Beverly Leonidas Clarke (February 11, 1809 – March 17, 1860) was a

U.S. Representative The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they c ...

from

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia to ...

. He was known for his "sterling integrity, gentlemanly manners, and polished oratory."

Early life

Clarke was born in Winterfield,

Chesterfield County, Virginia Chesterfield County is located just south of Richmond, Virginia, Richmond in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Virginia. The county's borders are primarily defined by the James River to the north and the Appomattox River to the sout ...

, on February 11, 1809. Winterfield was a 210 acre plantation near modern day

Midlothian Midlothian (; gd, Meadhan Lodainn) is a historic county, registration county, lieutenancy area and one of 32 council areas of Scotland used for local government. Midlothian lies in the east-central Lowlands, bordering the City of Edinburgh, ...

that had a horse racetrack on it. In the 1870s it was subdivided into 65 lots. The current subdivisions of Winterfield Station (2004), Winterfield Park (2016), and Winterfield Crossing (2018) all possess the name of the old plantation and yet are not located on the land of it. Clarke attended the common school and moved to Kentucky in 1823. He studied law in Franklin, Kentucky, and graduated from the Lexington Law School in 1831.

Career

Clarke was admitted to the bar in 1833 and commenced practice in Franklin, Kentucky. He served as member of the

Kentucky House of Representatives The Kentucky House of Representatives is the lower house of the Kentucky General Assembly. It is composed of 100 Representatives elected from single-member districts throughout the Commonwealth. Not more than two counties can be joined to form ...

in 1841 and 1842. Clarke was elected as a

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...

to the Thirtieth Congress (March 4, 1847 – March 3, 1849). He served as delegate to the State

constitutional convention Constitutional convention may refer to: * Constitutional convention (political custom), an informal and uncodified procedural agreement *Constitutional convention (political meeting), a meeting of delegates to adopt a new constitution or revise an e ...

in 1849.

Race for Governor of Kentucky

In 1855, Clarke, who was known as old-line conservative and proslavery candidate, was selected as the Democratic nominee for

Governor of Kentucky The governor of the Commonwealth of Kentucky is the head of government of Kentucky. Sixty-two men and one woman have served as governor of Kentucky. The governor's term is four years in length; since 1992, incumbents have been able to seek re-el ...

. His opponent

Charles S. Morehead Charles Slaughter Morehead (July 7, 1802 – December 21, 1868) was a U.S. Representative from Kentucky, and served as the 20th Governor of Kentucky. Though a member of the Whig Party for most of his political service, he joined the Know Not ...

, a former Whig

who ran with the

Know-Nothing Party The Know Nothing party was a nativist political party and movement in the United States in the mid-1850s. The party was officially known as the "Native American Party" prior to 1855 and thereafter, it was simply known as the "American Party". ...

ran a campaign that focused on immigrants and vilified Catholics leading to bloody riots in Louisville. Although Clarke himself was not a Catholic, his wife was and that was used against him. Clarke had the support of

John C. Breckinridge John Cabell Breckinridge (January 16, 1821 – May 17, 1875) was an American lawyer, politician, and soldier. He represented Kentucky in both houses of Congress and became the 14th and youngest-ever vice president of the United States. Serving ...

, who (successfully) ran to replace Morehead in the House of Representatives and would later serve as Vice-President of the United States from 1857 to 1861 under President Buchanan. Clarke was defeated by Morehead (69,816 for Morehead to 65,413 for Clarke) who served until 1859.

Diplomatic service

On January 7, 1858, he was appointed by

President Buchanan James Buchanan Jr. ( ; April 23, 1791June 1, 1868) was an American lawyer, diplomat and politician who served as the 15th president of the United States from 1857 to 1861. He previously served as secretary of state from 1845 to 1849 and repr ...

as U.S. Minister to

Guatemala Guatemala ( ; ), officially the Republic of Guatemala ( es, República de Guatemala, links=no), is a country in Central America. It is bordered to the north and west by Mexico; to the northeast by Belize and the Caribbean; to the east by H ...

. On January 14, 1858, he was also appointed as U.S. Minister to

Honduras Honduras, officially the Republic of Honduras, is a country in Central America. The republic of Honduras is bordered to the west by Guatemala, to the southwest by El Salvador, to the southeast by Nicaragua, to the south by the Pacific Oce ...

