Richard Ingoldesby

Richard Ingoldesby († March 1, 1719 in New York City ) was an English army officer and acting colonial governor of the Province of New York and the Province of New Jersey .

Life

The origin of Richard Ingoldesby is largely in the dark. He was born into a wealthy family and was possibly the son of Richard Ingoldsby (1617–1685), who was among other things an officer in the New Model Army during the English Civil War . His date of birth is not known. Even before the Glorious Revolution , he served in a regiment of the Prince of Orange, who later became King William III of England . After Wilhelm's accession to the throne, he remained in his service and was involved in the siege of Carrickfergus in Ireland in 1689 . In 1690 he was promoted to captain. At the same time he was appointed lieutenant governor of the province of New York. He arrived there before the new governor, Henry Sloughter . At that time, the Leisler Rebellion led by Jakob Leisler was raging in New York . This was put down by Sloughter and Ingoldesby in early 1691. Leisler was sentenced to death and executed in May 1691. In the aftermath, too, the colony remained divided. There were still supporters of the overthrown Leisler regime who were hostile to the new administration of Sloughter. There were also conflicts within the government. Ingoldesby accused Sloughter of pocketing the sum of £ 1,100 (around £ 198,900 today) intended to pay the militia. He (Sloughter) is also said to have confiscated a stolen ship that was auctioned off and then sold it a second time (see Wikipedia article on Sloughter).

After Sloughter's death on July 23, 1691, Ingoldesby hoped to succeed him as colonial governor. In London, however, they decided on Benjamin Fletcher . Until Fletcher's arrival in August 1692, Ingoldesby served as acting governor of the quarreled colony. During Fletcher's tenure, he was in command of a unit stationed in Albany responsible for the security of the northern border. In 1696 he returned to England, where he stayed for the next seven years. From November 1702 to April 1710 he was lieutenant governor of the provinces of New Jersey and New York. He had little political influence under Governor Edward Hyde . However, he became a member of the New Jersey Provincial Council. From 1709 to 1710 he was acting governor of both colonies. This time was not very successful for him, because he had to bow to an internal opposition. At the end of 1709 he was recalled from office. The news did not reach America until April 1710. He then commanded a unit in New York City for some time. He died there on March 1, 1719.

Web links

• Online biography of Ingoldesby
• Ingoldesby at the Legal History of New York