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Richard Bellingham was probably born in Boston, England, the son of William Bellingham and Frances Amcotts. He became a lawyer, and represented his town as Member of Parliament in 1628 and 1629, while also serving as city recorder. He immigrated to the Puritan colonies in 1634, and settled in Boston. Only a year after his arrival, he was elected deputy governor, and he would serve in this capacity thirteen years altogether. In 1641, he defeated John Winthrop to become governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony, and he would hold this office intermittently for ten more years.
In 1641, Bellingham was involved in a small scandal for officiating at his own second marriage ceremony, and in 1665, he ignored a summons by Charles II to return to England. Bellingham pacified the angered sovereign by sending over a ship full of masts as a gift. He died in Boston in 1672 during a term as governor.
Though known as a hard, obdurate, and sometimes eccentric man, he was apparently well-respected in the colony. He was immortalized as a character in Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter, as was his sister, Anne Hibbins, who would be executed as a witch in 1656.
Richard Bellingham married in England, as his first wife, Elizabeth Backhouse. After her death, he married Penelope Pelham, the granddaughter of the 2nd Lord de la Warre.
| Preceded by: Thomas DudleyThomas Dudley ( October 12, 1576 July 31, 1652) was a colonial magistrate who served several terms as governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony. He was born in Northampton, England, the son of Capt. Roger Dudley and Susanna Thorne. It is postulated that hi | Governor of Massachusetts Bay ColonyThis list of Governors of the Massachusetts Bay Colony is sorted by year (from 1630 to 1680). For a list sorted by governor, see Massachusetts Bay Colony. 1630 1633: John Winthrop :1634: Thomas Dudley :1635: John Haynes :1636: Sir Henry Vane :1637 1639: J | Succeeded by: John Winthrop |
| Preceded by: John EndicottJohn Endicott (? March 15, 1664/65), sometimes Endecott was a colonial magistrate, soldier and governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony. John Endicott was most likely born before 1600. His origins, as of yet, have not been discovered although there is a b | Governor of Massachusetts Bay ColonyThis list of Governors of the Massachusetts Bay Colony is sorted by year (from 1630 to 1680). For a list sorted by governor, see Massachusetts Bay Colony. 1630 1633: John Winthrop :1634: Thomas Dudley :1635: John Haynes :1636: Sir Henry Vane :1637 1639: J | Succeeded by: John EndicottJohn Endicott (? March 15, 1664/65), sometimes Endecott was a colonial magistrate, soldier and governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony. John Endicott was most likely born before 1600. His origins, as of yet, have not been discovered although there is a b |
| Preceded by: John EndicottJohn Endicott (? March 15, 1664/65), sometimes Endecott was a colonial magistrate, soldier and governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony. John Endicott was most likely born before 1600. His origins, as of yet, have not been discovered although there is a b | Governor of Massachusetts Bay Colony | Succeeded by: John Leverett |