John Joachim Zubly
Encyclopedia
Reverend John Joachim Zubly (August 27, 1724 – July 23, 1781), born Hans Joachim Züblin, was a Swiss
-born American
pastor, planter, and statesman during the American Revolution
. Although a delegate for Georgia
to the Continental Congress
in 1775, he resisted independence from Great Britain and became a Loyalist
.
, Switzerland
on August 27, 1724. He was ordained to the German [Reformed] Church ministry in London on 19 August 1744. Following that, he came to South Carolina, where his father David Zublin had settled near the Savannah River in 1735. He preached first at small congregations south of Savannah. In 1746 he married Anna Tobler, daughter of Appenzell Ausserrhoden governor and later New Windsor Township founder Johannes Tobler. He then spent 10 years as minister at the Wappetaw Church near Charleston, SC, an interesting congregation composed largely of descendants of a shipwreck that carried Congregationalists from New England. In 1756 he visited and preached to a congregation in Savannah, Georgia
. They were so impressed with him that he was later invited to their newly created pulpit. So in 1760 he moved to Savannah and became the first pastor of the Presbyterian Church there.
Reverend Zubly's relationship to the Revolution reflects the confusion and conflict inherent in the shift of ideas during his time. Zubly's Calvinist religious beliefs made him an outspoken and influential supporter of the colonists' rights. By 1775, Zubly had come to view what he saw as the increasingly secular and godless resistance of the colonies with alarm. Many view his career as moving from a staunch defender of colonial rights, to an apologist for the monarchy, to a loyalist and opponent of republican government. However, it was his religious beliefs that remained constant, while the political environment shifted around him.
in 1765, some of his sermons began to be issued as pamphlets, most notably An Humble Enquiry Into the Nature of the Dependency of the American Colonies upon the Parliament of Great-Britain and the Right of Parliament to Lay Taxes on the said Colonies. His reasoning helped to clarify the differences and relationships between constitutions, legislatures, laws, and people. Bernard Bailyn
credits him with making important contributions to the consideration of representative legislatures by identifying some of the issues involved.
In the period leading up to the Revolution, he was not a member of the Georgia Assembly. But, he was frequently called on to open their sessions with prayer and a sermon. Georgia was not represented in the First Continental Congress of 1774, but in July of 1775, they held a revolutionary congress in Savannah and Zubly was named as one of their delegates to the Second Continental Congress
in Philadelphia
.
As the other delegates argued for unity and conformance with the majority views, he became increasingly outspoken. By October 12, as the debate continued he observed that "Trade is important.... Wisdom is better than weapons of war. We don't mean to oppose Great Britain, merely for diversion; if it is necessary, that we make war, and that we have the means of it." When pushed he declared that "A republican government is little better than government of devils."
By mid-November Zubly was on his way back to Savannah. The Congress had accused him of disloyalty since he was still carrying on a correspondence with his friend, James Wright
, the Royal Governor of Georgia. He resumed his pulpit, and still sought a reconciliation in which Britain would respect colonist's rights.
ordered his arrest, but Zubly was able to escape and find refuge with his family in South Carolina. Half his property was seized and his library was thrown into the Savannah River by Georgians.
When the British recaptured Savannah in 1778 he was able to return home. Beginning in August 1780, the Savannah newspaper The Royal Georgia Gazette published a series of nine essays written by Zubly, who used the pseudonym of Helvetius. In these essays, Zubly laid out his case for opposing the American Revolution. Zubly made the case that the revolutionists were violating both God's law and international law. He died in Savannah on July 23, 1781 before the end of the American Revolution. Though it is rumored that he is buried at Savannah's Colonial Cemetery, his grave has never been found.
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
-born American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
pastor, planter, and statesman during 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...
. Although a delegate for Georgia
Georgia (U.S. state)
Georgia is a state located in the southeastern United States. It was established in 1732, the last of the original Thirteen Colonies. The state is named after King George II of Great Britain. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January 2, 1788...
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 1775, he resisted independence from Great Britain and became a Loyalist
Loyalist (American Revolution)
Loyalists were American colonists who remained loyal to the Kingdom of Great Britain during the American Revolutionary War. At the time they were often called Tories, Royalists, or King's Men. They were opposed by the Patriots, those who supported the revolution...
.
Early life and career
Zubly was born in St. GallSt. Gallen
St. Gallen is the capital of the canton of St. Gallen in Switzerland. It evolved from the hermitage of Saint Gall, founded in the 7th century. Today, it is a large urban agglomeration and represents the center of eastern Switzerland. The town mainly relies on the service sector for its economic...
, Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
on August 27, 1724. He was ordained to the German [Reformed] Church ministry in London on 19 August 1744. Following that, he came to South Carolina, where his father David Zublin had settled near the Savannah River in 1735. He preached first at small congregations south of Savannah. In 1746 he married Anna Tobler, daughter of Appenzell Ausserrhoden governor and later New Windsor Township founder Johannes Tobler. He then spent 10 years as minister at the Wappetaw Church near Charleston, SC, an interesting congregation composed largely of descendants of a shipwreck that carried Congregationalists from New England. In 1756 he visited and preached to a congregation in Savannah, Georgia
Savannah, Georgia
Savannah is the largest city and the county seat of Chatham County, in the U.S. state of Georgia. Established in 1733, the city of Savannah was the colonial capital of the Province of Georgia and later the first state capital of Georgia. Today Savannah is an industrial center and an important...
