. History Early h ...

, which was involved in the captures of

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Government of Canada, Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is ...

in 1759 and of

Martinique Martinique ( , ; gcf, label=Martinican Creole, Matinik or ; Kalinago language, Kalinago: or ) is an island and an Overseas department and region, overseas department/region and single territorial collectivity of France. An integral part of ...

and Havanna in 1762. In 1760, General

Jeffery Amherst Field Marshal Jeffery Amherst, 1st Baron Amherst, (29 January 1717 – 3 August 1797) was a British Army officer and Commander-in-Chief of the Forces in the British Army. Amherst is credited as the architect of Britain's successful campaign ...

Governor General of British North America A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political r ...

, appointed him lieutenant governor of the

Trois-Rivières Trois-Rivières (, – 'Three Rivers') is a city in the Mauricie administrative region of Quebec, Canada, at the confluence of the Saint-Maurice and Saint Lawrence rivers, on the north shore of the Saint Lawrence River across from the city of ...

district while New France remained under British military rule. On 31 January 1761, Burton formed the 95th Regiment of Foot in South Carolina from several independent companies. The regiment fought successfully against the Cherokees. It then transferred to Barbados. From there it participated in the capture of Martinique, the occupation of Grenada, and the siege of Havana (1762). The regiment was disbanded in England on 7 March 1763. Following the return of civilian rule under the newly appointed

Governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

, General James Murray, Burton was made brigadier (commander) of the army in the new British

province of Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...

. He was also made Colonel of the 3rd Foot (the Buffs). After continual conflict with Governor Murray, both he and Burton were recalled to Britain in 1766. Despite being an influential figure in Canadian military and geopolitical history, little is known about Burton's life outside of the Army. He appears to have been a close friend of

John Calcraft John Calcraft the Elder (1726 – 23 August 1772), of Rempstone in Dorset and Ingress in Kent, was an English army agent and politician. Business career The son of an attorney who was Town Clerk of Grantham, Calcraft set out on a career as an ...

, and was elected to Parliament a few months before his death as

Member Member may refer to: * Military jury, referred to as "Members" in military jargon * Element (mathematics), an object that belongs to a mathematical set * In object-oriented programming, a member of a class ** Field (computer science), entries in ...

for Wareham, a

pocket borough A rotten or pocket borough, also known as a nomination borough or proprietorial borough, was a parliamentary borough or constituency in England, Great Britain, or the United Kingdom before the Reform Act 1832, which had a very small electora ...

that Calcraft controlled. He died in 1768. A 1767 will mentions an estate in

and a townhouse in

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

. He was twice married: in 1750 to Elizabeth St Leger (died 1753), sister of Anthony St Leger after whom the famous

horse race Horse racing is an equestrian performance sport, typically involving two or more horses ridden by jockeys (or sometimes driven without riders) over a set distance for competition. It is one of the most ancient of all sports, as its basic p ...

is named, then around 1763 to Marguerite Lydius. He had a son and a daughter by his second marriage. A daughter Mary, his eventual heir, married General Napier Christie, who adopted the surname Burton. A memorial to Ralph Burton is in St. Mary's Church,

Cottingham, East Riding of Yorkshire Cottingham is a large village and civil parish in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England with average affluence. It lies north-west of the centre of Kingston upon Hull, and south-east of Beverley on the eastern edge of the Yorkshire Wolds. It h ...

References

* Lewis Namier & John Brooke, ''The History of Parliament: The House of Commons 1754-1790'' (London: HMSO, 1964)

External links

Biography at the ''Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Burton, Ralph Year of birth missing 1768 deaths People from Scarborough, North Yorkshire British military personnel of the French and Indian War British Army officers British Life Guards officers 48th Regiment of Foot officers British MPs 1768–1774 Members of the Parliament of Great Britain for English constituencies Governors of Montreal Buffs (Royal East Kent Regiment) officers People from Cottingham, East Riding of Yorkshire 18th-century Canadian politicians