William Byrd II

William Byrd, the eldest child of Mary Horsmanden Filmer Byrd and her second husband, William Byrd I (ca. 1652–1704), was born on March 28, 1674, in Henrico County, Virginia.^[1][a] His father was a planter, public official, and a Native American trader.^[3] When he was two, his mother took him with her to visit relatives in Purleigh, Essex County, England. He was in England and living with his mother's relatives in 1681, when he was enrolled in Felsted School, where he studied Hebrew, Italian, and French.^[1] It was his father's goal that Byrd was educated to become a gentleman and had first-hand experiences with aristocrat.^[3]

He was an apprentice in London and Rotterdam for two years for tobacco trading companies, where he learned about commerce. During that time, he acquired the social graces of a gentleman.^[1][3]

He then studied law at Middle Temple from 1692 to 1695, when he was admitted to the bar to practice law. The following year he was elected as a Fellow in the Royal Society with the support of Sir Robert Southwell, his father's friend.^[1]

By this time, Byrd spent much of his childhood in England, but born in Virginia, where he was expected to return, he was not accepted as an Englishman. This made it difficult for him to marry into an aristocratic family or become a politician in England.^[3]

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William Byrd I

William Byrd I

William Byrd I was an English-born Virginia colonist and politician. He came from Shadwell, London where his father John Bird was a goldsmith. His family's ancestral roots were in Cheshire.

Henrico County, Virginia

Henrico County, Virginia

Henrico County, officially the County of Henrico, is located in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 334,389 making it the fifth-most populous county in Virginia. Henrico County is included in the Greater Richmond Region. There is no incorporated community within Henrico County; therefore, there is no incorporated county seat either. Laurel, an unincorporated CDP, serves this function.

Planter class

Planter class

The planter class, known alternatively in the United States as the Southern aristocracy, was a racial and socioeconomic caste of pan-American society that dominated 17th and 18th century agricultural markets. The Atlantic slave trade permitted planters access to inexpensive African slave labor for the planting and harvesting of crops such as tobacco, cotton, indigo, coffee, tea, cocoa, sugarcane, sisal, oil seeds, oil palms, hemp, rubber trees, and fruits. Planters were considered part of the American gentry.

Purleigh

Purleigh

Purleigh is a village on the Dengie peninsula about 4 miles (6.4 km) south of Maldon in the English county of Essex. The village is part of the Purleigh ward of the Maldon district.

Essex

Essex

Essex is a county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the River Thames to the south, and Greater London to the south and south-west. There are three cities in Essex: Southend, Colchester and Chelmsford, in order of population. For the purposes of government statistics, Essex is placed in the East of England region. There are four definitions of the extent of Essex, the widest being the ancient county. Next, the largest is the former postal county, followed by the ceremonial county, with the smallest being the administrative county—the area administered by the County Council, which excludes the two unitary authorities of Thurrock and Southend-on-Sea. The ceremonial county occupies the eastern part of what was, during the Early Middle Ages, the Anglo-Saxon Kingdom of Essex. As well as rural areas and urban areas, it forms part of the wider Home Counties of England.

Felsted School

Felsted School

Felsted School is a co-educational independent boarding and day school, situated in Felsted in Essex, England. It is in the British public school tradition, and was founded in 1564 by Richard Rich, 1st Baron Rich. Felsted is one of the 12 founder members of the Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference, and a full member of the Round Square Conference of world schools. Felsted School is featured in the Good Schools Guide and is regularly featured in Tatler's Schools Guide. Felsted School was shortlisted for 'Boarding School of the Year' 2020 by the Times Education Supplement (TES).

Middle Temple

Middle Temple

The Honourable Society of the Middle Temple, commonly known simply as Middle Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court exclusively entitled to call their members to the English Bar as barristers, the others being the Inner Temple, Gray's Inn and Lincoln's Inn. It is located in the wider Temple area of London, near the Royal Courts of Justice, and within the City of London. As a liberty, it functions largely as an independent local government authority.

