Espere Winthrop

Waitstill Winthrop (27 de febrero de 1642 – 7 de noviembre de 1717) ^{[ 1 ]} fue un magistrado colonial, oficial militar y político de Nueva Inglaterra .

Winthrop nació el 27 de febrero de 1642 en Boston , la capital de la Colonia de la Bahía de Massachusetts . Al nacer se llamaba Waitstill, pero durante su vida prefirió el nombre abreviado "Wait". Fue el segundo hijo de Elizabeth ( de soltera Reade) Winthrop (1615-1672) y John Winthrop el Joven , uno de los primeros gobernadores de la Colonia de Connecticut . Su hermano mayor era Fitz-John Winthrop , quien sirvió como mayor general en el ejército. Fue nombrado gobernador de Connecticut, cargo que ocupó desde 1696 hasta su muerte en 1707. ^{[ 2 ]}

Winthrop era nieto de John Winthrop , uno de los gobernadores fundadores de la Colonia de la Bahía de Massachusetts. ^{[ 2 ]}

Winthrop se desempeñó como juez presidente del Tribunal Superior de Massachusetts (el tribunal más alto de la provincia de la Bahía de Massachusetts ) y fue consejero durante mucho tiempo y aspirante a la gobernación de Massachusetts.

Durante la Guerra del Rey Felipe en la década de 1670 y la Guerra del Rey Guillermo en la década de 1690, dirigió la milicia provincial de Massachusetts. De ideología populista, se opuso a los gobernadores reales, especialmente a Joseph Dudley , y buscó la restauración de la primera carta fundacional de Massachusetts.

En 1692, el gobernador Sir William Phips lo nombró magistrado del Tribunal de Oyer y Terminer, que presidió los juicios de brujas de Salem . Ese mismo año fue elegido miembro de la Compañía Militar de Massachusetts y, en junio, también fue elegido capitán de la misma.

Cuando se organizaron los tribunales provinciales bajo la nueva carta de la Provincia de la Bahía de Massachusetts , Winthrop fue uno de los primeros designados como juez asociado del Tribunal Superior de Justicia , como se conocía al tribunal más alto de la provincia.

He held this position until the death of chief justice and acting governor William Stoughton, at which time the Governor's Council appointed him to be chief justice. Political forces allied to him were preparing to travel to London to lobby on his behalf for the position of governor when it was learned that Joseph Dudley had received the appointment. Winthrop then tendered his resignation as chief justice. In 1708, Dudley reappointed him to be chief justice, a position he held until his death in 1717.

Winthrop was also active in other pursuits. When not working at his public duties, he devoted himself to agriculture and the study of medicine, often providing assistance in these arts to his neighbors.

Winthrop was twice married. His first marriage was to Mary Browne (1656–1690), the daughter of William Browne.^[1] Before her death at the age of thirty-four in 1690, they were the parents of:^[3]

• John Winthrop (1681–1747), who married Ann Dudley, daughter of Joseph Dudley and granddaughter of Thomas Dudley, both governors of Massachusetts. John graduated from Harvard in 1700, served for some time as a magistrate of Connecticut, and was afterward a fellow of the Royal Society of London, to whose Transactions he was a contributor, and one of whose volumes was dedicated to him.^[1]
• Elizabeth Winthrop (1683–1683), who died in infancy.^[3]
• William Winthrop (1684–1693), who died young.^[3]
• Ann Winthrop (1686–1746), who married Thomas Lechmere.^[3][4]
• Joseph Winthrop (1689–1693), who died in childhood.^[3]

On 13 November 1707, Winthrop married for the second time to Katherine (née Brattle) Eyre (1664–1725), the widow of John Eyre and daughter of Captain Thomas Brattle.^[5] Her brother was Thomas Brattle, a merchant who served as treasurer of Harvard College and is known for his involvement in the Salem Witch Trials.^[1]

Winthrop died on 7 November 1717.

Through his only surviving son, he was the grandfather of John Still Winthrop, himself the father of Thomas Lindall Winthrop (1760–1841), the 13th Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts.^[1]

• Wilson, JG ; Fiske, J. , eds. (1889). "Winthrop, John"  . Appletons' Cyclopædia of American Biography . Nueva York: D. Appleton.