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David Ramsay (congressman)
Encyclopedia
David Ramsay was an American
physician and historian from Charleston, South Carolina
. He served as a South Carolina
delegate to the Continental Congress
in 1782–1783 and again in 1785–1786. He was one of the first major historians of the American Revolution
.
The son of an Irish emigrant, he was born in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania
. He graduated at Princeton University
in 1765, received his medical degree at the University of Pennsylvania
in 1773, and settled as a physician at Charleston, where he had a large practice.
During the American Revolutionary War
he was, from 1776 to 1783, a member of the South Carolina legislature
. When Charleston was threatened by the British in 1780, he served with the South Carolina militia as a field surgeon. After the city was captured
in 1780, Ramsay was imprisoned for nearly a year at St. Augustine, Florida
, until he was exchanged. From 1782 to 1786 he served in the Continental Congress
, and from 1801 to 1815 in the state Senate, of which he was long president.
In his own day, Ramsay was better known as a historian and author than as a politician. He was one of the American Revolution’s first major historians. Ramsay writes with the knowledge and insights acquired by being personally involved in the events of the American Revolution. In 1785 he published in two volumes History of the Revolution of South Carolina, in 1789 in two volumes History of the American Revolution, in 1807 a Life of Washington, and in 1809 in two volumes a History of South Carolina. In 1789 he also wrote A Dissertation on the Manners of Acquiring the Character and Privileges of a Citizen. Ramsay was also the author of several minor works, including a memoir (1812) of his third wife Martha Laurens Ramsay, a well-educated woman who had served as a political hostess for her father, Henry Laurens
, during the 1780s.
Messer (2002) examines the transition in Ramsay's republican perspective from his History of the American Revolution (1789) to his more conservative History of the United States (1816–17). His works went from a call for active citizens to reform and improve societal institutions to a warning of the dangers of an overzealous population and the need to preserve existing institutions. In his discussion of the treatment of Indians and African American slaves he became less critical of whites and changed to reflect the views of society at large. Ramsay's increasing involvement in South Carolina's economic and political institutions and the need for stability that defined early-19th-century nationalism influenced this transformation. O'Brien (1994) argues his 1789 History of the American Revolution was one of the first and most accomplished histories to appear in the aftermath of that event. She says it challenges American exceptionalist literary frameworks by presenting itself within the European Enlightenment historical tradition, reflecting Ramsay's belief that the United States would have no historical destiny beyond typical patterns of European political and cultural development. Epic portrayals of American history in the 19th century were more the product of New England's historiographic traditions coupled with German historical thought, treating national character as a historical agent, rather than a historical result, as Ramsay suggests. Ramsay's history, then, is better considered the last of the European Enlightenment tradition than the first of American historical epics.
Ramsay was appointed by a court to examine one William Linnen, a tailor known for serial litigation and nuisance suits, after Linnen had attempted to murder his attorney. Ramsay reported to the court that Linnen was "deranged" and that it would be "dangerous to let him go at large." Eventually, after apparently regaining his sanity, Linnen was released; though he threatened Ramsay, the latter did not take the threat seriously. At 1 p.m. on May 6, 1815, Ramsay passed Linnen on Broad Street in Charleston and was shot twice in the back and hip after Linnen removed a "horseman's pistol" he had concealed in a handkerchief. According to a contemporary source: "Having been carried home, and being surrounded by a crowd of anxious citizens, after first calling their attention to what he was about to utter, he said 'I know not if these wounds be mortal; I am not afraid to die; but should that be my fate, I call on all here present to bear witness, that I consider the unfortunate perpetrator of this deed a lunatic, and free from guilt.'" Ramsay died at 7 a.m. on May 8, two days later.
Ramsay's History of the United States in three volumes was published posthumously in 1816–1817, and forms the first three volumes of his Universal History Americanized, published in twelve volumes in 1819.
His brother was Congressman Nathaniel Ramsey
, a brother-in-law of Charles Willson Peale
.
Ramsay married three times. He was the son-in-law of John Witherspoon
and Henry Laurens, and thus was also related (by marriage) to South Carolina Governor Charles Pinckney
, Ralph Izard
, John Rutledge
, Arthur Middleton
, Daniel Huger
and Lewis Morris
.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
physician and historian from Charleston, South Carolina
Charleston, South Carolina
Charleston is the second largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina. It was made the county seat of Charleston County in 1901 when Charleston County was founded. The city's original name was Charles Towne in 1670, and it moved to its present location from a location on the west bank of the...
