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 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 b ...

in 1718 to parents William Sharpe Sr. and Margaret Beake, of Beak Street, Piccadilly in London and Elstree in Hertfordshire. He was one of 16 children, of whom nine brothers and four sisters survived their father. Sharpe's older brothers were William, John, Nicholas, Joshua, Thomas, Charles, Gregory, and Philip Sharpe. His four sisters were Mary, Elizabeth, Gulielma-Maria and Anne. His brother Gregory Sharpe (1713–1771) was appointed Master of the Temple in 1763 and was chaplain to George III. His brother William Sharpe of Brocklee Hill, Elstree in Hertfordshire (b. abt 1696 – d. 1767) was clerk of the council. His brother John Sharpe Esq. of Lincoln's Inn (abt 1700–1756) was Solicitor to the Treasury.

Career

He was commissioned in the King's forces in 1745 as a Captain and fought in the Jacobite rising against the Scots. He served with the 20th Regiment of Foot and the

Marines Marines, or naval infantry, are typically a military force trained to operate in littoral zones in support of naval operations. Historically, tasks undertaken by marines have included helping maintain discipline and order aboard the ship (refle ...

. Later he is found in the West Indies as a

Lieutenant-Colonel Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colo ...

. He served until his appointment by

Frederick Calvert, 6th Baron Baltimore Frederick Calvert, 6th Baron Baltimore (6 February 1731 – 4 September 1771), styled The Hon. Frederick Calvert until 1751, was an English nobleman and last in line of the Barons Baltimore. Although he exercised almost feudal power in the Pr ...

as the proprietary Maryland colonial governor. (Following Samuel Ogle, who had died.) Horatio Sharpe was the brother of Lord Baltimore's guardian (William). He arrived in Maryland in August 1753. Appointed by the King in 1754 as the Royal Commander in Chief of all British Forces and commander of colonial forces for the protection of Virginia and adjoining Colonies, Sharpe was superseded by the arrival Maj. Gen.

Edward Braddock Major-General Edward Braddock (January 1695 – 13 July 1755) was a British officer and commander-in-chief for the Thirteen Colonies during the start of the French and Indian War (1754–1763), the North American front of what is known in Europe ...

in 1755. Prior to Sharpe's service, Colonel James Innes had commanded all provincial soldiers. He was a capable civil and military administrator, gentleman-farmer, slave owner, horse collector, hospitable host, and friend of

George Mason George Mason (October 7, 1792) was an American planter, politician, Founding Father, and delegate to the U.S. Constitutional Convention of 1787, one of the three delegates present who refused to sign the Constitution. His writings, including ...

and

George Washington George Washington (February 22, 1732, 1799) was an American military officer, statesman, and Founding Father who served as the first president of the United States from 1789 to 1797. Appointed by the Continental Congress as commander of ...

. Horatio Sharpe also built

Whitehall Whitehall is a road and area in the City of Westminster, Central London. The road forms the first part of the A3212 road from Trafalgar Square to Chelsea. It is the main thoroughfare running south from Trafalgar Square towards Parliament Sq ...

on the outskirts of Annapolis (Whitehall Road, Skidmore,

Anne Arundel County Anne Arundel County (; ), also notated as AA or A.A. County, is located in the U.S. state of Maryland. As of the 2020 United States census, its population was 588,261, an increase of just under 10% since 2010. Its county seat is Annapolis, whi ...

). Now a

National Historic Landmark A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the United States government for its outstanding historical significance. Only some 2,500 (~3%) of over 90,000 places listed ...

, Whitehall was designed by Joseph Horatio Anderson, who was also the architect of the

Maryland State House The Maryland State House is located in Annapolis, Maryland. It is the oldest U.S. state capitol in continuous legislative use, dating to 1772 and houses the Maryland General Assembly, plus the offices of the Governor and Lieutenant Governor. In ...

. It served as Sharpe's residence from the time of his enforced retirement in 1769 until his return to England in 1773. Between 1760 and 1765, according to a 1912 biography, "The governor spent as much of his time as was possible at Whitehall, amusing himself with his favourite pursuit of farming", with most of the labor provided by slaves:

No kinder master could be found, and his large retinue of negro slaves and indentured white servants were supremely happy. The duty of looking after the welfare and comfort of those under him was faithfully discharged.

Return to England

He returned to England to attend to family matters in 1773 and remained there until his death in 1790. In the Maryland Confiscation Act of 1780, Horatio Sharpe is specifically mentioned by name. He was encouraged by the new state of Maryland to return from England to Maryland and reclaim his lands. Barring that, he was permitted to sell or dispose of all his Maryland properties. Sharpe sold or gave his Maryland properties to his long-time secretary, John Ridout, who had stayed in Maryland during the Revolutionary War to protect his former employer's property. Sir Robert Eden, 1st Baronet (1741–1784) was the last Royal Governor of Maryland. He followed Horatio Sharpe as governor in 1769.

Death

Sharpe died on November 9, 1790 in Hampstead in

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

Legacy

In 1763,

Sharpsburg, Maryland Sharpsburg is a town in Washington County, Maryland. The town is approximately south of Hagerstown. Its population was 705 at the 2010 census. During the American Civil War, the Battle of Antietam, sometimes referred to as the Battle of Sharpsb ...

was named in honor of Sharpe by his friend and the town's founder, Joseph Chapline.

References

External links

Sharpe's correspondence
From ''The Archives of Maryland''

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sharpe, Horatio 1718 births 1790 deaths People from Kingston upon Hull Lancashire Fusiliers officers Royal Marines officers Colonial Governors of Maryland British emigrants to the Thirteen Colonies