Admission to practice law

Admission to practice law

An admission to practice law is acquired when a lawyer receives a license to practice law. In jurisdictions with two types of lawyer, as with barristers and solicitors, barristers must gain admission to the bar whereas for solicitors there are distinct practising certificates.

Royal Society

Royal Society

The Royal Society, formally The Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, is a learned society and the United Kingdom's national academy of sciences. The society fulfils a number of roles: promoting science and its benefits, recognising excellence in science, supporting outstanding science, providing scientific advice for policy, education and public engagement and fostering international and global co-operation. Founded on 28 November 1660, it was granted a royal charter by King Charles II as The Royal Society and is the oldest continuously existing scientific academy in the world.

Robert Southwell (diplomat)

Robert Southwell (diplomat)

Sir Robert Southwell FRS was a diplomat. He was Secretary of State for Ireland and President of the Royal Society from 1690.

After a 15-year absence, he returned to Virginia in the summer of 1696. Due to his education and his father's influence, he was elected to the House of Burgesses in the fall of that year, but he withdrew in October to return to London, where he practiced law. He was admitted to Lincoln's Inn October 1697 and soon after defended Governor Sir Edmund Andros in a hearing at Lambeth Palace that unseated Andros for impeding the establishment of the College of William & Mary and replaced him with Francis Nicholson as Governor of Virginia.^[1]

He became the London agent for the Virginia Governor's Council in 1698. His father held the combined offices of auditor- and receiver-general, which Nicholson had attempted to separate. In this position, Byrd was able to thwart Nicholson's efforts. In 1702, he attempted to have Nicholson removed from office, but the petition was rejected by the Crown and Byrd lost his position on the council.^[1]

In 1701, he went on a 14-week tour of England with Sir John Perceval, who was the nephew of Sir Robert Southwell. Byrd was 26 and Perceval was 18. By this time Byrd had a number of aristocratic friends and knew a lot about England. He introduced the teen to gentlemen, clergymen, borough officials, and merchants. Byrd was interested in the commerce, art collections, libraries and architecture of the places that they visited. During his time in England, he was a social man who focused on developing wordsmanship and polite manners.^[1]

His father died in 1705 and Byrd returned to Virginia. He was the primary heir to his father's fortune, making him one of the wealthiest men in the colony.^[1] He became the receiver general; the post was separated from the auditorship following his father's death. On September 12, 1709, nearly four year after he applied, he was appointed to a seat on the Virginia Governor's Council, a position he held until his death.^[1]

Lieutenant Governor Alexander Spotswood reorganized the collection of quitrents in order to enlarge the royal revenue. Byrd felt that he was responsible for the operations of the receiver's office and had objected to Spotwood's actions and saw it as a personal affront. Byrd sailed for England in March or April 1715 at least in part to have Spotswood removed from office. Soon after, his wife joined him in England and died of smallpox. Within two months, he began to look for women to court.^[1]

While in England, he sold the receiver generalship for £500 to a Virginian. Spotswood sought approval for the Tobacco Inspection Act of 1713—which regulated the quality and sale of tobacco exports—and the Indian Trade Act of 1714—which established a monopoly over commerce with Native Americans. Both were passed by the Virginia General Assembly, but it received a royal veto, which Byrd considered a personal win.^[1]

Byrd was appointed a London agent in May 1718. Spotswood had Byrd deposed from the council. Byrd promised to seek a reconciliation with Spotswood and to return to Virginia, which he did in February 1720 and reconciled with Spotswood.^[1]

In 1721, he was appointed a paid agent for the House of Burgesses and returned to England. In 1726, he returned to Virginia. On April 28 of that year, he resumed attendance at the council. In 1728, he was appointed to survey the Virginia and North Carolina border by the next Lieutenant Governor Sir William Gooch.^[1] The Tobacco Inspection Act of 1730 was passed and Byrd's land was chosen for construction of a warehouse, of direct benefit to him.^[1]

He is responsible for the establishment of the cities of Petersburg and, on his own land, Richmond, Virginia in 1733. Gooch appointed Byrd to a commission with commissioners and surveyors to lay out the Northern Neck Proprietary. Byrd wrote the report that was sent with the survey in August 1737 to England, but after his death a report from another commission was chosen. He was the senior councillor by 1743.^[1]

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House of Burgesses

House of Burgesses

The House of Burgesses was the elected representative element of the Virginia General Assembly, the legislative body of the Colony of Virginia. With the creation of the House of Burgesses in 1642, the General Assembly, which had been established in 1619, became a bicameral institution.

