Daniel Dulany the Younger (June 28, 1722 – March 17, 1797) was a
Maryland
Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean t ...
Loyalist
Loyalism, in the United Kingdom, its overseas territories and its former colonies, refers to the allegiance to the British crown or the United Kingdom. In North America, the most common usage of the term refers to loyalty to the British C ...
politician,
Mayor of Annapolis
The Mayor of Annapolis is the chief political figure in the city of Annapolis, which is the capital city of Maryland. The mayor is elected to a four-year term.
List of Mayors of Annapolis
*1708–1720 Amos Garrett
*1720–1721 Thomas Lar ...
, and an influential American lawyer in the period immediately before the
American Revolution
The American Revolution was an ideological and political revolution that occurred in British America between 1765 and 1791. The Americans in the Thirteen Colonies formed independent states that defeated the British in the American Revoluti ...
. His pamphlet ''
Considerations on the Propriety of Imposing Taxes in the British Colonies'', which laid out the grievances associated with the
taxation without representation argument, it has been described as "the ablest effort of this kind produced in America".
Early life
Daniel Dulany was born on June 28, 1722 in
Annapolis
Annapolis ( ) is the capital city of the U.S. state of Maryland and the county seat of, and only incorporated city in, Anne Arundel County. Situated on the Chesapeake Bay at the mouth of the Severn River, south of Baltimore and about east ...
,
Maryland
Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean t ...
, into a family steeped in law and politics. His father was the wealthy lawyer and public official
Daniel Dulany the Elder
Daniel Dulany the Elder (1685–1753) was a prominent lawyer and land-developer in colonial Maryland, who held a number of colonial offices. In 1722 Dulany wrote a pamphlet entitled ''The Right of the Inhabitants of Maryland, to the Benefit of t ...
(1685–1753). His brother
Walter Dulany
Walter Dulany (died 1773) was a politician in Colonial Maryland, who was mayor of Annapolis from 1766 to 1767. His family house and land at Windmill Point later became the location for the United States Naval Academy.
Early life
Dulany was the ...
would also go on to be
Mayor of Annapolis
The Mayor of Annapolis is the chief political figure in the city of Annapolis, which is the capital city of Maryland. The mayor is elected to a four-year term.
List of Mayors of Annapolis
*1708–1720 Amos Garrett
*1720–1721 Thomas Lar ...
.
Education
Like many sons of wealthy Maryland families, Dulany was sent to
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...
to be educated, at
Eton College
Eton College () is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school in Eton, Berkshire, England. It was founded in 1440 by Henry VI of England, Henry VI under the name ''Kynge's College of Our Ladye of Eton besyde Windesore'',Nevill, p. 3 ff. i ...
and
Clare College, Cambridge
Clare College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge in Cambridge, England. The college was founded in 1326 as University Hall, making it the second-oldest surviving college of the University after Peterhouse. It was refound ...
. In 1742 he enrolled to study law at
Middle Temple
The Honourable Society of the Middle Temple, commonly known simply as Middle Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court exclusively entitled to call their members to the English Bar as barristers, the others being the Inner Temple, Gray's I ...
, and was called to the
English Bar
Barristers in England and Wales are one of the two main categories of lawyer in England and Wales, the other being solicitors. Barristers have traditionally had the role of handling cases for representation in court, both defence and prosecutio ...
before he returned to Maryland.
Dulany's skill as a lawyer was widely regarded, though as a result of his support for the Crown during the
Revolution
In political science, a revolution (Latin: ''revolutio'', "a turn around") is a fundamental and relatively sudden change in political power and political organization which occurs when the population revolts against the government, typically due ...
his reputation would not endure after the war. Fellow lawyer and politician
William Pinkney
William Pinkney (March 17, 1764February 25, 1822) was an American statesman and diplomat, and was appointed the seventh U.S. Attorney General by President James Madison.
Biography
William Pinkney was born in 1764 in Annapolis in the Province ...
regarded him as the peer of any lawyer in America or England, declaring that "even among such men as
Fox,
Pitt and
Sheridan
Sheridan may refer to:
People
Surname
*Sheridan (surname)
*Philip Sheridan (1831–1888), U.S. Army general after whom the Sheridan tank is named
*Richard Brinsley Sheridan (1751–1816), Irish playwright (''The Rivals''), poet and politician
...
, he had not found his superior".
[Andrews, p.284]
Marriage
In 1749 he married Rebecca Tasker, daughter of the powerful
Benjamin Tasker (1690–1768), President of the
Governor's Council The governments of the Thirteen Colonies of British America developed in the 17th and 18th centuries under the influence of the British constitution. After the Thirteen Colonies had become the United States, the experience under colonial rule would ...
, and Proprietary Governor of Maryland from 1752 to 1753.
In 1753 his father died, and the younger Dulany inherited the family's extensive estates, thereby becoming wealthy in his own right.
Politics
Dulany was a member of the Maryland legislative assembly from 1751 to 1754, he was appointed to the Governor's Council (1757–76) in recognition of his support for the colony's proprietary government. In 1751 Dulany was elected to the
Maryland General Assembly
The Maryland General Assembly is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Maryland that convenes within the State House in Annapolis. It is a bicameral body: the upper chamber, the Maryland Senate, has 47 representatives and the lower chamber ...
to represent
Frederick County. He served for three years. In 1764, Dulany became
Mayor of Annapolis
The Mayor of Annapolis is the chief political figure in the city of Annapolis, which is the capital city of Maryland. The mayor is elected to a four-year term.
