James Oglethorpe facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
James Edward Oglethorpe
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| Governor of Georgia | |
| In office 1732–1743 |
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| Prime Minister | Sir Robert Walpole |
| Preceded by | Office created |
| Succeeded by | William Stephens |
| Member of Parliament for Haslemere |
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| In office 1722–1754 |
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| Preceded by | Nicholas Carew |
| Succeeded by | James More Molyneux |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 22 December 1696 Godalming, Surrey, England |
| Died | 30 June 1785 (aged 88) Cranham, Essex, England |
| Political party | Tory |
| Spouse(s) | Elizabeth (née Wright) |
| Alma mater | Eton College, Corpus Christi, Oxford, a military academy, Paris, France |
| Profession | Statesman, soldier, agriculturalist |
| Signature |  |
James Edward Oglethorpe (22 December 1696 – 30 June 1785) was a British soldier, Member of Parliament, and philanthropist, as well as the founder of the colony of Georgia in what was then British America. As a social reformer, he hoped to resettle Britain's worthy poor in the New World, initially focusing on those in debtors' prisons.
Born to a prominent British family, Othethorpe left college in England and a British Army commission to travel to France, where he attended a military academy before fighting under Prince Eugene of Savoy in the Austro-Turkish War. He returned to England in 1718, and was elected to the House of Commons in 1722. His early years were relatively undistinguished until 1729, when Oglethorpe was made chair of the Gaols Committee that investigated British debtors' prisons. After the report was published, to widespread attention, Oglethorpe and others began publicizing the idea of a new colony, to serve as a buffer between the Carolinas and Spanish Florida. After being granted a charter, Oglethorpe sailed to Georgia in November 1732.
He was a major figure in the early history of the colony, holding much civil and military power and instituting a ban on slavery and alcohol. During the War of Jenkins' Ear, Oglethorpe led British troops in Georgia against Spanish forces based in Florida. In 1740, he led a lengthy Siege of St. Augustine, which was unsuccessful. He then defeated a Spanish Invasion of Georgia in 1742. Oglethorpe left the colony after another unsuccessful invasion of St. Augustine, and never returned. He led some British troops in the Jacobite rising of 1745 and was blamed for British defeat in the Clifton Moor Skirmish. Despite being cleared in a court martial, Oglethorpe would never hold British command again. He lost reelection to the House of Commons in 1754. He left England and served undercover in the Prussian Army during the Seven Years' War. In his later years, Oglethorpe was prominent in literary circles, becoming close to James Boswell and Samuel Johnson.
Images for kids
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Thomas Bambridge (standing, far left) being questioned by Oglethorpe (believed to be the figure seated, far left, in front of Bainbridge) of the parliamentary Gaols Committee.
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Oglethorpe and the Indians, frieze in the United States Capitol Rotunda. Photo courtesy of the Architect of the Capitol
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James Oglethorpe presenting the Yamacraw Indians to the Georgia Trustees on 3 July 1734, by William Verelst
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Statue of James Oglethorpe at the Augusta Common, an open space he personally designed when co-founding the city in 1735.
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Oglethorpe Greeting the Highlanders of Darien, the 42nd Regiment of Foot (old)
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The Duke of Cumberland by Sir Joshua Reynolds
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The biographer James Boswell, by Sir Joshua Reynolds