Lincoln's Inn

Lincoln's Inn

The Honourable Society of Lincoln's Inn is one of the four Inns of Court in London to which barristers of England and Wales belong and where they are called to the Bar. Lincoln's Inn, along with the three other Inns of Court, is recognised as being one of the world's most prestigious professional bodies of judges and lawyers.

Edmund Andros

Edmund Andros

Sir Edmund Andros was an English colonial administrator in British America. He was the governor of the Dominion of New England during most of its three-year existence. At other times, Andros served as governor of the provinces of New York, East and West Jersey, Virginia, and Maryland.

Lambeth Palace

Lambeth Palace

Lambeth Palace is the official London residence of the Archbishop of Canterbury. It is situated in north Lambeth, London, on the south bank of the River Thames, 400 yards south-east of the Palace of Westminster, which houses Parliament, on the opposite bank.

College of William & Mary

College of William & Mary

The College of William & Mary is a public research university in Williamsburg, Virginia. Founded in 1693 by a royal charter issued by King William III and Queen Mary II, it is the second-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and the ninth-oldest in the English-speaking world. It is classified among "R2: Doctoral Universities – High Research Activity". In his 1985 book Public Ivies: A Guide to America's Best Public Undergraduate Colleges and Universities, Richard Moll included William & Mary as one of the original eight "Public Ivies".

Francis Nicholson

Francis Nicholson

Lieutenant-General Francis Nicholson was a British Army general and colonial official who served as the governor of South Carolina from 1721 to 1725. He previously was the Governor of Nova Scotia from 1712 to 1715, the Governor of Virginia from 1698 to 1705, the Governor of Maryland from 1694 to 1698, the Lieutenant Governor of Virginia from 1690 to 1692, and the Lieutenant Governor of the Dominion of New England from 1688 to 1689.

John Perceval, 1st Earl of Egmont

John Perceval, 1st Earl of Egmont

John Perceval, 1st Earl of Egmont, PC, FRS, known as Sir John Perceval, Bt, from 1691 to 1715, as The Lord Perceval from 1715 to 1722 and as The Viscount Perceval from 1722 to 1733, was an Anglo-Irish politician.

Alexander Spotswood

Alexander Spotswood

Alexander Spotswood was a British Army officer, explorer and lieutenant governor of Colonial Virginia; he is regarded as one of the most significant historical figures in British North American colonial history.

Sir William Gooch, 1st Baronet

Sir William Gooch, 1st Baronet

Sir William Gooch, 1st Baronet was a British Army officer and colonial administrator who served as the governor of Virginia from 1727 to 1749. Technically, Gooch only held the title of Royal Lieutenant Governor, but the nominal governors, Lord Orkney and Lord Albemarle, were in England and did not exercise much authority. Gooch's tenure as governor was characterized by his unusual political effectiveness.

Petersburg, Virginia

Petersburg, Virginia

Petersburg is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 33,458. The Bureau of Economic Analysis combines Petersburg with Dinwiddie County for statistical purposes. The city is 21 miles (34 km) south of the commonwealth (state) capital city of Richmond.

Richmond, Virginia

Richmond, Virginia

Richmond is the capital city of the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. It is the center of the Richmond Metropolitan Statistical Area and the Greater Richmond Region. Richmond was incorporated in 1742 and has been an independent city since 1871. At the 2010 census, the city's population was 204,214; in 2020, the population had grown to 226,610, making Richmond the fourth-most populous city in Virginia. The Richmond Metropolitan Area has a population of 1,260,029, the third-most populous metro in the state.

