- Thomas Pinckney
Infobox Governor
honorific-prefix =
name =Thomas Pinckney
honorific-suffix =
order =36
office =Governor of South Carolina
term_start =1787
term_end =1789
lieutenant =Thomas Gadsden
predecessor =William Moultrie
successor =Charles Pinckneyorder2 =
office2 =South Carolina Representative
term_start2 =1791
term_end2 =1792
vicepresident2 =
viceprimeminister2 =
deputy2 =
lieutenant2 =
monarch2 =
president2 =
primeminister2 =
governor2 =Charles Pinckney
succeeding2 =
predecessor2 =
successor2 =
constituency2 =
majority2 =order3 =
office3 =U.S. minister (ambassador) to Great Britain
term_start3 =1792
term_end3 =1796
vicepresident3 =
viceprimeminister3 =
deputy3 =
lieutenant3 =
monarch3 =
president3 =George Washington
primeminister3 =
governor3 =
succeeding3 =
predecessor3 =John Adams
successor3 =Rufus King
constituency3 =
majority3 =order4 =
office4 =U.S. Representatives
term_start4 =November 1797
term_end4 =March 1801
vicepresident4 =
viceprimeminister4 =
deputy4 =
lieutenant4 =
monarch4 =
president4 =
primeminister4 =
governor4 =
succeeding4 =
predecessor4 =William L. Smith
successor4 =
constituency4 =
majority4 =
birth_date =October 23 ,1750
birth_place =Charleston, South Carolina
death_date =
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nationality =
party =Federalist
otherparty =
spouse =
partner =
relations =
children =
residence =
alma_mater =Westminster andOxford University )
occupation =
profession =farming
net worth =
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religion =
website =
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nickname =
allegiance =Patriot
branch =Continental Army ,United States Army
serviceyears =1775-1783,War of 1812
rank =captain,major general
unit =1st South Carolina Regiment
commands =
battles =Battle of Camden
awards =
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military_data5 =Thomas Pinckney (
October 23 ,1750 ndashNovember 2 ,1828 ) was an early American statesman, diplomat and veteran of both theAmerican Revolutionary War and theWar of 1812 .Biography
Pinckney was born in
Charleston, South Carolina , where his father, Charles Pinckney, was a prominent colonial official. When Pinckney was 3, his father brought the family toGreat Britain on colonial business, and after his father's death in 1758, Pinckney continued his education inGreat Britain (at Westminster andOxford University ) andFrance . He returned to South Carolina in 1774 and became an ardent Patriot in theAmerican Revolution . In 1775 he was commissioned as captain in the1st South Carolina Regiment of theContinental Army . After seeing much action, he became anaide-de-camp to GeneralHoratio Gates , and was captured by the British at the disastrousBattle of Camden in 1780. After recovering from his wounds, he was released in a prisoner exchange. In 1781 he fought under Lafayette in Virginia.After the war, Pinckney spent some years running his plantations before he returned to politics. Pinckney was
governor of South Carolina from 1787 to 1789, most notably presiding over the state convention that ratified the new U.S. Constitution, and then served in theSouth Carolina House of Representatives in 1791. He was appointed by PresidentGeorge Washington to be the U.S. minister (ambassador) to Great Britain in 1792. While there, he was unable to get British concessions on issues such asimpressment or the Northwest frontier forts, so that Washington sentJohn Jay as a special envoy to negotiate the controversialJay Treaty . For part of his tenure (1794-1795) as ambassador in Britain, Pinckney also served as Envoy Extraordinary to Spain. He arranged theTreaty of San Lorenzo , also known asPinckney's Treaty , withSpain in 1795.Pinckney's diplomatic success with Spain made him popular at home, and on his return the Federalist party made him a candidate in the 1796 presidential election (as the intended running-mate of
John Adams ). While Adams won the presidential election, complicated scheming to ensure that Adams would have more presidential votes than Pinckney ended up making their opponentThomas Jefferson vice-president.Pinckney was elected to the
United States House of Representatives from South Carolina to fill the vacancy caused by the resignation ofWilliam L. Smith , and he served from November 1797 to March 1801. While in Congress, Pinckney served as one of the managers appointed by the House in 1798 to conduct the impeachment proceedings againstWilliam Blount .Pinckney served as a
major general in theUnited States Army during theWar of 1812 . His last public role before his death in Charleston was as president general of theSociety of the Cincinnati (1825-1828).Pinckneyville, Georgia was named after Thomas Pinckney after he traveled through the area. That town no longer exists, as its residents left to found the nearby Norcross. Pinckneyville is the name of aMiddle School in the Norcross area.Family
His brother
Charles Cotesworth Pinckney and his cousin Charles Pinckney were signers of theUnited States Constitution .He was married twice, first to Elizabeth Motte and second to the widow of John Middleton, a cousin of
Arthur Middleton .His elder son, Thomas, Jr., was married to Elizabeth Izard, a cousin twice removed of South Carolina Congressman
Ralph Izard .His younger son, the younger Charles Cotesworth Pinckney, married Phoebe Elliott, a daughter of a South Carolina State Representative, William Elliott, and Phoebe Waight.
References
*Purcell, L. Edward. "Who Was Who in the American Revolution". New York: Facts on File, 1993. ISBN 0-8160-2107-4. For details on military service.
*Southwick, Leslie. "Presidential Also-Rans and Running Mates, 1788-1996". McFarland & Company, 1998. ISBN 0-7864-0310-1.External links
* [http://bioguide.congress.gov/scripts/biodisplay.pl?index=P000357 Congressional biography of Thomas Pinckney]
* [http://www.sciway.net/hist/governors/tpinckney.html SCIway Biography of Thomas Pinckney]
* [http://www.nga.org/portal/site/nga/menuitem.29fab9fb4add37305ddcbeeb501010a0/?vgnextoid=6016c9eea881a010VgnVCM1000001a01010aRCRD&vgnextchannel=e449a0ca9e3f1010VgnVCM1000001a01010aRCRD NGA Biography of Thomas Pinckney]
* [http://www.nndb.com/people/080/000049930/ NNDB]###@@@KEY@@@###succession box
before=William Moultrie
title=Governor of South Carolina
years=1787ndash 1789
after=Charles Pinckneysuccession box
before=William L. Smith
title=Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from South Carolina
years=1797ndash 1801
after=Thomas Lowndes]
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