Royal and Mary Magdalene Rosamond and her daughters:
June, Rosemary, Bonnie, Lillian.
Around 6:02 A.M. on February 18, 2023, I discovered the name of Rosamunda Took’s mother – is unknown! This is so key! Allow me to insert the key, give her a name – and unlock the door to The New Kingdom of Carolina. On this day, her name shall be…..
MARY MAGDALENE ROSAMOND
“Every fine day Rosamunda walked the hills, seldom seeing another living creature other than sheep, or, very rarely, a doe or faun. She did not walk south to Hobbiton, however, except on errands or for an appointed visit. She had not forgotten her “understanding” with Bilbo. And Bilbo did not forget her, either. Regularly, he sent her gifts of wine or ham or fruit in season, as tokens of his neighbourly regard. She appreciated the way he could show marks of particular notice, without making her feel the burden of obligation.”
Most folks want to know something about their roots. When I discovered mine were in South Carolina, where the Rosamonds owned slaves, I was dismayed. What good can can from these roots? My cousin, Elizabeth Rosemond Taylor, added a small bio, but it was taken down. Who are these Hillbillies and Confederates? I can’t save them! Tolkien is playing with German genealogies in the Rosamunda family tree. Mary Magdalene Wieneke was a German family. Did he understand the British Royals have German roots – and thus World War One was a family cultural battle?
https://lotr.fandom.com/wiki/Rosamunda_(Took)_Bolger
“As a token of her confidence, she told him he need no longer call
her, “Auntie.” The previous year, Bilbo had suggested that Frodo no
longer address him as, “Uncle,” if he wished. Plain, “Bilbo,” would
do. Frodo still called Bilbo, “Uncle,” now and then; it had become
too ingrained a habit. But, following suit, Rosamunda suggested Frodo
might call her, “Rosa,” or, “Rosamunda.” Frodo forgot, and called
her, “Auntie,” many times, but, within the space of an afternoon
tea, “Rosa,” she became.”
With the insertion of the name Mary Magdalene into the Ring Trilogy, we have the idea that Jesus was married – and had children. If Jesus married Mary, it was to have children from a illustrious lineage – that was not Semitic. In this way they would born children who would go all over the world and teach them lessons about….The Way! No need of Paul, who usurped The Way, and invented Christianity.
What Democrats have to understand, the attack on WOKE is an effort to get WHITE SWING VOTES, and make men and women members of The TRUMPBOTIC NATION. When Trump asked for 11,780 votes, that would be BORN OF A MACHINE, he was giving birth to Robots For Trump. They are assigned the number 666 because they only exist – IN HELL – The Kingdom of Dark Lies! Liars want to own The Cloak of Invisibility, this is why Trump and Pence are refusing to testify.
I don’t know how many white Democrat Voters there are in North and South Carolina, but, you are redeemed! You were not deceived by THE GREAT LIAR!
I told Governor Tina Kotek, that I would bring Tolkien – AND THE RING – to Oregon! So be it. She has my permission to copy this blog ‘Royal Rosamond Press’ and put it in the State archives.
John Presco
President: Royal Rosamond Press
Royal’s Montana Stories
Posted on July 7, 2018 by Royal Rosamond Press
My grandfather lived in Montana.
Jon
The Rhyming Miner
A Voice of the Mountain
Was The Rings of Power That Bad?
