Christopher Robinson (1763 – November 2, 1798) was an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

-born

soldier A soldier is a person who is a member of an army. A soldier can be a conscripted or volunteer enlisted person, a non-commissioned officer, or an officer. Etymology The word ''soldier'' derives from the Middle English word , from Old French ...

lawyer A lawyer is a person who practices law. The role of a lawyer varies greatly across different legal jurisdictions. A lawyer can be classified as an advocate, attorney, barrister, canon lawyer, civil law notary, counsel, counselor, solic ...

and political figure in

Upper Canada The Province of Upper Canada (french: link=no, province du Haut-Canada) was a part of British Canada established in 1791 by the Kingdom of Great Britain, to govern the central third of the lands in British North America, formerly part of the ...

Early life

He was born in

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...

in 1763, the son of Oxford-educated Peter Robinson (ca 1719–1768), and nephew of John Robinson, Speaker of the Virginia

House of Burgesses The House of Burgesses was the elected representative element of the Virginia General Assembly, the legislative body of the Colony of Virginia. With the creation of the House of Burgesses in 1642, the General Assembly, which had been established ...

, and loyalist leader

Beverley Robinson Beverley Robinson (11 January 1721 – 9 April 1792), was a Virginia-born soldier who became a wealthy colonist of the Province of New York and is best known as a Loyalist during the American Revolutionary War. Robinson married Susanna Philips ...

(ca 1722–1792). He was also a close relation of

John Robinson (bishop of London) John Robinson (7 November 1650 – 11 April 1723) was an English diplomat and prelate. Early life Robinson was born at Cleasby, North Yorkshire, near Darlington, a son of John Robinson (died 1651) a cooper by trade and Elizabeth Potter. Educate ...

(1650–1723), a senior Anglican cleric and influential diplomat. Born in Virginia to one of the British colony's most influential families, it has been contended that he was educated at the

College of William and Mary The College of William & Mary (officially The College of William and Mary in Virginia, abbreviated as William & Mary, W&M) is a public research university in Williamsburg, Virginia. Founded in 1693 by letters patent issued by King William III a ...

, although no evidence exists to support that fact. In fact, his early life remains shrouded in mystery and genealogical legerdemain. What is known is that at some point after his father's death in 1768, he moved to New York, likely to his cousin Beverley's household and was there at the beginning of the American Revolution. On June 26, 1781, he was commissioned an

Ensign An ensign is the national flag flown on a vessel to indicate nationality. The ensign is the largest flag, generally flown at the stern (rear) of the ship while in port. The naval ensign (also known as war ensign), used on warships, may be diffe ...

in the

Queen's Rangers The Queen's Rangers, also known as the Queen's American Rangers, and later Simcoe's Rangers, were a Loyalist military unit of the American Revolutionary War. Formed in 1776, they were named for Queen Charlotte, consort of George III. The Queen' ...

under

John Graves Simcoe John Graves Simcoe (25 February 1752 – 26 October 1806) was a British Army general and the first lieutenant governor of Upper Canada from 1791 until 1796 in southern Ontario and the Drainage basin, watersheds of Georgian Bay and Lake Superior. ...

and served through the surrender of the

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...

at Yorktown, until 1783.

Canada

He retired at half pay in

New Brunswick New Brunswick (french: Nouveau-Brunswick, , locally ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlantic provinces. It is the only province with both English and ...

and settled briefly in Queensbury Parish. While in

, Robinson married in 1784 Esther Sayre, daughter of Rev. John Sayre, who came to the Colonies on behalf of the

Society for the Propagation of the Gospel United Society Partners in the Gospel (USPG) is a United Kingdom-based charitable organization (registered charity no. 234518). It was first incorporated under Royal Charter in 1701 as the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Part ...

. However, Robinson soon moved to

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...

in search of employment. In 1792, Simcoe, now Lieutenant Governor of Upper Canada, offered him a post as a minor surveyor general and he moved to Kingston. In 1794, he received his license to practice law and, in 1796, he was elected to the 2nd Parliament of Upper Canada representing

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

& Addington. In 1797, he played a role in establishing the

Law Society of Upper Canada The Law Society of Ontario (LSO; french: Barreau de l'Ontario) is the law society responsible for the self-regulation of lawyers and paralegals in the Canadian province of Ontario. Founded in 1797 as the Law Society of Upper Canada (LSUC; frenc ...

. A slave owner, in 1797 Robinson sponsored a bill in the Parliament to allow immigrants to bring their slaves with them. The bill was passed but did not become law. He died suddenly at York (

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

) in 1798. Robinson was buried at

Victoria Memorial Square Victoria Memorial Square is a park and former cemetery in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Established in 1793 as the burial place for those affiliated with the nearby Toronto Garrison (Fort York). It was the first cemetery to be used by European settlers ...

William Fairfield William Fairfield (c. 1769 – February 6, 1816) was a businessman and political figure in Upper Canada. He was born in Pawlet, Vermont in 1769 or 1770, the son of William Fairfield, a farmer. His father fought with Edward Jessup's loyalist forc ...

took his place in the legislative assembly in June 1799. Esther Robinson died in 1827. His sons included: * John Beverley, a lawyer, judge and political figure in Upper Canada *

Peter Peter may refer to: People * List of people named Peter, a list of people and fictional characters with the given name * Peter (given name) ** Saint Peter (died 60s), apostle of Jesus, leader of the early Christian Church * Peter (surname), a sur ...

, political figure in who played an important role in promoting immigration from

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

to Upper Canada * William Benjamin, a political figure in Upper Canada and

Canada West The Province of Canada (or the United Province of Canada or the United Canadas) was a British colony in North America from 1841 to 1867. Its formation reflected recommendations made by John Lambton, 1st Earl of Durham, in the Report on the ...

Early life

Canada

References

Further reading