Northern Neck Proprietary

Northern Neck Proprietary

The Northern Neck Proprietary – also called the Northern Neck land grant, Fairfax Proprietary, or Fairfax Grant – was a land grant first contrived by the exiled English King Charles II in 1649 and encompassing all the lands bounded by the Potomac and Rappahannock Rivers in colonial Virginia. This constituted up to 5,000,000 acres (20,000 km2) of Virginia's Northern Neck and a vast area northwest of it.

Lucy Parke Byrd

Lucy Parke Byrd, William Byrd II's first wife

Byrd courted Lucy Parke, daughter of Jane Ludwell Parke and Daniel Parke (1664–1710), who was Governor of the Leeward Islands.^[1][4] Lucy lived near Colonial Williamsburg at the Parke's Queen's Creek plantation in York County, Virginia with her mother and her sister Frances. Her father, who lived with his mistress, forbid the women from entertaining male callers and did not provide the money to have clothes of their station. This made it difficult for Frances and Lucy to have suitors. Byrd, though, knew Parke and his aristocratic connections, and was favorably impressed with Parke's daughters, particularly Lucy.^[5] Byrd married Lucy on May 4, 1706, at the Queen's Creek plantation. Frances was married on the same day to John Custis (1678–after 14 November 1749).^[6]

At the time of their marriage, Lucy Parke was 18 years old, and her mother was concerned that Daniel Parke's many romantic affairs and reputation for stinginess were hurting his daughter's marriage prospects. When Byrd wrote a letter to the Parkes asking to court Lucy, they immediately accepted. Byrd wooed her with passionate letters proclaiming his love.^[7] He was promised a £1,000 dowry when he married Lucy, but rather than delivering it upon their marriage, he was bequeathed the amount at Parke's death. Byrd assumed debts of the Parke estate, which was a financial burden throughout the rest of his life. In exchange for accepting the debts, he took over lands that had been left to his wife's sister.^[1]

Soon after their wedding, Parke found that her husband was passionate,^[1] but not open to emotional and intellectual closeness. Byrd was far more interested in sexual intimacy alone, and was sexually unfaithful to his wife. Parke often turned a blind eye to such affairs, but showed her displeasure if this was mentioned publicly or she caught him in the act. Byrd notes in his diary entry for July 15, 1710 that Parke caught him in flagrante with an enslaved maid, Jenny, who was likely a minor. Parke, "against my will caused little Jenny to be burned with a hot iron, for which I quarrelled with her".^[8]

Based on his diary, Byrd was singularly focused on treating his wife as a subordinate and did not foment closeness with their children. He often left his family for long periods of time.^[1]

Their children were: Evelyn Byrd, for whom Evelynton Plantation was named, and Wilhelmina Byrd, who married Thomas Chamberlayne.

Despite the couple's differences, aspects of their relationship appear tender and romantic. Following Byrd to London, she died of smallpox in 1716. Byrd suffered greatly, blaming himself for her death. He wrote of the "insupportable pain in her head… the smallpox… we thought it best to tell her the danger. She received the news without the least fright, and was persuaded she would live… Gracious God what pains did she take to make a voyage hither to seek a grave."^[9]

Maria Taylor Byrd

Maria Taylor Byrd, William Byrd's second wife (1724–his death in 1744)

Byrd married Maria Taylor (1698-1771), daughter of a Kensington gentleman, on May 9, 1724. She was 25 years of age and Byrd was 50.^[1] Taylor, an heiress of a wealthy family from Kensington, was a different character than Parke. Her rare appearance in Byrd's diary has left some historians with the image of a more submissive wife, accepting Byrd's authority over the household. She was certainly well-mannered, and epitomised the upper-class lady that he desired, without any record of passionate "flourishes" to quell arguments or threatening the servants. Despite Byrd's renewed sexual advances on other women, Taylor kept the household in good order. More recently, Allison Luthern has suggested that 'a closer examination of sources reveals that Maria [Taylor] Byrd was not as easily governed by these powerful men as William Byrd II... indicates.'^[10]

Jane Byrd, daughter of William Byrd II and Maria Taylor Byrd, later the wife of Hon. John Page of North End, Gloucester County, Virginia, 1750