Most of the skeptical viewers were upset that the series was reportedly playing fast and loose with J.R.R. Tolkien’s lore. While those fans’ complaints were justified on some fronts, their cynicism hindered their ability to enjoy The Rings of Power at all. That led to negative reviews for The Rings of Power after its debut. But later numbers showed that a lot of the negative reaction was put out by a small, vocal group of narrow-minded audience members.
https://nypost.com/2022/12/02/democrats-vote-to-make-south-carolina-first-primary-state/
Rosamunda was born in TA 2938 (SR 1338) to Sigismond Took. Rosamunda Took had a younger brother named Ferdinand Took. Her mother’s name is unknown. Rosamunda married into the Bolger family when she wedded Odovacar Bolger and the two had Fredegar Bolger and Estella Brandybuck. They moved to Budgeford in Bridgefields in the Eastfarthing, later to attend Bilbo’s Farewell Birthday Party of September 22, 3001.[1][2]
Belladonna (Took) Baggins was the mother of Bilbo Baggins and was from a very large, wealthy family with many siblings.
https://news.yahoo.com/georgia-grand-jury-recommends-indictments-162632844.html
Gone With The Rose
Posted on March 30, 2022 by Royal Rosamond Press
When David Pressly was born on January 12, 1764, in Glasgow, Lanarkshire, Scotland, his father, David, was 34 and his mother, Esther, was 33. He immigrated to America c.1767 arriving in Charleston, South Carolina[1] and in the autumn of 1776, volunteered as a Patriot from Ninety-Six District, South Carolina, USA (Yes, he was really about 12 years old!).[2] David married Ann Edmiston (1763–1848) on November 16, 1784, in Abbeville, South Carolina. Their known children are:
The Greatest Movie Never Made is…….GONE WITH THE ROSE!
Starring….Elizabeth Rosemond Taylor, and, Elvis Presley.
Synopsis: Private Jimmy Rosamond Purvis of the Pennsylvania Union Rifles, volunteers to be a Union Spy and spy on the Confederacy in South Carolina. Taking a bullet to the shoulder, he is caught hiding in a barn located on the Rosemont Plantation by Rosalynd Louisiana Rosemont, a Southern Belle if there ever was one. It is love at first sight. Rosalynd nurses Jimmy back to health. She shows him a photograph of her brother who was killed in a battle with General Sherman.
Drew Benton and Garthland
Posted on December 2, 2021 by Royal Rosamond Press
Bonds With Angels
by
John Presco
Copyright 2021
Last night I had a dream about Christine and her friend, Carmen, who had a crush on me. They were around fourteen. They were dancing and having fun. Carmen and I used to dance at San Sebastian. Suddenly, Christine is speaking to me. She loves my genealogical study.
“Don’t deprive your niece of her birthright!”
During a divorce, and a fought over a legacy, adults – and children – are bid to take a side. When I first met Drew Benton, she came over to play video games with her cousin after the funeral. She was eight. Ten years later we met on Everquest, a game Vicki and her loved to play for hours. I came in as
WOLFEROSE
Drew is kin to the Stewart family – two ways! These magical royals made much of the history of the British Isles. They came to America with the MacDowell and Preston family. I am considering a video game called…
GARTHLAND
Drew is an accomplished artist, and has drawn characters for video games. I see a collaboration.
McDowell and Dew | Rosamond Press
Drew Benton and the Rose Mouth Grail
Posted on May 17, 2012 by Royal Rosamond Press
Two months ago I met Vicki and Drew in a fanciful land on Everquest. I looked like a grey-haried Danish King whom I name Wolferose. This name is derived from my study of the name Hrothmund a character in Beowulf.
“Rosamund, Rosamond, Rosamunde, Rosemonde is of Teutonic origin,
having been formed from the Old male name Rhosmund, softened down
from Ruodmunt same as the Old and Middle high German name Hrothmond
(Icelandic Hrothmundr) old Gothis, Ratmund. Junius’ translation
Ruodmunt. “red mouth”. The name if from Ruod-munt for Rad-Mund “man
for counsel” councilor of Radmun, “protector in council”
Tolkein’s Ring Trilogy was inspired by the Icelandic Tales authored by, and about, my kindred.
Above is the artwork of my my niece who became an orphan in the world when her father, Garth Benton, died two weeks ago. Vicki has taken Rosamond’s daughter under her wing. She is a Foundling in Art Mundi. I am the Protector of the Grail Council known as the Rose of the World. The Sleeping Beauty – is awake!
