Robert “King” Carter
| Robert Carter I | |
|---|---|
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| Colonial Governor of Virginia | |
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In office 1726–1727 |
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| Preceded by | Hugh Drysdale |
| Succeeded by | Sir William Gooch |
| 25th Speaker of the Virginia House of Burgesses | |
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In office 1696–1697 |
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| Preceded by | Philip Ludwell |
| Succeeded by | William Randolph |
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In office 1699–1699 |
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| Preceded by | William Randolph |
| Succeeded by | Peter Beverley |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 1662/63 Corotoman Plantation, Lancaster County, Virginia |
| Died |
4 August 1732 Lancaster County, Virginia |
| Spouse(s) | Judith Armistead Betty Landon |
| Children | 15, including Landon Carter |
Robert "King" Carter (1662/63 – 4 August 1732), of Lancaster County, was an American businessman and colonist in Virginia and became one of the wealthiest men in the colonies.
As President of the Governor's Council of the Virginia Colony, he was acting Governor of Virginia in 1726-1727 after the death in office of Governor Hugh Drysdale. He acquired the moniker "King" from his wealth, political power, and autocratic business methods.
Robert Carter was born at Corotoman Plantation in Lancaster County, Virginia, to John Carter (1613–1669) of London, England, and Sarah Ludlow (1635–1668) of Maiden Bradley, Wiltshire. In 1688, he married Judith Armistead of Hesse in Gloucester County, an area which was included in the formation of Mathews County in 1691. After her death in 1699, he married Elizabeth Landon in 1701.
At age 28, Robert Carter entered the General Assembly of Virginia as a Burgess from Lancaster County, serving five consecutive years. In 1726, as President of the Governor's Council, he served as acting Governor of Virginia after the death of Governor Hugh Drysdale.
As an agent of Thomas Fairfax, 6th Lord Fairfax of Cameron – known simply as Lord Fairfax – he served two terms as agent for the Fairfax Proprietary of the Northern Neck of Virginia. During his first term, 1702–1711, he began to acquire large tracts of land for himself in the Rappahannock River region of Virginia. Carter acquired some 20,000 acres (81 km2), a large part of which was the 6,000-acre (24 km2) Nomini Hall Plantation, also spelled “Nomoni” or “Nominy,” which he purchased in 1709 from the heirs of Col. Nicholas Spencer, cousin of the Lords Culpeper, from whom the Fairfaxes had inherited their Virginia holdings.
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