Robert Lawson

Robert Lawson (January 23, 1748 – March 28, 1805) was a Virginia lawyer, planter and politician who distinguished himself in the American Revolutionary War, rising to the rank of brigadier general in the Virginia militia. After the conflict, he practiced law, held various political offices and operated a plantation in Prince Edward County, Virginia, but also suffered from alcoholism, which caused his estrangement from his family as well as being swindled. As discussed by the United States Supreme Court in Wagner v. Baird, 48 U.S. 234, although granted over 10,000 acres of land in what became the state of Ohio, Lawson transferred those rights to a swindler, so decades later his heirs unsuccessfully sought redress.

Early life and education Robert Lawson was born January 23, 1748, the son of Benjamin Lawson and his wife, the former Elizabeth Claiborne. His mother would die in Amelia County in 1804, and her brother Philip Whitehead Claiborne represented King William County in the House of Burgesses and her nephew William Dandridge Clairborne would serve in the Virginia House of Delegates representing that county, as discussed below, this man represented Prince Edward County to the west. Sources disagree as to the location of his birth. Professor Ward cites tradition that he was their eldest son and born in Yorkshire, England before his father emigrated to the Virginia colony. His parents married by 1746, and his father died in 1756 in then-vast Prince George County. His mother was of the First Families of Virginia, descended from four generations of men, all named William Claiborne, who were transatlantic merchants as well as major planters and politicians in the Virginia colony. He had a brother named William, who may have died in infancy, as nothing is known about him. Two of his brothers also served as officers during the war: Claiborne Whitehead Lawson (d. August 1780; captain of the 1st Virginia Regiment was mortally wounding at Battle of Hanging Rock in South Carolina), and Benjamin Lawson (1750-1789, clerk of the Prince Edward County Committee of Safety who became captain of the 2nd Virginia Regiment survived the conflict and practiced law in Prince Edward County as well as married). Two other brothers owned land (and moved around) southern Virginia: Philip Whitehead Lawson (d. 1797 moved from Blandford in Prince George County, to Amelia County, Virginia and then into Lunenburg County, Virginia) and Samuel Atkinson Lawson (d. before 1811, owned land in adjacent Amelia, Charlotte and Campbell Counties). Their sisters included Philadelphia Whitehead Lawson (d.1781 who married Abraham West and died in Halifax County); Catherine Lawson (who married twice, surviving her cousin Barbar Claiborne, then marrying Lewis Hood of Nottoway County who moved his family to Howard County, Missouri), Lucy Atkinson Lawson (d. after 1820 who married three times: surviving Abraham Jones as well as Rev. Obediah Echols of Halifax and Pittsylvania Counties, but not her third husband William Rainey), and Elizabeth Lawson (the first wife of William Vassar of Amelia County).

American Revolutionary War

In early 1776 Lawson was commissioned a major in the 4th Virginia Regiment of the Continental Army. He rose to become the colonel commanding the regiment. He resigned from the Continental Army in December 1777.

Lawson returned to active duty in 1779 as a brigadier general in the Virginia militia. According to some accounts, he commanded the Virginia militia at the Battle of Guilford Court House.

Continental Service Major, 4th Virginia, February 13, 1776 Lieutenant Colonel, 4th Virginia, August 13, 1776 Colonel, 4th Virginia, August 19, 1777 Resigned, 17 December 1777

The 4th Virginia Regiment was authorized by the fourth Virginia convention on December 1, 1775, and accepted by Congress on February 13, 1776. The 4th Virginia Regiment joined Washington's army late in 1776 and participated in the battles of Trenton and Germantown. On November 23, 1776, the 4th, 5th, and 6th Virginia Regiments joined the army at New Brunswick, New Jersey, forming a brigade of 745 men under Adam Stephen.

Battles of the 4th Virginia Regiment Battle of Trenton, December 26, 1776 Second Battle of Trenton, January 1777 Battle of Princeton, January 1777 Battle of Brandywine, September 11, 1777 Battle of Germantown, October 4, 1777

Virginia Militia Colonel, Steven's Brigade, Battle of Camden, August 16, 1780 General, Lawson's Brigade, Guilford Courthouse, March 15, 1781 General, Attached with General Steuben, Point of Fork, June 5, 1781 General, Lawson's Brigade, Siege of Yorktown, September - October 1781

Public servant

Attended Virginia Convention, St John's Church Richmond, March 177 Attended Virginia Convention, July 1775 Attended Virginia Convention, December 1775 Member Virginia House of Delegates, May 4 - December 19, 1778 Member Virginia House of Delegates, May 1, 1780 - March 22, 1781

Personal life On December 13, 1769 Lawson, married Sarah Meriwether Pierce. She had been born in Hanover County Virginia, the daughter of John and Sarah Pierce, and would die on June 10, 1809 in Lexington, Kentucky.

In popular culture In Turn: Washington's Spies, he was portrayed by Virginia Governor Terry McAuliffe in Season 3 Episode 7 "Judgement".