Jan Hrothmund
Beowulf, Rosamond (Hrothmond) and the Rose Mouth Grail Message List
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Beowulf, Rosamond (Hrothmond) and the Rose Mouth Grail
http://movies.yahoo.com/movie/1808728058/video/4798298
(Images: Cup-beaer, Wealhbeow, serving mead. Coat of arms. Beowulf
fighting dragon. Wolfhouse. Brendal’s mother.)
A movie version of the legend of Beowulf is due to be released in a
week or two. Today I found the definitive proof the name Rosamond
comes from the Hrothmond/Hrothmund, and is the source of the Hromund
who is the hero of the Icelandic saga,’Hromundr Gripsson’ that
inspired Tolkein. Some scholars suggest this saga is the source of
some aspects of the Arthurian legend, as well as a source of the
Lohengrin legend.
Hrothmund is the son of Wealhþeow who preformed the ceremony of the
mead cup, she the cup-bearer for the Danish kings. No one has been
able to define the meaning of her name, but it looks like it ends
with “beow” and might stand for mead made of honeycones. It is
suggested she is a servant or “slave”, but I see Maiden Server of
Mead. Perhaps she is a mead goddess.
Hrothgar wishes to adopt Beowulf, but Wealhbeow bids the king to not
forget Hrothulf, which looks like Hrotwulf “famous wolf”
or “redwolf”. Hrothgar has two sons, Hrethric and Hrothmund, the
latter being the source of the name Rosamond. Did Beowulf become
Hrothmund’s half-brother?
Hrothmund is said to mean “rose mouth”. This is meaning of the name
Rosenmund of which we see a coat of arms with two roses and a cross.
There is a Rosenmund Cup that is the centerpiece for the Gerberzunft
Guild in Basel. Did this cup ever SERVE mead to distinguished guests,
if only in a traditonal sence?
Beowulf was written by a farmer named Rolf. Is it possible he is my
ancestor and lived in Wolfhouse where the Roesmonts dwelt?
http://www.gerbernzunft.ch/index.php?id=81
My family name, Rosamond, will forever be associated with the Beowulf
legend that depicts a usurption by Hroðulf, i.e. Hrólfr Kraki.
Here is the source of the name Rosamund found in “The Etymology of
the Principal Christian Names of Great …
By Richard Stephen Charnock
Rosamund, Rosamond, Rosamunde, Rosemonde is of Teutonic origin,
having been formed from the Old male name Rhosmund, softened down
from Ruodmunt same as the Old and Middle high German name Hrothmond
(Icelandic Hrothmundr) old Gothis, Ratmund. Junius’ translation
Ruodmunt. “red mouth”. The name if from Ruod-munt for Rad-Mund “man
for counsel” councilor of Radmun, “protector in council””
Jon Presco
Copyright 2007
The Grandfathers Come Home to the Shire For Thanksgiving
Posted on May 17, 2012 by Royal Rosamond Press
“Every fine day Rosamunda walked the hills, seldom seeing another living creature other than sheep, or, very rarely, a doe or faun. She did not walk south to Hobbiton, however, except on errands or for an appointed visit. She had not forgotten her “understanding” with Bilbo. And Bilbo did not forget her, either.
Regularly, he sent her gifts of wine or ham or fruit in season, as tokens of his neighbourly regard. She appreciated the way he could show marks of particular notice, without making her feel the burden of obligation.”
When Patrice talked about having a daughter by me when I come to see my sixteen year old daughter, is reminiscent of the Biblical mothers who took the Vow of the Nazarite in order to conceive for they were old in years. How old was Patrice Hanson – fifty five?
What is clear she wants into my family as my aged bride – who took my daughter and put her in the arms of a imposter. In a letter to Oprah Winfrey, she says she knew it was my child the moment Heather was born, and kept the truth from Randall Delpiano lest he kill Heather.
