James Oglethorpe

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James Oglethorpe

• Founder of Georgia

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James Oglethorpe

• Born Dec 22, 1696 in London, England
• Feb 1, 1733 Oglethorpe and fellow settlers arrive
  at the site of modern day Savannah.
• Died June 30, 1785 in Cranham Hall, England

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Life in England

• In 1714, Oglethorpe was admitted to Corpus
  Christi College at Oxford University.
• 1722- He ran for Parliament and won. He occupied
  a seat in the House of Commons.

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Need for Change

• In 1729 Oglethorpes life changed.
• A close friend of his, Robert Castell, was put in
  Londons Fleet Prison because of his debts.
  Prisoners were required to pay fees for decent
  room and board, but his friend was unable to pay.
• Castell died while in prison from a disease. This
  led Oglethorpe to launch a national campaign to
  reform Englands prisons.

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Prisons

• After Oglethorpe investigated the prisons, steps
  were taken to reform the prisons.
• However, prison reform did not change that
  debtors were put in jail for the lack of money.
• Oglethorpe with the help of John Lord Viscount
  Percival and others started to explore the
  chances of creating a new colony in America.

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Georgias Founding

• In 1732, King George II granted Oglethorpe a
  charter to colonize land located south of the
  South Carolina colony.
• However, Spain and Britain both claimed the land,
  nut neither had people living there at the time.

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First Settlement

• Oglethorpe arrived on Savannahs coast on
  February 12, 1733 and after receiving permission
  from Tomochichi, he built the first settlement of
  Savannah.
• He established good relations with Native
  Americans and bought the land for Savannah from
  them.
• Oglethorpe named the new colony after King George
  II.
• Oglethorpe was in Georgia from 1733-1736. He was
  give the rank of colonel and an army to defend
  the colony from Spain.

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Invasion of the New Colony

• War broke out between Spain and Britain in 1739.
• Oglethorpe planned to protect Georgia from the
  Spanish forces in Florida, so he led an attack on
  St. Augustine, but failed to capture it.
• In 1742, Spanish forces retaliate and Oglethorpe
  fought back a Spanish invasion on Fort Federica.
  This battle came to be known as the Battle of
  Bloody Marsh.
• Oglethorpe was then promoted to brigadier general
  in the British Army.
• Oglethorpe then returned to England in 1743.

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Return to Britain

• When Oglethorpe returned to Britain he again
  served in Parliament for 32 years, married
  Elizabeth Wright in September 1744, and settled
  at Cranham Hall.
• In 1753 Georgias charter expired and control
  switched to the king.
• Oglethorpe enjoyed seeing his colony become part
  of the United States of America in 1776.

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Georgians still remember Oglethorpe

• Oglethorpes presence in our state is still here.
  
• Oglethorpe County was named after him, so were
  two towns Oglethorpe and Oglethorpe University.
• Also there are many schools, streets, parks, and
  business name after the founder of Georgia.

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Remember Oglethorpe

• Oglethorpe started our colony because he believed
  that debtors needed a better place to live than
  the jails in London.
• Georgia gave them an opportunity to strive to
  have a better life.
• Oglethorpe was a caring man that changed the
  lives of many others by his actions.

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References

• http//ourgeorgiahistory.com/people/oglethorpe.htm
  l
• http//www.cviog.uga.edu/Projects/gainfo/oglethorp
  e.htm
• http//www.harcourtschool.com/activity/biographies
  /oglethorpe/
• http//www.georgiaencyclopedia.org/nge/Article.jsp
  ?idh-1058sugy