Christopher Robinson (Virginia politician)

Christopher Robinson
Christopher Robinson
Member of the Governor's Council
	In office; 1692–1693
Member of the House of Burgesses for Middlesex
	In office; 1685–1692 Serving with Robert Dudley, William Churchill
Preceded by	Abraham Weekes
Succeeded by	John Cant
	In office; 1680–1682
Preceded by	John Burnham
Succeeded by	Abraham Weekes
Personal details
Born	circa 1645; Cleasby, Yorkshire, England
Died	April 1693; Middlesex County, Colony of Virginia
Nationality	British
Spouse(s)	Agatha Obert, Katherine Hone Beverley
Children	John, Christopher Robinson
Occupation	Planter, militia officer, politician

Christopher Robinson (1645 – April 1693) was a planter and a politician in the British colony of Virginia. Robinson held several public offices in Colonial Virginia and is the patriarch in America for one of the First Families of Virginia.

Early life[]

Robinson was born in Cleasby, Yorkshire, England in 1645. His parents were John Robinson (d. 1651) and Elizabeth Potter (d. 1688). Christopher was one of eight siblings. His eldest surviving brother John Robinson became Bishop of London and his sister Clara married Sir Edward Wood, Gentleman Usher to Queen Catherine. Bishop John Robinson created a pedigree which traced the family back several generations where it becomes, "obscure".^[1] This pedigree was later expanded and published in the Virginia Magazine of History and Biography, a publication of the Virginia Historical Society.

Immigration[]

Robinson emigrated to Virginia about 1666 and settled at Urbanna in Middlesex County, and established a plantation and home where the historic Hewick home stands today. Several generations of Robinsons would expand the home, as well as acquire other plantations and erected other manor homes nearby.

Marriage and legacy[]

Robinson married first, Agatha Obert, daughter of Bertram Obert, and through this union increased his land holdings in Virginia. They had seven children, including John, who became president of the Governor's Council, then acting governor when Governor Gooch returned to England, and Christopher, who inherited his father's estate and that of his uncle, John Robinson, Bishop of London. Agatha died January 25, 1686 (by today's calendar), and her passing was recorded in the Register of Christ Church Parish in Middlesex County. Robinson remarried, to Katherine Hone, the widow of fellow burgess Major Robert Beverley, on September 17, 1687, in Middlesex County. There seems to be some disagreement over whether Katherine was the daughter or the widow of Theophilus Hone. One of Robinson's grandsons was John Robinson, Speaker of the House of Burgesses, but whose death in 1766 uncovered a scandal. The Robinson family split during the American War of Independence. Some fought for independence; others remained loyal to the King of England, such as Colonel Beverley Robinson, who commanded the Loyal American Regiment and was involved in the treason of Benedict Arnold. A great-granddaughter, Judith Robinson, married Carter Braxton, a signer of the United States Declaration of Independence. After the Revolution, the Loyalist family members returned to England or migrated to Canada, where some of the family, among them Sir John Robinson, 1st Baronet, of Toronto, enjoyed some considerable success.

Career[]

Private secretary for Sir William Berkely, Governor of Virginia.^[2]
1675-1688 Clerk of Middlesex County, Virginia.^[3]
November 2, 1685 session of the House of Burgesses^[4]
1686 Coroner of Middlesex County, Virginia.^[2]
December 12, 1687 – Militia +++++ Colonel? +++++
April 19, 1688 session of the House of Burgesses^[4]
1691 Member of the House of Burgesses^[3]
April 1, 1692 session of the House of Burgesses^[4]
October 26, 1691 – 1693 Virginia Governor's Council^[3]^[4]
1692-1693 Secretary of State^[3]^[4]
February 8, 1693 One of the first Trustees of The College of William & Mary.^[5]

References[]

^ Bruce, Philip Alexander; Stanard, William Glover (1908). "The Robinson Family of Middlesex, &c., Virginia" (PDF). The Virginia Magazine of History and Biography. 15: 445–449.
^ ^a ^b Robinson, Charles Walker (1904). Life of Sir John Beverly Robinson, Bart., C.B., D.C.L., Chief-justice of Upper Canada. William Blackwood and sons. pp. 3, 436–437.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Tyler, Lyon Gardiner (1915). Encyclopedia of Virginia Biography. Lewis historical publishing Company. pp. 63, 142.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e Standard, William Glover; Stanard, Mary Newton (1902). The Colonial Virginia Register: A List of Governors, Councillors and Other Higher Officials, and Also of Members of the House of Burgesses, and the Revolutionary Conventions of the Colony of Virginia. J. Munsell's sons. pp. 21, 42, 85–87.
^ "Royal Charter [Of the William & Mary College]". The Special Collections Research Center (SCRC) in the Earl Gregg Swem Library at the College of William and Mary. Archived from the original on 1 September 2014. Retrieved 27 March 2014.

[1] Bruce, Philip Alexander; Stanard, William Glover (1908). "The Robinson Family of Middlesex, &c., Virginia" (PDF). The Virginia Magazine of History and Biography. 15: 445–449.

[a-2] Robinson, Charles Walker (1904). Life of Sir John Beverly Robinson, Bart., C.B., D.C.L., Chief-justice of Upper Canada. William Blackwood and sons. pp. 3, 436–437.

[b-3] Tyler, Lyon Gardiner (1915). Encyclopedia of Virginia Biography. Lewis historical publishing Company. pp. 63, 142.

[c-4] Standard, William Glover; Stanard, Mary Newton (1902). The Colonial Virginia Register: A List of Governors, Councillors and Other Higher Officials, and Also of Members of the House of Burgesses, and the Revolutionary Conventions of the Colony of Virginia. J. Munsell's sons. pp. 21, 42, 85–87.

[5] "Royal Charter [Of the William & Mary College]". The Special Collections Research Center (SCRC) in the Earl Gregg Swem Library at the College of William and Mary. Archived from the original on 1 September 2014. Retrieved 27 March 2014.

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