This has all the earmarks of a Fairy Tale, and the Grail Legends. Morgana comes to mind and her son Mordred, who is destined to kill his father, King Arthur. The Grail Kingdom goes into decline because of the dark machinations of Morgana – the usurper of God’s Light and the Holy Bloodline.
I knew Bill Cornwell hated me when we were on our way to the Grand Canyon. We had stopped at a cave where I bought Tyler Hunt an arrowhead. Sitting in the back seat together, I told my grandson about the Native Americans who made this arrowhead, and there were many more lying outside on the ground. I made pictures for him of the hunt, the campsites, how they struck the obsidian with a rock to shape it. I talked about how they tied the arrow to a wooden shaft.
I took my grandson on an inner journey, back in time. Tyler loved these journeys we took together since he was born. This is a curious child, not a do macho stuff look at me kind of child, like Bill, who was seething because Tyler was not focused on the Speed Demon show-off bully boy! We were ruining his trip to the Grand Canyon.
What I had shown my offspring, was how to pull a weapon from a rock. Consider Excalibur and the fact obsidian was once molten lava from Fire Mountain. When we got out of the car Tyler rushed to the first bare ground to look for an arrowhead and a stick so I could show him how it was tied to it.
“Get out of there. You’re not supposed to be in there!” spoke the selfish giant.
Bill in a huff, marched to the rim of the Canyon, walking as fast as he could. He had seen me tire in the cave, and, he wanted to arrive at the rim without me, because he wanted a big stuff Hallmark moment, with just him and his new family.
“Hey everyone. Look at me! Aren’t I grand?”
Sixty feet ahead, Tyler turned, made eye contact with me, and said;
“Wait for Papa!”
Bill walked that much faster. So did my daughter, my Mordred, who was furious i would not allow her to be in Tom Snyder’s biography of Rosamond, that did not sell, and ranks as one of the worst biographies ever written.
I authored the following several years ago, for my daughter and grandson. Heather has no clue that magical people author magical stories that are often inspired by their magical family.
I see Royal Rosamond in my grandson.
Jon Presco
Copyright 2012
Obsidian is a naturally occurring volcanic glass formed as an extrusive igneous rock. It is produced when felsic lava extruded from a volcano cools rapidly with minimum crystal growth. Obsidian is commonly found within the margins of rhyolitic lava flows known as obsidian flows, where the chemical composition (high silica content) induces a high viscosity and polymerization degree of the lava
The Grandfathers Come Home to the Shire For Thanksgiving Message List
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The Grandfathers Come Home to the Shire For Thanksgiving
(Images: Gandalf comes home to the Shire. The town of Rougemont
Switzerland, the home of my ancestors. The Ozarks. The Shire of the
Hobbits. The Mill in Eminence.)
http://www.scotshistoryonline.co.uk/rednecks/rednecks.html
“So for me, Hobbits, as best I can relate to them in the real world,
are Appalachian southerners. I think the southerners that I knew had
much in common with the people of Tolkien’s English countryside. I
don’t know whether you can still find such folk in England, but I
believe there are, at least a few, such folk to be found upon the
ridges, and in the hollows of Appalachia.”
Karlton Douglas
Two days ago I awoke and wondered how best to tell my readers how
the Rougemonts became the Orangemen and Ulstermen, and how their
Dream that was forced flee the ancient lands of their ancestors,
came to dwell in America. Then it struck me, the very ground that
lay at my feet rose up and gave me a good bump, for we go to where
we have been, and back again, and it was time to bring the
Grandfather’s home. And we go there with the words Tolkien’s
Rosamunda, and we return with the words of my grandfather, Royal
Rosamond, for they are very much the same.
I jumped out of bed and rushed to my computer. Had any other writer
taken note of how similar the Hillbillies are to the Hobbits? In no
time I found the observations of the author, Karlton Douglas. I then
went to my book shelf and pulled out ‘Ravola of Thunder Mountain’
published in 1947 the years my late sister was born. Inside the
cover is this dedication;
“To BERTHA MAY ROSAMOND (now Mrs. Bigalow), my second daughter, who
has steadfastly clung to the belief that her Father would leave
Literary Footprints on the SANDS OF TIME.