. He presented his credentials in Guatemala on July 13, 1858, and in Honduras on August 10, 1858, serving until his death in Guatemala on March 17, 1860. After moving to Guatemala, Clarke converted to

Catholicism The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

, confirmed by Bishop Bernardo Piñol with

Pedro de Aycinena y Piñol Pedro de Aycinena y Piñol (19 October 1802 – 14 May 1897) was a conservative politician and member of the Aycinena clan that worked closely with the conservative regime of Rafael Carrera. He was interim president of Guatemala in 1865 after th ...

as his godfather, much to the delight of the people there.

Personal life

Clarke was married to his cousin Mariah Louise Clarke (1818), a devout

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

. Together, they were the parents of one son and three daughters (all of whom they named after the

Virgin Mary Mary; arc, ܡܪܝܡ, translit=Mariam; ar, مريم, translit=Maryam; grc, Μαρία, translit=María; la, Maria; cop, Ⲙⲁⲣⲓⲁ, translit=Maria was a first-century Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Joseph and the mother o ...

), including: * George W. Clarke * Mariah "Pauline" Clarke (1837–1876), who married John Singleton Mosby (1833–1916) on December 30, 1856 and moved to

Brentmoor Brentmoor, also known as the Spilman-Mosby House in Warrenton, Virginia, is a historic site that was the home of Confederate military leader John Singleton Mosby. History The house was built in 1859 as the residence of Judge Edward M. Spilman ...

in Warrenton, Virginia. Mosby, a

Confederate army The Confederate States Army, also called the Confederate Army or the Southern Army, was the military land force of the Confederate States of America (commonly referred to as the Confederacy) during the American Civil War (1861–1865), fighting ...

cavalry Historically, cavalry (from the French word ''cavalerie'', itself derived from "cheval" meaning "horse") are soldiers or warriors who fight mounted on horseback. Cavalry were the most mobile of the combat arms, operating as light cavalry ...

battalion commander in the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...

, served as the American

consul Consul (abbrev. ''cos.''; Latin plural ''consules'') was the title of one of the two chief magistrates of the Roman Republic, and subsequently also an important title under the Roman Empire. The title was used in other European city-states throug ...

Hong Kong Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China ( abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delt ...

and in the

U.S. Department of Justice The United States Department of Justice (DOJ), also known as the Justice Department, is a federal executive department of the United States government tasked with the enforcement of federal law and administration of justice in the United State ...

. * Maria "Delia" Clarke * Mary Clarke After Mariah Louise Clark's death, he married Zenobia Turner. Together, they were the parents of a son: * Thomas H. Clarke Beverly Clarke died of diabetes in

Guatemala City Guatemala City ( es, Ciudad de Guatemala), known locally as Guatemala or Guate, is the capital and largest city of Guatemala, and the most populous urban area in Central America. The city is located in the south-central part of the country, nest ...

on March 17, 1860, while serving as the U.S. Minister. He was first buried in Guatemala but later was interred in the State Cemetery,

Frankfort, Kentucky Frankfort is the capital city of the Commonwealth of Kentucky, United States, and the seat of Franklin County. It is a home rule-class city; the population was 28,602 at the 2020 census. Located along the Kentucky River, Frankfort is the prin ...

, after an act of the

Kentucky Legislature The Kentucky General Assembly, also called the Kentucky Legislature, is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Kentucky. It comprises the Kentucky Senate and the Kentucky House of Representatives. The General Assembly meets annually in t ...

Descendants

Through his daughter Pauline, he was the grandfather of nine grandchildren of whom six survived.

References

Notes Sources * *

External links

Kentucky Historical Society: Explore Kentucky: Beverly L. Clarke
{{DEFAULTSORT:Clarke, Beverly Leonidas 1809 births 1860 deaths 19th-century American diplomats 19th-century American politicians Ambassadors of the United States to Guatemala Ambassadors of the United States to Honduras Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Kentucky Kentucky lawyers Democratic Party members of the Kentucky House of Representatives People from Franklin, Kentucky People from Chesterfield County, Virginia American Roman Catholics 19th-century American lawyers