Richard Howly (1740 – December 1784), sometimes spelled Howley, was an American planter and lawyer from

Liberty County, Georgia Liberty County is a county in the U.S. state of Georgia. As of the 2020 census, the population is 65,256. The county seat is Hinesville. Liberty County is part of the Hinesville, Georgia Metropolitan Statistical Area, which is also included i ...

. He served briefly as the

governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...

in 1780, as a delegate to the

Continental Congress The Continental Congress was a series of legislative bodies, with some executive function, for thirteen of Britain's colonies in North America, and the newly declared United States just before, during, and after the American Revolutionary War. ...

in 1780 and 1781, and as chief justice of Georgia in 1782 and 1783.

Early life

Little is known about Howley's early life. In 1775 he married Sarah Fuller of

Charleston, South Carolina Charleston is the largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina, the county seat of Charleston County, and the principal city in the Charleston–North Charleston metropolitan area. The city lies just south of the geographical midpoint o ...

, the widow of William Fuller and mother of two daughters. Subsequently, the couple had two daughters of their own, only one of whom reached adulthood.

Revolutionary War

When the Revolution began, Howley was practicing law in Sunbury, where he also owned a small plantation and a few slaves. He was not prominent in the early stages of 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 ...

in Georgia. Savannah fell to the British on December 29, 1778, and Colonel

Augustine Prevost Augustine of Hippo ( , ; la, Aurelius Augustinus Hipponensis; 13 November 354 – 28 August 430), also known as Saint Augustine, was a theologian and philosopher of Berber Berber or Berbers may refer to: Ethnic group * Berbers, an ethni ...

began a siege of Sunbury. When Fort Morris surrendered in January 1779, Howley and his family fled to Augusta. The British occupied eastern Georgia, and fighting moved into the back country. Georgia Whigs, openly divided into radical and conservative factions since the infamous duel in May 1777 between patriot leader

Button Gwinnett Button Gwinnett (March 3, 1735 – May 19, 1777) was a British-born American Founding Father who, as a representative of Georgia to the Continental Congress, was one of the signers (first signature on the left) of the United States Declaration o ...

and

Lachlan McIntosh Lachlan McIntosh (March 17, 1725 – February 20, 1806) was a Scottish American military and political leader during the American Revolution and the early United States. In a 1777 duel, he fatally shot Button Gwinnett, a signer of the Declaratio ...

, vied for political leadership as they tried to convene a new assembly in Augusta. After selecting an executive council to govern the sections of the state still under Whig control, this council, dominated by conservative Whigs, elected

John Wereat John Wereat (January 25, 1799) was an American politician and the Governor of Georgia. Personal life Wereat was born in Road (now Rode, Somerset) in England, around 1733 and migrated to the colonies in 1759. He married the former Hannah Wilkinso ...

president on August 6, 1779. Howley was associated with the radical Whig faction and a close ally of

George Walton George Walton (c. 1749 – February 2, 1804), a Founding Father of the United States, signed the United States Declaration of Independence as a representative of Georgia and also served as the second chief executive of Georgia. Early life Wal ...

who, after the joint American and French

siege of Savannah The siege of Savannah or the Second Battle of Savannah was an encounter of the American Revolutionary War (1775–1783) in 1779. The year before, the city of Savannah, Georgia, had been captured by a British expeditionary corps under Lieutenan ...

failed in October 1779, was sent to Augusta to hold new elections. Backed by Howley, George Wells, and their back country supporters, Walton organized a rival assembly in November 1779. This body elected Walton governor and Walton, Howley, and three others delegates to the

, in effect ousting Wereat from power. Within two months, Walton departed for Philadelphia. The assembly elected Howley governor on January 4, 1780 and empowered him to act on behalf of the government even if forced into exile. During these uncertain times he called on Georgians to be steadfast in their support of independence. As British raids increased, the council directed Howley to flee to the Carolinas. Howley and several council members transported the state archives and some paper money to New Bern, North Carolina. On July 1, 1780 he was among those listed under the British Disqualifying Act.

Political life

Howley took his seat in

Congress A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of a ...

in July 1780. He assisted in obtaining a new loan from France. His primary interest, however, was to guard against peace proposals that would allow Britain to retain control of Georgia. With Walton and

William Few William Few Jr. (June 8, 1748 – July 16, 1828) was an American Founding Father, lawyer, politician and jurist. He represented the U.S. state of Georgia at the Constitutional Convention and signed the U.S. Constitution. Few and James Gunn w ...

, he published ''Observations upon the Effects of Certain Late Political Suggestions by the Delegates of Georgia''. Howley lost his re-election bid to Congress and returned to Georgia. He was elected to the

Georgia General Assembly The Georgia General Assembly is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is bicameral, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. Each of the General Assembly's 236 members serve two-year terms and are directly ...

in 1782. He was able to acquire confiscated Tory property being sold in

Chatham Chatham may refer to: Places and jurisdictions Canada * Chatham Islands (British Columbia) * Chatham Sound, British Columbia * Chatham, New Brunswick, a former town, now a neighbourhood of Miramichi * Chatham (electoral district), New Brunswic ...

and

Liberty Liberty is the ability to do as one pleases, or a right or immunity enjoyed by prescription or by grant (i.e. privilege). It is a synonym for the word freedom. In modern politics, liberty is understood as the state of being free within society fr ...

counties.

Aedanus Burke Aedanus Burke (June 16, 1743March 30, 1802) was a soldier, judge, and United States Representative from South Carolina. He was a slaveholder. Life Born in Tiaquin, County Galway in the Kingdom of Ireland, he attended the theological College ...

turned down an offer to become chief justice of Georgia, and in October 1782 Howley was appointed pro tempore chief justice. He represented Liberty County in the general assembly during 1783 and 1784, after which he moved his residence to Savannah.

Death

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 ...

, Howley journeyed to St. Augustine in December 1784 to receive sacraments of penance and holy communion that were not available in Georgia. While there, he wrote to Bishop Echevarrio of Cuba requesting that priests from Florida be sent to administer sacraments to Catholics in Georgia. Apparently ill when he returned from Florida, Howley died at his residence in Savannah.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Howly, Richard 1740 births 1784 deaths Continental Congressmen from Georgia (U.S. state) Governors of Georgia (U.S. state) People from Liberty County, Georgia Independent state governors of the United States Georgia (U.S. state) Independents 18th-century American politicians 18th-century American judges Members of the Georgia General Assembly Georgia (U.S. state) state court judges Catholics from Georgia (U.S. state)