Their children were: Anne Carter, Ann Gathright, Maria Taylor Carter, Colonel William Byrd III, and Jane Page.^[11]

Taylor appears to have tactically bided her time as Byrd aged, controlling the education of their children together and preparing to take control of Westover in her widowhood. She outlived Byrd by 37 years, supported by an annual pension in Byrd's will for £200 on the condition that she remain unmarried and living in Westover.^[12]

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Daniel Parke

Daniel Parke

Colonel Daniel Parke Jr. was an American-born British military officer, planter, politician and colonial administrator who served as the governor of the Leeward Islands from 1706 to 1710, when he was lynched by a mob in Antigua. Best known for his military service in Europe under the Duke of Marlborough during the War of the Spanish Succession, Parke was the only governor in Britain's American colonies to be murdered.

Leeward Islands

Leeward Islands

The Leeward Islands are a group of islands situated where the northeastern Caribbean Sea meets the western Atlantic Ocean. Starting with the Virgin Islands east of Puerto Rico, they extend southeast to Guadeloupe and its dependencies. In English, the term Leeward Islands refers to the northern islands of the Lesser Antilles chain. The more southerly part of this chain, starting with Dominica, is called the Windward Islands. Dominica was originally considered a part of the Leeward Islands, but was transferred from the British Leeward Islands to the British Windward Islands in 1940.

Colonial Williamsburg

Colonial Williamsburg

Colonial Williamsburg is a living-history museum and private foundation presenting a part of the historic district in the city of Williamsburg, Virginia. Its 301-acre (122 ha) historic area includes several hundred restored or recreated buildings from the 18th century, when the city was the capital of the Colony of Virginia; 17th-century, 19th-century, and Colonial Revival structures; and more recent reconstructions. The historic area includes three main thoroughfares and their connecting side streets that attempt to suggest the atmosphere and the circumstances of 18th-century Americans. Costumed employees work and dress as people did in the era, sometimes using colonial grammar and diction.

John Custis

John Custis

Colonel John Custis IV was an American planter, politician, government official and military officer who sat in the House of Burgesses from 1705 to 1706 and 1718 to 1719, representing the electoral constituencies of Northampton County and the College of William & Mary. A prominent member of the Custis family of Virginia, he utilized his extensive landholdings to support a career in horticulture and gardening.

In flagrante delicto

In flagrante delicto

In flagrante delicto or sometimes simply in flagrante is a legal term used to indicate that a criminal has been caught in the act of committing an offence. The colloquial "caught red-handed" and "caught rapid" are English equivalents.

Smallpox

Smallpox

Smallpox was an infectious disease caused by variola virus which belongs to the genus Orthopoxvirus. The last naturally occurring case was diagnosed in October 1977, and the World Health Organization (WHO) certified the global eradication of the disease in 1980, making it the only human disease to be eradicated.

Maria Taylor Byrd

Maria Taylor Byrd

Maria Taylor Byrd was a prominent colonial woman who managed her and her husband William Byrd II's Westover Plantation during his periods of absence. During their lifetimes, William Byrd III and Maria Taylor Byrd's holdings increased to 179,423 acres of land and hundreds of enslaved people. After he died, she was to manage the estate only until her son William Byrd III came of age, but he had married and decided to live with his wife at the family's Belvidere plantation instead. Byrd then continued to manage Westover through her son's first marriage and until her death. She oversaw the plantation's activities, its workers, household duties, and the care and upkeep of the property on the plantation.

Kensington

Kensington

Kensington is an area of London in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, around 2.9 miles (4.6 km) west of Central London.

Upper class

Upper class

Upper class in modern societies is the social class composed of people who hold the highest social status, usually are the wealthiest members of class society, and wield the greatest political power. According to this view, the upper class is generally distinguished by immense wealth which is passed on from generation to generation. Prior to the 20th century, the emphasis was on aristocracy, which emphasized generations of inherited noble status, not just recent wealth.