Royal Rosamond”
Here is a chapter from my Grandfather’s story, whom I never met. I
will soon be leaving to see my Grandson, Tyler, Royal’s Great
Grandson. I will be bringing The Grandfather’s with me so they may
adore Heather’s beautiful son through my eyes.
http://rougeknights.blogspot.com
“Poetry on Leaves
The spring sun was warm now, brightening as with happiness in the
open fields, the broad land resembling a crazy quilt because of the
wooded patches everywhere. Already the wild grapes were in bloom,
and if the sun continued smiling there would be, in every Hillman’s
cellar, many, many jars of grape juice for making jelly, and wine
for those who knew the trick of making it. Those pink-white blossoms
on the pale yellow bushes hard against warm hillside rocks were
huckleberries in bloom. The wild grapes and the huckleberries once
ripe, tangier here in Shannon County, Missouri, than most any other
place in the Ozarks.
I walked on, for I had yet a long way to go before nightfall. Now it
was but a mite after mid-day. After leaving the train at Winona, I
could have perhaps caught a ride to Eminence had I stayed with the
wagon road instead of footing it up the spur-track leading northward
to cross Jack’s Fork at the Hodge place where I left to journey up
Possum Trot toward Little Wonder Schoolhouse and Tucked Away Church
House, above which in the ride to the north, I lived – the place
where I was born and which I called home, where my parents had
settled in their youth and planned some day to die. The way was
long, the trail lonesome and ofttimes steep. As wild a region as
ever grew outdoors. No matter. I wanted to stretch my legs and let
the April breeze take the orders of a Saint Louis foundry away from
me.
I went home on a visit once a year – had already worked five years
up there, long enough to forget how to talk (or write) hillbilly
talk, it seemed like. Still, I didn’t mind being called a hillbilly.
Life in the Ozarks had a tang. I liked everything about them, from
the blooming of the redbud and dogwood in springtime to pumpkin pies
and possum and coon hunting and listening to fox hounds in the fall.
I was born and bred here. This wilderness was in my blood. I felt as
much a part of it as does a back log to a fireplace. I was twenty
six years old now, and when I become fifty, I intend to retire, and
go sit on pappy’s rocker there on the front porch and rock and smoke
and think until I die.
Here on the side of Grapevine Mountain, high above the glistening of
Jack’s Fork below, for days and weeks and years back into the dim
past she had lived in splendid isolation, the silence, save for the
passing Hillman on the road below her cabin, as vast as the greenery
of the heaving land-billows rising higher and ever higher toward the
summit of the far ridge leaning against the blue heaven on the west,
below which was the great spring from which the stream Jack’s Fork
nursed and found perpetual substance. A skinny, faded creature in
her late forties, seemingly as antiquated as the furniture in the
two small rooms in her rustic cabin, yet she possessed the amazing
gift of cheerfulness. Even though her income was very meager, yet
she contrived to spread a spirit of near-opulence and comforting
friendliness about herself which was as convincing as was Mr.
Russell’s plush appearing abundance. In summer she mothered her
pansy beds, naming the little faces, as she called them, after the
little girls she taught in winter, the boys unslighted by living as
vegetables in her garden, the more refractory being a gooseberry
busy or wild plum tree.”
“From first sight, even the site of the new cottage had enchanted
her, dug as it was into the southeast side of a grassy hill in the
midst of Boffin lands, populated with Boffin sheep. There was a
little copse below it, just to the side, and a spring-fed well, all
of which reminded her of her childhood home. The place had come down
to Odovacar through his mother’s side, a Boffin. He had used it as
asort of base, when he and his friends had gone out hunting.
