William Leyborne Leyborne ( — 16 April 1775) was a British colonial administrator who served as the

governor of Grenada This is a list of Viceroys of Grenada from the establishment of French rule in 1649 until its independence from the United Kingdom in 1974. Following independence, the viceroy of Grenada ceased to represent the British monarch and British governme ...

from 1771 to 1775.

Early life

Leyborne was born William Leyborne Taylor, son of Edward Taylor and Ann Leyborne, in 1736. Ann was the daughter of Anthony Leyborne. William later took the name Leyborne in place of Taylor, thus becoming William Leyborne Leyborne. On 19 May 1763 he married Ann Popham, daughter of Edward Popham, Esq. MP, of Littlecote

Wiltshire Wiltshire (; abbreviated to Wilts) is a ceremonial county in South West England. It borders Gloucestershire to the north, Oxfordshire to the north-east, Berkshire to the east, Hampshire to the south-east, Dorset to the south, and Somerset to ...

. When his brother-in-law Francis Popham, Edward's heir, died childless in 1779, the estates were inherited by his widow Dorothy Popham (nee Hutton) and on her death in 1797, they went to another Francis Popham (1757 - 1804), the "reputed son" of Francis of Littlecote. On his death in 1804, William Leyborne Leyborne's eldest son Edward William Leyborne inherited the estates and was obliged to add the name Popham to his own. Edward William Leyborne Popham became General Popham (1764 – 1843) of Littlecote and later

High Sheriff of Wiltshire This is a list of the sheriffs and (after 1 April 1974) high sheriffs of Wiltshire. Until the 14th century, the shrievalty was held ''ex officio'' by the castellans of Old Sarum Castle. On 1 April 1974, under the provisions of the Local Go ...

Career

Brigadier-General Leyborne was appointed on 2 March 1771 Captain-General and Governor-in-Chief of his Majesty’s islands of Grenada, the Grenadines, St. Vincent and Tobago by

King George III George III (George William Frederick; 4 June 173829 January 1820) was King of Great Britain and King of Ireland, Ireland from 25 October 1760 until his death in 1820. The Acts of Union 1800 unified Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain and ...

, taking over the position from

Robert Melvill General Robert Melvill (or Melville) LLD (12 October 1723 – 29 August 1809) was a Scottish soldier in the British Army, antiquary, botanist, inventor, and slave plantation owner. He was owner of the Marigot, Dominica, Melville Hall (Dominica ...

. As Governor of Grenada he was granted expenses from 1 Nov 1771 to 16 Apr 1775. Just ten years previously the British had gained control of the

Grenadines The Grenadines () is a chain of small islands that lie on a line between the larger islands of Saint Vincent and Grenada in the Lesser Antilles. Nine are inhabited and open to the public (or ten, if the offshore island of Young Island is counted ...

(south of St. Vincent) and placed them also under the charge of Grenada when raiding privateers began presenting a continuing threat and forcing the new Governor-in-Chief to protest to London that St. Vincent should have a separate governor and appointed gentleman planter Valentine Morris. Dominica planters also pushed for a separate government in this case because of its distance from Grenada retarding its economic progress This was a time when the

Windward Islands The Windward Islands are the southern, generally larger islands of the Lesser Antilles of the Caribbean islands or the West Indies. Located approximately between latitudes 10° and 16° N and longitudes 60° and 62° W, they extend from D ...

were in the midst of British absenteeism in which any developing legislatures would be composed of people without any major landed investment in the islands, yet consisted of a large French Catholic community who themselves (though having freely signed a petition of allegiance to the King) owned several major estates, and whose own loyalty to the Crown was considered questionable by its British residents. Making the job of finding proper persons to make a Council an impossible problem to solve for Governor Leyborne. Shortly after, and just four years before the French recaptured Grenada, Leyborne died on 16 April 1775 in

St. Vincent Saint Vincent may refer to: People Saints * Vincent of Saragossa (died 304), a.k.a. Vincent the Deacon, deacon and martyr * Saint Vincenca, 3rd century Roman martyress, whose relics are in Blato, Croatia * Vincent, Orontius, and Victor (died 305 ...

, aged 39 years, and Lt. William Young, Governor of Tobago, was appointed to act as Governor. Amongst the many men who held important offices in the island of St Vincent, in the cemetery surrounding the cathedral of St. George, situated in Kingstown, there was a monument (which was by 1912 much affected by the rains and heat as to almost obliterate the inscription) stood prominently to the memory of the late Excellency William Leyborne.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Leybourne, William Leybourne 18th-century births 1775 deaths Governors of the Windward Islands