Richard Kidder Meade

Richard Kidder Meade (July 14, 1746 – February 9, 1805) was an American army officer from Nansemond County, Virginia. He served as an aide-de-camp to General George Washington during the American Revolutionary War.

Early life Born in Prince George County, to the former Susannah Everard and her planter husband David Meade (1700-1787), His maternal grandmother was Susannah Kidder Everard, Lady Everard and her husband Sir Richard Everard, 4th Baronet, was the last Governor of North Carolina under proprietary rule. His great-great-grandfather was Richard Kidder, a noted theologian who was the Bishop of Bath and Wells.

Meade and two of his brothers were educated at Harrow, one of the oldest and most respected schools in England. In March 1777, General Washington appointed him one of his aides-de-camps, with the rank of lieutenant colonel. Meade was frequently used to deliver important dispatches and orders. He operated that farm and racing stable using enslaved labor, paying taxes in 1787 on 10 enslaved adults, 7 teenagers, 21 horses, 19 cattle and a 4 wheeled chariot. About 1791, Meade built another house nearby of brick, which he named "Lucky Hit."

Personal life Meade's first wife was Elizabeth Randolph, a daughter of burgess and patriot Richard Randolph (1721-1786) of Curles Neck Plantation in Henrico County, but she died in 1774 and none of their children survived. the widow of William Randolph of Chatsworth. They had 4 daughters and 4 sons, including William Meade, who became the third Episcopal Bishop of Virginia. His daughter Ann Randolph Meade Page was an Episcopal slavery reformer. Complicating matters, Richard Kidder Meade Jr. (1803-1862), a U.S. Representative from Virginia, was the son of a cousin of the same name, Richard Kidder Meade (1775-1832).

Death and legacy Meade died in 1805 apparently from the effects of gout and years of military life.