Orgasm

Orgasm

Orgasm or sexual climax is the sudden discharge of accumulated sexual excitement during the sexual response cycle, resulting in rhythmic, involuntary muscular contractions in the pelvic region characterized by sexual pleasure. Experienced by males and females, orgasms are controlled by the involuntary or autonomic nervous system. They are usually associated with involuntary actions, including muscular spasms in multiple areas of the body, a general euphoric sensation, and, frequently, body movements and vocalizations. The period after orgasm is typically a relaxing experience, attributed to the release of the neurohormones oxytocin and prolactin as well as endorphins.

Gloucester County, Virginia

Gloucester County, Virginia

Gloucester County is a county in the Commonwealth of Virginia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 38,711. Its county seat is Gloucester Courthouse. The county was founded in 1651 in the Virginia Colony and is named for Henry Stuart, Duke of Gloucester.

William Byrd III

William Byrd III

Colonel William Byrd III was an American planter, politician and military officer who was a member of the House of Burgesses.

The first diary runs from 1709 to 1712 and was first published in the 1940s. It was originally written in a shorthand code and deals mostly with the day-to-day aspects of Byrd's life, many of the entries containing the same formulaic phrases. A typical entry read like this:

[October] 6. I rose at 6 o'clock and said my prayers and ate milk for breakfast. Then I proceeded to Williamsburg, where I found all well. I went to the capitol where I sent for the wench to clean my room and when I came I kissed her and felt her, for which God forgive me ... About 10 o'clock I went to my lodgings. I had good health but wicked thoughts, God forgive me.

In addition to the passages recounting his many infidelities, the diary also contains a record of the lives of slaves held by Byrd and his subsequent punishment. Byrd often beat the slaves he held and sometimes devised other punishments even more cruel and unusual:

September 3, 1709: I ate roast chicken for dinner. In the afternoon I beat Jenny for throwing water on the couch.

December 1, 1709: Eugene was whipped again for pissing in bed and Jenny for concealing it.

December 3, 1709: Eugene pissed abed again for which I made him drink a pint of piss.^[13]

HIstoric marker for William Byrd's Camp on his expedition to survey the Dividing Line, Henry County, Virginia, 1728

While William Byrd was an avid planter, politician, and statesman, he was also a man of letters. He collected books written in English, French, Italian, Dutch, Hebrew, Greek, and Latin on a wide range of subjects. Considered one of the greatest colonial libraries, he had 3,500 volumes, including biography, history, architecture, science, divinity and law. He also had books about gardening, art, medicine, drama, and etiquette.^[1]

A prolific writer, Byrd wrote essays, histories, and speeches. He also wrote caricatures, poetry, and diaries. He corresponded with noted naturalists, statesmen, and writers of the time.^[1]

All but two of his early literary works remained in manuscript form after his death at Westover in 1744, only appearing in print in the early 19th century and later receiving "dismissive commentary" by literary critics. It was not until the last quarter of the 20th century that his writings were assessed with any critical enthusiasm.^[14]

The History of the Dividing Line is Byrd's most influential piece of literary work and is now featured regularly in textbooks of American Colonial literature.^[1] Through The Secret History, the societal stereotypes and attitudes of the time are revealed. According to Pierre Marambaud, Byrd "had first prepared a narrative, The Secret History of the Line, which under fictitious names described the persons of the surveying expedition and the incidents that had befallen them."^[15]

Major works

Many of his works were in manuscript form and published after his death. His major works include:

• A Discourse Concerning the Plague (1721)
• The Westover Manuscripts: Containing the History of the Dividing Line Betwixt Virginia and North Carolina; A Journey to the Land of Eden, A.D. 1733; and A Progress to the Mines; Written from 1728 to 1736, and Now First Published (1841)
• The Secret Diary of William Byrd of Westover, 1709–1712 (1941)
• Another Secret Diary of William Byrd of Westover, 1739–1741, with Letters & Literary Exercises, 1696 (1942)
• The London Diary, 1717–1728 and other Writings (1958)
• The Prose Works of William Byrd of Westover: Narratives of a Colonial Virginian (1966)
• The Commonplace Book of William Byrd II of Westover (2001)^[1]

William Byrd II died on August 26, 1744, and was buried at Westover Plantation in Charles City County.^[16]