"N" is for Nicholson, Francis [1655-1728]

"N" is for Nicholson, Francis [1655-1728]. Governor. Before he made his career as a colonial administrator, Nicholson was a soldier. He served as lieutenant governor of New York, Virginia, and Maryland and as governor of Virginia. Returning to England he worked with the Board of Trade on issues of imperial defense and economic policy. In 1710, he led colonial troops that recaptured Nova Scotia for Great Britain. In 1720 he became the first royally appointed governor of South Carolina. His administration was somewhat contentious, but he was successful in preserving the viability of the colony. The Lords Proprietors—in an attempt to regain control of the colony—mounted a vicious personal attack on Nicholson. Francis Nicholson returned to England to defend himself and, in the process helped promote the cause of South Carolina’s justification for rebelling against the proprietors.