Robert Carter I

Robert Carter I
Portrait at Shirley Plantation, before 1726
Royal Governor of Virginia
In office
1726–1727
Preceded byHugh Drysdale
Succeeded bySir William Gooch
25th Speaker of the Virginia House of Burgesses
In office
1696–1697
Preceded byPhilip Ludwell
Succeeded byWilliam Randolph
In office
1699–1699
Preceded byWilliam Randolph
Succeeded byPeter Beverley
Personal details
Bornc. 1664
Corotoman Plantation, Lancaster County, Virginia, British America
Died(1732-08-04)4 August 1732 (aged 69)
Lancaster County, Virginia, British America
Spouse(s)Judith Armistead
Elizabeth Landon Willis
Children15, including Landon Carter, Charles Carter (of Cleve)

Colonel Robert Carter I (c. 1664 – 4 August 1732) was a planter, merchant, and government official and administrator who served as Acting Governor of Virginia, Speaker of the Virginia House of Burgesses, and President of the Virginia Governor's Council. An agent for the Northern Neck Proprietary, Carter emerged as the wealthiest Virginia colonist and received the sobriquet "King" from his contemporaries connoting his autocratic approach and political influence.[1]

Born around 1664 at Corotoman in Lancaster County, Carter received a classical education and studied the tobacco trade in London.[2] After returning to Virginia, he was elected a burgess in 1691 and represented the electoral constituency of Lancaster County consecutively during the 1695 to 1699 assemblies. He served as Speaker from 1696 to 1697 and in 1699 and Treasurer of Virginia from 1699 to 1705. Appointed to the Governor's Council by Francis Nicholson in 1699, Carter opposed Nicholson's policies in 1704 and influenced the governor's removal in 1705.

Carter was appointed agent of the Northern Neck Proprietary in 1702 though lost the lease to his political opponent, Edmund Jenings, in 1711.[3] He regained the proprietary in 1722 and was involved in the dismissal of Alexander Spotswood. In 1726, he was designated President of the Governor's Council and appointed Acting Governor when his predecessor died in office.[4] Afflicted with gout in later life, Carter died on August 4, 1732, at Corotoman.

  1. ^ Berkeley, Edmund (2006). "Robert Carter (ca. 1664-August 1732)". Dictionary of Virginia Biography. Vol. 3. p. 84. also available at https://encyclopediavirginia.org/entries/carter-robert-ca-1664-1732/
  2. ^ Mesrobian, Jamie Elizabeth (1 January 2009). "An Analysis of Primary Resources Used as Tools for Discovery and Research at Archaeological Sites: Nomini Hall Case Study". Theses, Dissertations & Honors Papers: 4–5.
  3. ^ Knight, Thomas Daniel (2021). "Edmund Jenings (1659–1727)". Encyclopedia Virginia. Retrieved 24 July 2023.
  4. ^ Brock, Robert Alonzo (1888). Virginia and Virginians, Vol. I, p. 40. Richmond and Toledo: H.H. Hardesty.