William Randolph
| William Randolph | |
|---|---|
 |
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| 26th Speaker of the Virginia House of Burgesses | |
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In office 1698–1698 |
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| Preceded by | Robert Carter |
| Succeeded by | Robert Carter |
| Personal details | |
| Born | ca. November 1650 Moreton Morrell, Warwickshire, England |
| Died | 11 April 1711 (aged 60) Virginia Colony |
| Resting place | Turkey Island, Virginia |
| Spouse(s) | Mary Isham |
| Relations | William Randolph (grandfather), Robert Randolph (great-grandfather) |
| Children | 9 |
| Parents | Richard Randolph and Elizabeth Rayland |
| Residence | Henrico County, Virginia |
| Occupation | Planter, Politician, Merchant |
| Religion | Anglican |
William Randolph (bapt. 7 November 1650 – 11 April 1711) was an American colonist, landowner, planter, merchant, and politician who played an important role in the history and government of the English colony of Virginia. He moved to Virginia sometime between 1669 and 1673, and married Mary Isham (ca. 1659 – 29 December 1735) a few years later. His descendants include many prominent individuals including Thomas Jefferson, John Marshall, Paschal Beverly Randolph, Robert E. Lee,Peyton Randolph, Edmund Randolph, John Randolph of Roanoke, George W. Randolph, and Edmund Ruffin. Genealogists have taken an interest in him for his progeny's many marital alliances, referring to him and Mary Isham as "the Adam and Eve of Virginia".
William Randolph was baptized in Moreton Morrell, Warwickshire, England on 7 November 1650, He was the son of Richard Randolph (21 February 1621 – 2 May 1678) and Elizabeth Ryland (1625–ca. 1669). Richard Randolph was originally from Houghton Parva, a small village east of Northampton, where his father was a "steward and servant" to Edward la Zouche, 11th Baron Zouche (1556–1625), having previously served in that same capacity to Sir George Goring, a landowner in Sussex. Elizabeth was the daughter of John Ryland of Warwick. William was the second of seven Randolph children, all born in Moreton Morrell between 1647 and 1657.
No record has yet surfaced to fix William Randolph's residences after his birth until 1672.
Although his father's older half-brother, the poet Thomas Randolph, attended Westminster School and Cambridge University, he did so largely on scholarship and there is no record of any other members of William's family having attended either public school or university. At some point in the late 1650s or 1660s, his parents moved to Dublin, where they both died, his mother around 1669 and his father in 1671, so William may well have spent the bulk of his formative years in Ireland. It is also known that William's uncle, Henry Randolph (1623-?), in 1669 traveled to Britain from Virginia, to which place he had emigrated around 1642. Henry probably encouraged his nephew at that time to return with him to the Chesapeake. In any case, William Randolph was in the colony by 12 February 1672 when he appears in the record as witness to a land transaction.
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