List of Mayors of Annapolis
*1708–1720 Amos Garrett
*1720–1721 Thomas Lar ...
.
Dulany labored on behalf of the Lower House in the Proprietary Government, and it was largely through his efforts that the Lower House eventually won its 40-year struggle to control the application of fines and fees by the Proprietary Government, earning him the resentment of Governor
Horatio Sharpe
Horatio Sharpe (1718 – November 9, 1790) was the 22nd proprietary governor of Maryland from 1753 to 1768 under the restored proprietary government of Maryland.
Early life
Horatio Sharpe was born in Hull, Yorkshire, England in 1718 to ...
.
Coming of Revolution
Although Dulany would not go on to support the overthrow of British rule in Maryland, he was a noted opposer of the
Stamp Act 1765
The Stamp Act 1765, also known as the Duties in American Colonies Act 1765 (5 Geo. III c. 12), was an Act of the Parliament of Great Britain which imposed a direct tax on the British colonies in America and required that many printed materials ...
, and wrote the noted pamphlet ''
Considerations on the Propriety of Imposing Taxes in the British Colonies'' which argued against
taxation without representation. The pamphlet has been described as "the ablest effort of this kind produced in America",
and may have provided at least some of the material for the speech given by Pitt in Parliament the following year.
In the pamphlet, Dulany summarized his position as follows: "There may be a time when redress may not be obtained. Till then, I shall recommend a legal, orderly, and prudent resentment".
Soon after the publication of this pamphlet, he was made a member of the
American Philosophical Society
The American Philosophical Society (APS), founded in 1743 in Philadelphia, is a scholarly organization that promotes knowledge in the sciences and humanities through research, professional meetings, publications, library resources, and communit ...
through his election in 1768.
Newspaper wars
Despite this open and articulate opposition to the Stamp Act, Dulany remained a
loyalist
Loyalism, in the United Kingdom, its overseas territories and its former colonies, refers to the allegiance to the British crown or the United Kingdom. In North America, the most common usage of the term refers to loyalty to the British C ...
, and in that vein engaged in a famous newspaper discussion with
Charles Carroll of Carrollton
Charles Carroll (September 19, 1737 – November 14, 1832), known as Charles Carroll of Carrollton or Charles Carroll III, was an Irish-American politician, planter, and signatory of the Declaration of Independence. He was the only Catholic si ...
.
Williamson, Claude, p.247, ''Great Catholics'', Williamson Press (March 15, 2007)
Retrieved November 2010[Warfield, J. D., p. 215, ''The Founders of Anne Arundel and Howard Counties, Maryland''](_blank)
Retrieved November 2010 In these debates, both men adopted pseudonyms, Dulany being "Antillon", and Carroll "First Citizen". Charles Carroll, then relatively unknown, adopted the more populist argument, claiming that the government of Maryland
Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean t ...
had long been the monopoly of four families, the Ogles, the Taskers, the Bladens and the Dulanys. Dulany took the contrary view. Eventually word spread of the true identity of the two combatants, and Carroll's fame and notoriety began to grow.[McClanahan, Brion T., p.203, ''The Politically Incorrect Guide to the Founding Fathers''](_blank)
Retrieved November 2010 Eventually Dulany resorted to highly personal ad hominem attacks on "First Citizen", and Carroll responded, in statesmanlike fashion, with considerable restraint, arguing that when Antilles engaged in "virulent invective and illiberal abuse, we may fairly presume, that arguments are either wanting, or that ignorance or incapacity know not how to apply them".
Eventually, as war became inevitable, Dulany found his essentially moderate position untenable and he found himself forced to choose sides. Dulany was not able to rebel against the Crown he and his family had served so long. He believed that protest rather than force should furnish the solution to America's problems, and that legal process, logic, and the "prudent" exercise of "agreements" would eventually prevail upon the British to concede the colonists' demands.
Post-Revolution life and death
As a Loyalist, most of Dulany's substantial property was confiscated in 1781. He died March 17, 1797, in Baltimore
Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic, and the 30th most populous city in the United States with a population of 585,708 in 2020. Baltimore was ...
.
See also
* Colonial families of Maryland
The Colonial families of Maryland were the leading families in the Province of Maryland. Several also had interests in the Colony of Virginia, and the two are sometimes referred to as the Chesapeake Colonies.
Founders and scions
See also
* Fi ...
* List of mayors of Annapolis, Maryland
The Mayor of Annapolis is the chief political figure in the city of Annapolis, which is the capital city of Maryland. The mayor is elected to a four-year term.
List of Mayors of Annapolis
*1708–1720 Amos Garrett
*1720–1721 Thomas Lark ...
References
Sources
* Andrews, Matthew Page, ''History of Maryland'', Doubleday, New York (1929)
* Land, Aubrey C. ''The Dulanys of Maryland: A Biographical Study of Daniel Dulany, the Elder (1685–1753), and Daniel Dulany, the Younger (1722–1797)''. Baltimore, Maryland Historical Society: 1955.
External links
''The Stamp Act Crisis: Prologue to Revolution By Edmund Sears Morgan, Helen M. Morgan, Institute of Early American History and Culture (Williamsburg, Va.)''
Retrieved Jan 14 2010
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dulany, Daniel The Younger
1722 births
1797 deaths
Alumni of Clare College, Cambridge
American lawyers
Members of the Maryland General Assembly
People educated at Eton College
American Loyalists from Maryland
Mayors of Annapolis, Maryland
People from Annapolis, Maryland
People of colonial Maryland
18th-century American politicians
Tasker family