John Nanfan

John Nanfan (1634- 1716 ) was in the years 1701 and 1702 Acting British Governor of the Province of New York .

Life

Nothing is known about the career of John Nanfan before 1688. The sources mention that he joined the English military around 1688. During the Glorious Revolution , he served as a captain in King William III's invading army . In 1698 he held the colonial governor Richard Coote , with whom he was related, in the American province of New York. There he held the post of colonial lieutenant governor. At times he was also the commander of the garrison in Albany . He was mainly concerned with Indian affairs or problems with French Canada. After the death of Richard Coote (1701) he temporarily took over the office of governor of the province of New York. He held this office until the arrival of the new governor Edward Hyde in May of 1702.

Even during his short term in office, the colony still suffered from the consequences of the Leisler rebellion . The supporters and opponents of this uprising were still enemies. Nanfan supports the Pro-Leisler Group. He had opponents executed for treason (Bayard and Hutchins). He also signed a peace treaty with the Iroquois . When his successor arrived in New York in 1702 and joined the opposition to Nanfan, he was arrested. His family left for Barbados while he was imprisoned for a year and a half. He was accused of, among other things, mistakes during his tenure and unjustified arrests. His case was then spread in London before the government, which acquitted him. Thereupon he left New York before his opponents could find new charges against him for England. His further life is unknown. It is only known that he died in 1716.

literature

• John Nanfan , in: Manual of the Corporation of the City of New York . 1864, p. 602 ( digitized version )

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Oxford Biography Index entry ( Memento of the original from May 29, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.