Belvoir (plantation)

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Depiction of Belvoir before its destruction

Belvoir was a historic plantation and home to the prominent Fairfax family in colonial Virginia . It was on the western bank of the Potomac River in Fairfax County , Virginia, where Fort Belvoir is now . The main house - called Belvoir Manor or Belvoir Mansion - burned down in 1783 and was completely destroyed during the war of 1812 . The place has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places since 1973 as "Belvoir Mansion Ruins and the Fairfax Grave".

history

18th century

origin

William Green's 1669 patent covered 1,150 acres (4.7 km²) of land, much of the peninsula between Great Dane Creek and Accotink Creek along the Potomac River. Although it was divided and sold in the early eighteenth century, it was slated to be reassembled in 1730 to become the central portion of the 2,200-acre Belvoir Manor plantation built by William Fairfax.

Construction of the mansion

Construction of the Fairfax family's elegant new home was completed in 1741. Historical documents and archaeological finds attest to the elegant lifestyle the Fairfax family enjoyed at Belvoir Manor. The villa itself was described in rental records in 1774 as spacious and well equipped. The furniture consisted of "tables, chairs, and all other necessary items ... very elegant." Ceramics imported from Europe and the Orient adorned the table.

A very small portion of the Fairfax County's population consisted of plantation owners such as William Fairfax, most of his neighbors being small farmers who sometimes barely made a living. In addition, the prosperity of these planters was due not only to the land and imposing buildings, but also to the number of their slaves. Slaves are also recorded in the records as movable property passed down from generation to generation, and they were likely the users of the unglazed ceramics found in the outbuildings of Belvoir Manor. After William Fairfax's death in 1757, the plantation was led by George William Fairfax (1729–1787).

The visits of Lord Fairfax and Washington

Thomas Fairfax, 6th Lord Fairfax of Cameron traveled to Virginia between 1735 and 1737 to review and protect his lands. Lord Fairfax also came to Belvoir to help oversee the family estates in Virginia's Northern Neck between Rappahannock and Potomac Rivers. He had inherited this property, as well as large parts of the Shenandoah Valley and the South Branch Potomac River , from his mother Catharine, the daughter of Thomas Culpeper, 2nd Baron Culpeper of Thoresway. The northwestern limit of its Northern Neck Proprietary was marked by Fairfax Stone on the upper reaches of the North Branch Potomac River . In 1752, Fairfax traveled to Greenway Court (now Clarke County, Virginia ) for his vacant lot. George Washington was doing a survey for Lord Fairfax at Belvoir.

George William Fairfax Anne's sister married Lawrence Washington shortly after her brother got married. Young George Washington, Lawrence's half-brother, began visiting Belvoir often. Desiring to support his brother's career, Lawrence introduced George into the George William household. A friendship developed between the two men, despite the fact that George William was considerably older. A relationship developed between the wife of George William Sally Fairfax and George Washington, as well as a friendship with Bryan Fairfax, 8th Lord Fairfax of Cameron.

When George William Fairfax moved to England in 1773, the Belvoir plantation was rented to Rev. Andrew Morton for 7 years and the furniture was auctioned in 1774. During the Revolution , the property was confiscated under the Virginia Act of 1779. In 1783 a fire destroyed the mansion and several of the outbuildings and, as Washington noted, the plantation gradually fell into ruin. Ferdinando Fairfax, who had inherited the property, did not live there. Stones were quarried in the cliffs below the former mansion, but there were no changes to the house.

19th century

The plantation was further devastated during the War of 1812. In August 1814, when British land forces attacked and set fire to the city of Washington, a British naval squadron sailed along the Potomac River and forced the surrender of Alexandria . The fleet then began the 180-mile (290 km) return trip downstream. On September 1, the British attempted to pass the deep-water channel below the Belvoir Plantation, a position previously identified as a strategic defensive position on the river. Here a hastily assembled American force, consisting of the Virginia and Alexandria militia under the command of Captain David Porter, began an attack. For four days the American and British troops exchanged cannon and musket fire . The British eventually fled American forces, but the British shells had destroyed what little was left of Belvoir Manor.

Belvoir Plantation's association with the Fairfax family ended with the death of Ferdinando Fairfax in 1820. Over the next ten years it came into the possession of William Herbert of Alexandria, who used it as security for a loan. Herbert's persistent inability to pay his debts eventually led to a public auction of Belvoir in 1838. Like all large plantations in the Belvoir area, this property underwent significant changes in the years before the Civil War . Financial burdens and inheritance led to the sale and division of the once huge lands. When a new generation of landowners settled in southeast Fairfax County, the pattern of land use and ownership changed.

20th century

In 1917, Virginia ceded Belvoir to the US Army. After all, it gave its name to the modern military complex, Fort Belvoir. The Belvoir ruins have been on the National Register of Historic Places list since 1973 and access is restricted as they are on military grounds.

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