. He served as a South Carolina
South Carolina
South Carolina is a state in the Deep South of the United States that borders Georgia to the south, North Carolina to the north, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Originally part of the Province of Carolina, the Province of South Carolina was one of the 13 colonies that declared independence...
delegate to the Continental Congress
Continental Congress
The Continental Congress was a convention of delegates called together from the Thirteen Colonies that became the governing body of the United States during the American Revolution....
in 1782–1783 and again in 1785–1786. He was one of the first major historians of the American Revolution
American Revolution
The American Revolution was the political upheaval during the last half of the 18th century in which thirteen colonies in North America joined together to break free from the British Empire, combining to become the United States of America...
.
The son of an Irish emigrant, he was born in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania
Lancaster County, Pennsylvania
Lancaster County, known as the Garden Spot of America or Pennsylvania Dutch Country, is a county located in the southeastern part of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, in the United States. As of 2010 the population was 519,445. Lancaster County forms the Lancaster Metropolitan Statistical Area, the...
. He graduated at Princeton University
Princeton University
Princeton University is a private research university located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. The school is one of the eight universities of the Ivy League, and is one of the nine Colonial Colleges founded before the American Revolution....
in 1765, received his medical degree at the University of Pennsylvania
University of Pennsylvania
The University of Pennsylvania is a private, Ivy League university located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Penn is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States,Penn is the fourth-oldest using the founding dates claimed by each institution...
in 1773, and settled as a physician at Charleston, where he had a large practice.
During the American Revolutionary War
American Revolutionary War
The American Revolutionary War , the American War of Independence, or simply the Revolutionary War, began as a war between the Kingdom of Great Britain and thirteen British colonies in North America, and ended in a global war between several European great powers.The war was the result of the...
he was, from 1776 to 1783, a member of the South Carolina legislature
South Carolina General Assembly
The South Carolina General Assembly, also called the South Carolina Legislature, is the state legislature of the U.S. state of South Carolina. The legislature is bicameral and consists of the lower South Carolina House of Representatives and the upper South Carolina Senate. Altogether, the General...
. When Charleston was threatened by the British in 1780, he served with the South Carolina militia as a field surgeon. After the city was captured
Siege of Charleston
The Siege of Charleston was one of the major battles which took place towards the end of the American Revolutionary War, after the British began to shift their strategic focus towards the American Southern Colonies. After about six weeks of siege, Continental Army Major General Benjamin Lincoln...
in 1780, Ramsay was imprisoned for nearly a year at St. Augustine, Florida
St. Augustine, Florida
St. Augustine is a city in the northeast section of Florida and the county seat of St. Johns County, Florida, United States. Founded in 1565 by Spanish explorer and admiral Pedro Menéndez de Avilés, it is the oldest continuously occupied European-established city and port in the continental United...
, until he was exchanged. From 1782 to 1786 he served in the Continental Congress
Continental Congress
The Continental Congress was a convention of delegates called together from the Thirteen Colonies that became the governing body of the United States during the American Revolution....
, and from 1801 to 1815 in the state Senate, of which he was long president.
In his own day, Ramsay was better known as a historian and author than as a politician. He was one of the American Revolution’s first major historians. Ramsay writes with the knowledge and insights acquired by being personally involved in the events of the American Revolution. In 1785 he published in two volumes History of the Revolution of South Carolina, in 1789 in two volumes History of the American Revolution, in 1807 a Life of Washington, and in 1809 in two volumes a History of South Carolina. In 1789 he also wrote A Dissertation on the Manners of Acquiring the Character and Privileges of a Citizen. Ramsay was also the author of several minor works, including a memoir (1812) of his third wife Martha Laurens Ramsay, a well-educated woman who had served as a political hostess for her father, Henry Laurens
Henry Laurens
Henry Laurens was an American merchant and rice planter from South Carolina who became a political leader during the Revolutionary War. A delegate to the Second Continental Congress, Laurens succeeded John Hancock as President of the Congress...
, during the 1780s.