. They were so impressed with him that he was later invited to their newly created pulpit. So in 1760 he moved to Savannah and became the first pastor of the Presbyterian Church there.
Reverend Zubly's relationship to the Revolution reflects the confusion and conflict inherent in the shift of ideas during his time. Zubly's Calvinist religious beliefs made him an outspoken and influential supporter of the colonists' rights. By 1775, Zubly had come to view what he saw as the increasingly secular and godless resistance of the colonies with alarm. Many view his career as moving from a staunch defender of colonial rights, to an apologist for the monarchy, to a loyalist and opponent of republican government. However, it was his religious beliefs that remained constant, while the political environment shifted around him.
Start of the revolution
After the Stamp ActStamp Act 1765
The Stamp Act 1765 was a direct tax imposed by the British Parliament specifically on the colonies of British America. The act required that many printed materials in the colonies be produced on stamped paper produced in London, carrying an embossed revenue stamp...
in 1765, some of his sermons began to be issued as pamphlets, most notably An Humble Enquiry Into the Nature of the Dependency of the American Colonies upon the Parliament of Great-Britain and the Right of Parliament to Lay Taxes on the said Colonies. His reasoning helped to clarify the differences and relationships between constitutions, legislatures, laws, and people. Bernard Bailyn
Bernard Bailyn
Bernard Bailyn is an American historian, author, and professor specializing in U.S. Colonial and Revolutionary-era History. He has been a professor at Harvard University since 1953. Bailyn has won the Pulitzer Prize for History twice . In 1998 the National Endowment for the Humanities selected...
credits him with making important contributions to the consideration of representative legislatures by identifying some of the issues involved.
In the period leading up to the Revolution, he was not a member of the Georgia Assembly. But, he was frequently called on to open their sessions with prayer and a sermon. Georgia was not represented in the First Continental Congress of 1774, but in July of 1775, they held a revolutionary congress in Savannah and Zubly was named as one of their delegates to the Second 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 Philadelphia
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Philadelphia is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Philadelphia County, with which it is coterminous. The city is located in the Northeastern United States along the Delaware and Schuylkill rivers. It is the fifth-most-populous city in the United States,...
.
The Continental Congress
John Zubly took his seat as a delegate in Philadelphia on September 15, 1775. Early in his time at the Congress he expressed his position by saying, "I came here with two views; one, to secure the rights of America; second, a reconciliation with Great Britain.". His distance from the sentiments of the Congress as a whole widened during debates over non-importation or trade embargoes. Georgia's development was so recent that she lacked even the limited manufacturing capabilities that existed in most of the other colonies, and it was the least self-sufficient of any.As the other delegates argued for unity and conformance with the majority views, he became increasingly outspoken. By October 12, as the debate continued he observed that "Trade is important.... Wisdom is better than weapons of war. We don't mean to oppose Great Britain, merely for diversion; if it is necessary, that we make war, and that we have the means of it." When pushed he declared that "A republican government is little better than government of devils."
By mid-November Zubly was on his way back to Savannah. The Congress had accused him of disloyalty since he was still carrying on a correspondence with his friend, James Wright
James Wright (governor)
James Wright was an American colonial lawyer and jurist who was the last British Royal Governor of the Province of Georgia. He was the only Royal Governor of the Thirteen Colonies to regain control of his colony during the American Revolutionary War.James Wright was born in London to Robert Wright...
, the Royal Governor of Georgia. He resumed his pulpit, and still sought a reconciliation in which Britain would respect colonist's rights.
Exile and return
As the revolutionary fervor rose in Georgia, the Council of Safety decided that his "going at large will... endanger the public safety". So on July 1, 1776 Archibald BullochArchibald Bulloch
Archibald Bulloch was a lawyer, soldier, and statesman from Georgia during the American Revolution.-Early life:...
ordered his arrest, but Zubly was able to escape and find refuge with his family in South Carolina. Half his property was seized and his library was thrown into the Savannah River by Georgians.
When the British recaptured Savannah in 1778 he was able to return home. Beginning in August 1780, the Savannah newspaper The Royal Georgia Gazette published a series of nine essays written by Zubly, who used the pseudonym of Helvetius. In these essays, Zubly laid out his case for opposing the American Revolution. Zubly made the case that the revolutionists were violating both God's law and international law. He died in Savannah on July 23, 1781 before the end of the American Revolution. Though it is rumored that he is buried at Savannah's Colonial Cemetery, his grave has never been found.
Further reading
- Kenneth Coleman; American Revolution in Georgia 1763-1789. 1958, University of Georgia Press, ISBN 0-8203-0015-2.
- Randall Miller, editor. A Warm and Zealous Spirit: John J. Zubly and the American Revolution, A Selection of His Writings; 1982, Mercer University Press, ISBN 0-86554-028-4.
- Jim Schmidt; "The Reverend John Joachim Zubly's 'The Law of Liberty' Sermon: Calvinist Opposition to the American Revolution", The Georgia Historical Quarterly, Vol. LXXXII, No. 2, Summer, 1998.
- Zubly, John J.; Revolutionary Tracts. A short reprint of some of his sermons and pamphlets; ISBN 0-87152-088-5.
- Hawes, Lilla Mills, ed. 1989. The Journal of the Reverend John Joachim Zubly A.M., D.D. March 5, 1770 through June 22, 1781. Georgia Historical Society Collections, Volume XXI. Savannah: The Georgia Historical Society.