George Wythe the Colonial Briton - A Biographical Study of the Pre-Revolutionary Era in Virginia

Aug 30, 2026

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The dissertation transcribes and reproduces W. Edwin Hemphill’s 1937 doctoral work on George Wythe, framing him as a leading figure of Virginia in the decades before the American Revolution. It presents a biographical study that tracks Wythe’s origins, education, and legal formation, then follows his public service through successive political roles. The narrative emphasizes how early influences shaped his character, professional rise, and contributions to American institutions.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryGeneral

FormatDOCX

Pages308

Reading Time1 h 48 min

AccessFree to download

Contents

Preface

Chapter I. Origins of a Character: Aristocratic and Intellectual Heritages

Chapter II. Apprenticeship to a Threefold Career: Preliminaries to Self-Education

Chapter III. Spotsylvania and Williamsburg: Legal and Legislative Debuts

Chapter IV. At the Bar of the General Court; The Legal Education of Jefferson

Chapter V. Wythe the Burgess: Through the Stamp Act

Chapter VI. Wythe the Clerk: His True Niche Attained

Chapter VII. Lord Dunmore's Administration: The End of an Era

Bibliography

A note on the Wolf Law Library’s transcription of W. Edwin Hemphill's doctoral dissertation: Wherever possible, we have tried to reproduce Hemphill's formatting from his 1937 typescript, including any typos. A hypertext version is available on HYPERLINK "http://lawlibrary.wm.edu/wythepedia/index.php/George_Wythe_the_Colonial_Briton" Wythepedia, the George Wythe Encyclopedia: http://lawlibrary.wm.edu/wythepedia/index.php/George_Wythe_the_Colonial_Briton A PDF version of the original thesis is also HYPERLINK "http://lawlibrary.wm.edu/wythepedia/images/c/c6/HemphillGeorgeWytheAmericasFirstLawProfessor1933.pdf" available on Wythepedia: http://lawlibrary.wm.edu/wythepedia/images/e/ea/HemphillGeorgeWytheTheColonialBriton1937.pdf This document is reproduced with permission of the copyright holder, and released under a HYPERLINK "http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/legalcode" Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike license. You are free to: Share — copy and redistribute the material in any medium or format Adapt — remix, transform, and build upon the material The licensor cannot revoke these freedoms as long as you follow the license terms. Under the following terms: Attribution — You must give appropriate credit, provide a link to the license, and indicate if changes were made. You may do so in any reasonable manner, but not in any way that suggests the licensor endorses you or your use. NonCommercial — You may not use the material for commercial purposes. ShareAlike — If you remix, transform, or build upon the material, you must distribute your contributions under the same license as the original. No additional restrictions — You may not apply legal terms or technological measures that legally restrict others from doing anything the license permits. GEORGE WYTHE THE COLONIAL BRITON: A BIOGRAPHICAL STUDY OF THE PRE-REVOLUTIONARY ERA IN VIRGINIA GEORGE WYTHE THE COLONIAL BRITON: A BIOGRAPHICAL STUDY OF THE PRE-REVOLUTIONARY ERA IN VIRGINIA by William Edwin Hemphill, B. A., M. A. A Dissertation Presented to the Graduate Faculty of the University of Virginia In Candidacy for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy 1937 "No man ever left behind him a character more venerated than G. Wythe. his virtue was of the purest tint; his integrity inflexible, and his justice exact; of warm and patriotism, and, devoted as he was to liberty, and the natural and equal rights of men, he might truly be called the Cato of his country, without the avarice of the Roman; for a more disinterested person never lived." — Thomas Jefferson. CONTENTS PREFACE Chapter I. ORIGINS OF A CHARACTER: ARISTOCRATIC AND INTELLECTUAL HERITAGES Seventeenth Century Kecoughtan 1 The Wythes 5 The Keiths and the Walkers 13 Union of the Wythe and Walker Families 25 II. APPRENTICESHIP TO A THREEFOLD CAREER: PRELIMINARIES TO SELF-EDUCATION Wythe's Birthplace 28 A Scanty Classical Education 30 In His Uncle Stephen's Law Office 35 III. SPOTSYLVANIA AND WILLIAMSBURG: LEGAL AND LEGISLATIVE DEBUTS Admission to the Bar 41 Success in the Up-Country 43 Legal and Legislative Affairs, 1748-1754 52 Burgess for Williamsburg, 1754-1755 59 Attorney General Wythe, 1754 62 Wythe Inherits "Chesterville" 73 The Character of a Near-Pedant 82 IV. AT THE BAR OF THE GENERAL COURT; THE LEGAL EDUCATION OF JEFFERSON The General Court, 1756-1765 94 Jefferson's Law Teacher 106 The General Court, 1766-1775 130 Portrait of an Honest Lawyer 150 V. WYTHE THE BURGESS: THROUGH THE STAMP ACT Routine Service in the House of 1758-1761 164 Routine Service in the House of 1761-1765 170 The Committee of Correspondence, 1759-1765 174 Wythe's Role in the "Parsons' Causes" 180 Rational Opposition to the Stamp Act 187 VI. WYTHE THE CLERK: HIS TRUE NICHE ATTAINED Fauquier's Thwarted Recommendation 216 In the House of 1766-1768 224 Wythe Receives John Randol

FAQs

What is the dissertation’s focus on George Wythe?

It centers on George Wythe as a central figure in Virginia during the pre-Revolutionary era, presenting his life and development through successive stages of education and public service.

How is the study structured?

The dissertation is organized into chapters that move from Wythe’s origins and intellectual inheritances, through legal training and formative experiences, to roles in colonial legislative and administrative life.

What materials and permissions are referenced for reproducing the dissertation?

The text notes reproduction of Hemphill’s 1937 formatting (including typos) and states it is released with permission under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike license.

Aug 30, 2026

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