William Shirley

William Shirley

William Shirley (born December 2, 1694 in Preston , Sussex , † March 24, 1771 in Roxbury , Province of Massachusetts Bay ) was a British colonial governor in North America.

He studied law and came to America in 1731, settled in Boston , Massachusetts, and worked there as a lawyer. From 1741 to 1745 he was royal governor of Massachusetts and in 1745 planned the successful expedition that led to the first conquest of the French fortress Louisbourg on Cape Breton Island .

From 1745 to 1753 he stayed in England and returned to Massachusetts as governor. He signed a treaty with the Indians of the East in 1754 and explored the Kennebec River , on whose banks he built several forts. When the French War broke out in 1755, he was Commander-in-Chief of the British troops in North America. He planned General John Prideaux's campaign against Fort Niagara and accompanied him to Oswego. In 1756 he was replaced in his military command and in his governorship.

He was later appointed governor of the Bahamas , an office he resigned in 1770. He then returned to Massachusetts, where he spent the rest of his life in retirement.

He wrote: "Electra", a tragedy; "Bertha", a mask game; "The Siege of Louisburg" (The Siege of Louisburg 1745); Edward the Black Prince ( 1750 ); "Conduct of Gen. William Shirley Briefly Stated" (1758) and more.

Web links

• Biography of William Shirley in the Oxford Reference Encyclopedia

• William Shirley in database Find a Grave (English)