William Brattle

William Brattle (April 18, 1706 – October 25, 1776) was a physician, lawyer, soldier, and politician of colonial Massachusetts. During the American Revolution, he was Major General of the Royal Militia and played a role in the Powder Alarm. He was known as "the wealthiest man" in Massachusetts.

William Brattle was born on April 18, 1706 in Cambridge, Massachusetts. He was the son of Reverend William Brattle of the First Parish in Cambridge, a member of Royal Society, and a Harvard graduate (1680), educator, and leader. Brattle's father was also a slave owner. His mother was Elizabeth Hayman Brattle; she died July 28, 1715. He had an older brother, Thomas, who died as a young child. He was the nephew of Thomas Brattle and the last only descendant in the male line of Captain Thomas Brattle, his grandfather.

His father died in 1717, and without a means of support, Brattle began attending Harvard, during which time he was both fined for violating college rules and was head of the class. In 1722, he graduated from Harvard. His classmates included Richard Saltonstall of the Saltonstall family and William Ellery. He continued his studies for a graduate degree, and was head of the masters class of 1725.

When he was 21 years of age, Brattle inherited the estates of his father and uncle Thomas. Author James Henry Stark said “He inherited a large and well invested property, and had ample means to cultivate those tastes to which, by his nature and education, he was inclined."

He was a physician theologian, and an attorney. Brattle was also a legislator and soldier. He preached sermons in the early 1720s, but by 1725 decided that he did not want to continue to pursue the ministry and began to practice medicine, providing treatment over his years in Cambridge to residents and students. He had a private law practice and for many years was an overseer of Harvard.Lorenzo Sabine said of him, "A man of more eminent talents, and of greater eccentricities, has seldom lived."

Beginning about 1729, he served 21 terms as selectman of Cambridge. He became a member of the House of Assembly of Massachusetts Bay in 1736. He then was the attorney general of the Province of Massachusetts Bay.

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