Thomas Howard, 3rd Earl of Effingham
Thomas Howard | |
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House of Howard-Effingham | |
Spouse(s) | Catherine Proctor |
Issue | none |
Father | Thomas Howard, 2nd Earl of Effingham |
Mother | Elizabeth Beckford |
Lord Howard was commissioned an ensign and lieutenant in the
He is best known for resigning his commission in protest against the war against the North American colonies.[2][3] This widely reported act was commemorated by the North American colonists in the naming of a galley in 1775, and later the frigate USS Effingham in 1777, as well as in the naming of Effingham, New Hampshire, Effingham County, Georgia, and Effingham County, Illinois.
In 1770 at the age of 24, he fought as a volunteer in the Russian army during the
In 1775 upon learning that his regiment would be imminently deployed to North America he wrote to the Secretary of State for War Lord Barrington to resign his commission.[5] Giving his reasoning in his letter to Barrington, Howard stated; "As I cannot, without reproach from my conscience, consent to bear arms against my fellow subjects in America in what, to my weak discernment, is not a clear cause."[6]
In a speech to the House of Lords explaining his resignation, Howard symbolically drew his officer's sword and threw it onto the floor of the chamber.[7]
During the events leading up to the
In spite of his public resignation and denunciation of the government, Howard was permitted to return to the army at the time of the threatened invasion and was promoted to lieutenant-colonel in 1782.[8]
In 1785, a London newspaper reported that he was being considered for the role of minister to the United States, to reciprocate John Adams coming to Great Britain to serve as
He built Thundercliffe Grange, Rotherham as his new seat, It was built in 1777 by the architect John Platt.[10][11]
He died at the age of 45, while serving as
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Arundel Castle, the ancestral seat of the Howard family.
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A portrait of Lord Howard in 1782; "A consistent character", the American war is being fought in the distance, the sun rises with the Latin phrase "Pro Patria non sibi", Howard points to the steps inscribed "Sincerity", "Plain-dealing", "Honesty", "Justice", "Country", "Religion", "Liberty".
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Coat of Arms of Thomas Howard
References
- ^ Mackinnon, Daniel (1833). Origin and Services of the Coldstream Guards. Vol. II. London: Richard Bentley. pp. 488–489.
- ^ "The Lords Effingham and the American colonies:, 1976, Hilda Engbring Feldhake.
- ^ "THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION, INCLUDING ALSO THE BEAUTIES OF AMERICAN HISTORY" Archived 2012-04-29 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "The Lords Effingham and the American colonies:, 1976, Hilda Engbring Feldhake.
- ^ "The Lords Effingham and the American colonies:, 1976, Hilda Engbring Feldhake.
- ^ "The Lords Effingham and the American colonies:, 1976, Hilda Engbring Feldhake.
- ^ "The Lords Effingham and the American colonies:, 1976, Hilda Engbring Feldhake.
- ^ "The Lords Effingham and the American colonies:, 1976, Hilda Engbring Feldhake.
- ^ "London Morning Herald and Daily Advertiser". 8 June 1785.
- ^ "The Howard Family's Connection with Effingham". Effingham Residents Association. 29 November 2020. Retrieved 30 March 2024.
- ^ "Thundercliffe Grange - History". thundercliffegrange.co.uk. Retrieved 30 March 2024.
- Craig, John (1953). The Mint: A History of the London Mint from A.D. 287 to 1948. ASIN B0000CIHG7.