Messer (2002) examines the transition in Ramsay's republican perspective from his History of the American Revolution (1789) to his more conservative History of the United States (1816–17). His works went from a call for active citizens to reform and improve societal institutions to a warning of the dangers of an overzealous population and the need to preserve existing institutions. In his discussion of the treatment of Indians and African American slaves he became less critical of whites and changed to reflect the views of society at large. Ramsay's increasing involvement in South Carolina's economic and political institutions and the need for stability that defined early-19th-century nationalism influenced this transformation. O'Brien (1994) argues his 1789 History of the American Revolution was one of the first and most accomplished histories to appear in the aftermath of that event. She says it challenges American exceptionalist literary frameworks by presenting itself within the European Enlightenment historical tradition, reflecting Ramsay's belief that the United States would have no historical destiny beyond typical patterns of European political and cultural development. Epic portrayals of American history in the 19th century were more the product of New England's historiographic traditions coupled with German historical thought, treating national character as a historical agent, rather than a historical result, as Ramsay suggests. Ramsay's history, then, is better considered the last of the European Enlightenment tradition than the first of American historical epics.
Ramsay was appointed by a court to examine one William Linnen, a tailor known for serial litigation and nuisance suits, after Linnen had attempted to murder his attorney. Ramsay reported to the court that Linnen was "deranged" and that it would be "dangerous to let him go at large." Eventually, after apparently regaining his sanity, Linnen was released; though he threatened Ramsay, the latter did not take the threat seriously. At 1 p.m. on May 6, 1815, Ramsay passed Linnen on Broad Street in Charleston and was shot twice in the back and hip after Linnen removed a "horseman's pistol" he had concealed in a handkerchief. According to a contemporary source: "Having been carried home, and being surrounded by a crowd of anxious citizens, after first calling their attention to what he was about to utter, he said 'I know not if these wounds be mortal; I am not afraid to die; but should that be my fate, I call on all here present to bear witness, that I consider the unfortunate perpetrator of this deed a lunatic, and free from guilt.'" Ramsay died at 7 a.m. on May 8, two days later.
Ramsay's History of the United States in three volumes was published posthumously in 1816–1817, and forms the first three volumes of his Universal History Americanized, published in twelve volumes in 1819.
His brother was Congressman Nathaniel Ramsey
Nathaniel Ramsey
Nathaniel Ramsey was an American lawyer and soldier from Cecil County, Maryland. Ramsey fought in the Revolutionary War, and was a member of the Congress of the Confederation....
, a brother-in-law of Charles Willson Peale
Charles Willson Peale
Charles Willson Peale was an American painter, soldier and naturalist. He is best remembered for his portrait paintings of leading figures of the American Revolution, as well as establishing one of the first museums....
.
Ramsay married three times. He was the son-in-law of John Witherspoon
John Witherspoon
John Witherspoon was a signatory of the United States Declaration of Independence as a representative of New Jersey. As president of the College of New Jersey , he trained many leaders of the early nation and was the only active clergyman and the only college president to sign the Declaration...
and Henry Laurens, and thus was also related (by marriage) to South Carolina Governor Charles Pinckney
Charles Pinckney (governor)
Charles Pinckney was an American politician who was a signer of the United States Constitution, the 37th Governor of South Carolina, a Senator and a member of the House of Representatives...
, Ralph Izard
Ralph Izard
Ralph Izard was a U.S. politician. He served as President pro tempore of the United States Senate in 1794.-Early life:...
, John Rutledge
John Rutledge
John Rutledge was an American statesman and judge. He was the first Governor of South Carolina following the signing of the Declaration of Independence, the 31st overall...
, Arthur Middleton
Arthur Middleton
Arthur Middleton , of Charleston, South Carolina, was a signer of the United States Declaration of Independence....
, Daniel Huger
Daniel Huger
Daniel Huger was an American planter and statesman from Berkeley County, South Carolina. His grandfather was Daniel Huger Sr , a French Huguenot who was born in Loudun, France and settled in Charleston, South Carolina...
and Lewis Morris
Lewis Morris
Lewis Morris was an American landowner and developer from Morrisania, New York. He signed the U.S. Declaration of Independence as a delegate to the Continental Congress for New York....
.
Selected works
- Ramsay, David, The History of the American Revolution, 1789. Two volumes. (Volume I at Google Books)