Rebecca Franks (1760 – September 1823) was a prominent member of

loyalist Loyalism, in the United Kingdom, its overseas territories and its former colonies, refers to the allegiance to the British crown or the United Kingdom. In North America, the most common usage of the term refers to loyalty to the British Cr ...

society in

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...

during the

American Revolution The American Revolution (1765–1783) was a colonial rebellion and war of independence in which the Thirteen Colonies broke from British America, British rule to form the United States of America. The revolution culminated in the American ...

Life

Rebecca Franks was born in Pennsylvania about 1760, the daughter and youngest child of David Franks, a businessman, and the sister of Abigail (1745–1798), the wife of Andrew Hamilton (son of the noted attorney of the same name and proprietor of " The Woodlands"), and the niece of Phila Franks, who married Oliver De Lancey an American loyalist politician and a major general during 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 the armed conflict that comprised the final eight years of the broader American Revolution, in which Am ...

. She was the granddaughter of Abigail Franks, who wrote about the social, political, and religious milieu of 18th-century New York in a series of letters to her son in England between the years 1733 and 1748. During the War of Independence, she, like her father, sided with

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the north-west coast of continental Europe, consisting of the countries England, Scotland, and Wales. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the List of European ...

, and during the British occupation of Philadelphia in 1778 she took part in the "

Mischianza The Mischianza (; Italian for "medley" or "mixture"), or Meschianza, was an elaborate fête given in honor of British General Sir William Howe in Philadelphia on May 18, 1778. Howe, the commander-in-chief of the British forces in America during t ...

," a celebrated, elaborate

fête In the United Kingdom and some of its former colonies, a fête or fete is a public festival organised to raise money for a charity, typically held outdoors. It generally includes entertainment and the sale of goods and refreshments. Fetes are ty ...

given in honor of departing British General Sir William Howe, and at which Major

John André Major John André (May 2, 1750 – October 2, 1780) was a British Army officer who served as the head of Britain's intelligence operations during the American War for Independence. In September 1780, he negotiated with Continental Army offic ...

presided. "The Times, a Poem by Camilio Querno, Poet Laureate of the Congress," a loyalist composition, has been attributed to her. Her literary ability, as well as her vivacity and wit, were well known; she carried on a correspondence with prominent men, and General Charles Lee of the

Continental Army The Continental Army was the army of the United Colonies representing the Thirteen Colonies and later the United States during the American Revolutionary War. It was formed on June 14, 1775, by a resolution passed by the Second Continental Co ...

addressed to her a letter that attracted much attention, being published in the magazines of the day. In 1782 in New York, she married Lieutenant-Colonel (later General) Henry Johnson, of the

17th Regiment of Foot 17 (seventeen) is the natural number following 16 and preceding 18. It is a prime number. 17 was described at MIT as "the least random number", according to the Jargon File. This is supposedly because, in a study where respondents were asked t ...

, and moved to

Bath Bath may refer to: * Bathing, immersion in a fluid ** Bathtub, a large open container for water, in which a person may wash their body ** Public bathing, a public place where people bathe * Thermae, ancient Roman public bathing facilities Plac ...

, England. Johnson distinguished himself by an act of gallantry in one of the outbreaks of rebellion in

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

, and received the honor of a baronetcy, whereupon Rebecca became Lady Johnson. They had two sons, one of whom was killed at the

Battle of Waterloo The Battle of Waterloo was fought on Sunday 18 June 1815, near Waterloo, Belgium, Waterloo (then in the United Kingdom of the Netherlands, now in Belgium), marking the end of the Napoleonic Wars. The French Imperial Army (1804–1815), Frenc ...

. She remained in Bath until her death in September 1823.

References

Sources

Elizabeth F. Ellet, ''The Women of the American Revolution'', Third Edition. New York: Baker and Scribner, 1849.
* Abigail Franks, Edith Belle Gelles, ''The Letters of Abigaill Levy Franks, 1733–1748'' published 2004, Yale University Press, * ''George Washington's Expense Account'', by Gen.

George Washington George Washington (, 1799) was a Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father and the first president of the United States, serving from 1789 to 1797. As commander of the Continental Army, Washington led Patriot (American Revoluti ...

and

Marvin Kitman Marvin Kitman (November 24, 1929 – June 29, 2023) was an American television critic, humorist, and author. He was a columnist for ''Newsday'' for 35 years and was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize for Criticism in 1982. Kitman was the aut ...

, Published 2001, Grove Press,

External links

Article at AmericanRevolution.org
{{DEFAULTSORT:Franks, Rebecca 1760 births 1823 deaths Loyalists in the American Revolution from Pennsylvania Wives of baronets Women in the American Revolution People from colonial Pennsylvania American people of Jewish descent