Thomas Dongan, 2nd Earl of Limerick

Thomas Dongan, 2nd Earl of Limerick (* 1634 in today's Celbridge , County Kildare , Ireland ; † December 14, 1715 in London , England ) was the English governor of the province of New York from 1683 to 1688 .

Life

Thomas Dongan was the seventh and youngest son of Sir John Dongan, 2nd Baronet, and his wife Mary Talbot. His father was a member of the Parliament of Ireland . The family supported the House of Stuart , which had been the kings of England since 1603. After the fall and subsequent execution of King Charles I , the family went into exile in France. However, they managed to keep at least part of their Irish property.

In France, Thomas Dongan served in an Irish regiment that took part in General Turenne's campaigns. In 1674 he was promoted to colonel. After the Peace of Nijmegen , Dongan returned to England in 1678, which had been ruled by the Stuarts again from 1660. He was patronized by the Duke of York, later King James II . In the year of his return he was appointed lieutenant governor of the then British city of Tangier . In 1683, the Duke of York, who was also the owner of the Province of New York colony , appointed him the new governor there. At the same time he left him a property on Staten Island . By the time he took office, the colony was financially bankrupt and in open rebellion.

As the new governor, Dongan managed to restore order and stability in his colony. On October 14, 1683 he called the first free-democratic assembly in the history of the colony. Under Dongan's leadership, basic rights (Charter of Liberties) were established by law. Later these basic rights served as a model in many other countries. This includes the United States of America and then after 1783 even England. However, in Dogan's time the colony was of course subject to English rule under the Duke of York, who signed the charter but did not return it. He later supported a veto of this law, preventing it from coming into force. During Dongan's time as colonial governor, the colony's borders with other colonies and Canada were also established. The area of ​​what is now the US state of New York was roughly the result . He also sought a peaceful coexistence with the Indians.

After the death of King Charles II in 1685, his brother, the previous Duke of York, became the new King of England as James II. This made New York, which was its property, a royal province. As king, James II reorganized some colonies in America. This created the short-lived Dominion of New England . The Dominion comprised the present-day US states of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York and New Jersey. It was clearly too big as an administrative unit. The former governor of New York Edmund Andros was appointed as the new governor of this large colony . On August 11, 1688, Dongan officially handed over his previous office to Andros. The Dominion of New England no longer existed. It broke up soon after the Glorious Revolution in England and the old colonial structures were restored.

Dongan lived on his private estate on Staten Island after his governorship. During the Leisler Rebellion he had to flee for religious reasons because he was persecuted as a Catholic. In 1691 he returned to England. In 1698 he became 2nd Earl of Limerick as heir to his late brother . The earl title had been awarded to this in 1686, belonged to the Peerage of Ireland and was associated with a seat in the upper house of the Irish Parliament. After paying off his brother's debts, he was able to take possession of his brother's lands in Ireland in 1702, but had to sell them in 1709 and died on December 14, 1715, impoverished and childless in London. His title of nobility expired.

Web link

• Dongan in the Catholic Encyclopedia

predecessor	Office	successor
William Dongan	Earl of Limerick 1698-1715	Title extinguished