Sir William Stapleton, 1st Baronet (died 3 August 1686) was an Irish colonial administrator and planter who served as the governor of the Leeward Islands from 1671 to 1686, when he died in office. Born in

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

to a family of Norman descent, William, as a

Royalist A royalist supports a particular monarch as head of state for a particular kingdom, or of a particular dynastic claim. In the abstract, this position is royalism. It is distinct from monarchism, which advocates a monarchical system of gove ...

during the

Wars of the Three Kingdoms The Wars of the Three Kingdoms were a series of conflicts fought between 1639 and 1653 in the kingdoms of Kingdom of England, England, Kingdom of Scotland, Scotland and Kingdom of Ireland, Ireland, then separate entities in a personal union un ...

, followed Charles II into exile in

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

. Returning to

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

as part of the

Stuart Restoration The Stuart Restoration was the reinstatement in May 1660 of the Stuart monarchy in Kingdom of England, England, Kingdom of Scotland, Scotland, and Kingdom of Ireland, Ireland. It replaced the Commonwealth of England, established in January 164 ...

of 1660, William, as an English Army officer, travelled to the England's colonies in the West Indies, where he served as a prominent colonial official and married into a wealthy planter family, acquiring several

slave plantation A slave plantation is an agricultural farm that uses enslaved people for labour. The practice was abolished in most places during the 19th century. Slavery Planters embraced the use of slaves mainly because indentured labor became expensive ...

s before dying in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

in 1686.

Early life

The third son of Redmond Stapleton, William was born in

as the youngest child of a family which claimed descent from a Norman knight which had settled there during the reign of King Henry II of England. During the

, William, as a

, followed the defeated Stuart monarch Charles II into exile in

. In 1660, Charles returned to

as part of the

, and William followed him back, which opened new opportunities for him in England's colonies in the West Indies.

West Indies and death

In 1667, Stapleton, as an English Army officer, sailed with Sir Tobias Bridge and his regiment to

Barbados Barbados, officially the Republic of Barbados, is an island country in the Atlantic Ocean. It is part of the Lesser Antilles of the West Indies and the easternmost island of the Caribbean region. It lies on the boundary of the South American ...

, where he was granted the rank of lieutenant colonel; the governor of Barbados,

Lord Willoughby Baron Willoughby of Parham was a title in the Peerage of England with two creations. The first creation was for Sir William Willoughby who was raised to the peerage under letters patent in 1547, with the remainder to his heirs male of body. An ...

, dispatched him to the

Leeward Islands The Leeward Islands () are a group of islands situated where the northeastern Caribbean Sea meets the western Atlantic Ocean. Starting with the Virgin Islands east of Puerto Rico, they extend southeast to Guadeloupe and its dependencies. In Engl ...

. The next year, he was appointed Deputy Governor of

Montserrat Montserrat ( , ) is a British Overseas Territories, British Overseas Territory in the Caribbean. It is part of the Leeward Islands, the northern portion of the Lesser Antilles chain of the West Indies. Montserrat is about long and wide, wit ...

, and in 1671 William became the first governor of the Leeward Islands. The same year, he married Anne Russell, the daughter of

Colonel Colonel ( ; abbreviated as Col., Col, or COL) is a senior military Officer (armed forces), officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries, a colon ...

Randolph Russell, a military officer and plantation owner based in

Nevis Nevis ( ) is an island in the Caribbean Sea that forms part of the inner arc of the Leeward Islands chain of the West Indies. Nevis and the neighbouring island of Saint Kitts constitute the Saint Kitts and Nevis, Federation of Saint Kitts ...

, which brought William into a network of locally established planter families. During his time in the West Indies, William acquired several

s, including the "Waterwork" plantation in Montserrat, the "Cayon Quarter" plantation on

Saint Kitts Saint Kitts, officially Saint Christopher, is an island in the West Indies. The west side of the island borders the Caribbean Sea, and the eastern coast faces the Atlantic Ocean. Saint Kitts and the neighbouring island of Nevis constitute one ...

(a gift to William from Philip de Nogle), the "Figtree" plantation in Nevis, and the "Carleton" plantations on

Antigua Antigua ( ; ), also known as Waladli or Wadadli by the local population, is an island in the Lesser Antilles. It is one of the Leeward Islands in the Caribbean region and the most populous island of the country of Antigua and Barbuda. Antigua ...

. The "Figtree" plantation was granted by him to Charles Pim on behalf of

the Crown The Crown is a political concept used in Commonwealth realms. Depending on the context used, it generally refers to the entirety of the State (polity), state (or in federal realms, the relevant level of government in that state), the executive ...

in 1678, with William quickly repurchasing the estate for 400,000 pounds of

muscovado Muscovado is a type of partially refined to unrefined sugar with a strong molasses content and flavour, and dark brown in colour. It is technically considered either a non-centrifugal cane sugar or a centrifuged, partially refined sugar accord ...

sugar; the "Carleton" plantations were granted to his older brother, Redmond in 1679, though three years later William purchased them from him for 100,000 pounds of muscovado sugar. On 20 December 1679, William was awarded a

baronet A baronet ( or ; abbreviated Bart or Bt) or the female equivalent, a baronetess (, , or ; abbreviation Btss), is the holder of a baronetcy, a hereditary title awarded by the British Crown. The title of baronet is mentioned as early as the 14th ...

cy by the Crown; the Stapleton baronetcy became extinct in 1995 after the 10th baronet left no male heir. William died in

in 1686, leaving complicated financial affairs behind him. Stapleton's surviving sons were James, who succeeded him as the 2nd Baronet, but died young; the baronetcy was then passed to his second son William, who became the 3rd Baronet; and Miles. He also left a daughter, Mary, who married Irish colonial administrator Sir James Fitz Edmond Cotter.

Footnotes

Bibliography

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Stapleton, William 1686 deaths 17th-century Anglo-Irish people Antigua and Barbuda slave owners Baronets in the Baronetage of England Cavaliers Irish colonial officials Irish slave owners Irish soldiers in the British Army Governors of Nevis Governors of the Leeward Islands Montserratian slave owners Planters from the British West Indies