Theywould stock the little hole with gear and rations. Then, with
their bows, and a pony for their gear, they would make forays west
ornorth, towards the Downs or up to the Moors, or, closer still,
intoBindbale Wood. But that was years ago, when the game had not
yetmoved so far off. When Rosamunda had viewed it more carefully,
she saw the hole was inconsiderable disrepair. Also, it was a bit
too small. She had new rooms dug, so that there was a parlour and a
kitchen, a bedroom for each (and one to spare), along with extra
chambers further back fo rstore. When it was finished, it suited
Rosamunda very well. Especially, she loved the light. Situated
facing south-east, the light poured through the windows in the
mornings, her favourite time of the day. And, when she stood
outside, she could see the land stretching east and south far into
the distance. Illuminated by the late afternoonsun, the prospect was
especially fine. From the top of the little knoll that made the
cottage’s roof, she could see far to the northand west, where sheep
dotted the rolling hills. The sky at nighttook her breath away. And,
all day, the birds sang, the wind blew,and the Water, which ran
nearby, just to the west, mostly narrow andquick as it came down out
of Long Cleeve and Needlehole, could justbe heard when the wind
dropped and everything was still. She loved its peace and quiet, so
tucked away and so private. Yet,it was just an hour’s walk over the
hills to Bag End or to Hobbiton. Overhill, to the east, was even
closer. Every fine day Rosamunda walked the hills, seldom seeing
another living creature other than sheep, or, very rarely, a doe or
faun. She did not walk south to Hobbiton, however, except on errands
orfor an appointed visit. She had not forgotten
her “understanding”with Bilbo. And Bilbo did not forget her, either.
Regularly, he sent her gifts of wine or ham or fruit in season, as
tokens of his neighbourly regard. She appreciated the way he could
show marks ofparticular notice, without making her feel the burden
of obligation.”
Rosamunda of Iceland
Posted on September 2, 2019 by Royal Rosamond Press
In 1969 I declared myself a Pre-Raphaelite Artist who let their hair grow long because they were influenced by the Nazarene Artists of Germany. In 1987 I declared myself a Nazarite who let their hair grown long. After seeing one of my painting in 1971, my late sister, Christine Rosamond Benton, took up art and became the world famous artist ‘Rosamond’. The artist, Fanny Corey encouraged Royal to become a writer.
Royal, John, and Christine, founded a magical literary dynasty that is Heir to the Tolkien legacy – and much more! Tolkien says he was inspired by his Catholic religion that I can not make any compromises with. However, I do see Saint Francis as a messenger from a much kinder and spiritual space. I have a powerful spiritual tie to Francis. It is my belief the True Jesus had an interest in uniting all the Healers of the World, and connect them to his Amazing Gift.
Note the electrical energy around my head and the energy that emminate from solar plexus chockra. My crown chockra has been in heaven. This is the energy that people come and take without permission. They wound me to get me to open this energy to them. With the smashing of Satan-Paul’s Shame and Sin Lock, I now have mastery over my heavenly information. Eshmun-Jesus owned this healing energy. I will see if I can transmit it without being attacked. Bless the souls that lost their lives at the Channel Island.
John Presco
President: Royal Rosamond Press
In 1809, six students at the Vienna Academy formed an artistic cooperative in Vienna called the Brotherhood of St. Luke or Lukasbund, following a common name for medieval guilds of painters. In 1810 four of them, Johann Friedrich Overbeck, Franz Pforr, Ludwig Vogel and Johann Konrad Hottinger moved to Rome, where they occupied the abandoned monastery of San Isidoro. They were joined by Philipp Veit, Peter von Cornelius, Julius Schnorr von Carolsfeld, Friedrich Wilhelm Schadow and a loose grouping of other German artists. They met up with Austrian romantic landscape artist Joseph Anton Koch (1768–1839) who became an unofficial tutor to the group. In 1827 they were joined by Joseph von Führich (1800–1876) (illustration above right).
Joseph Anton Koch, Detail of the Dante-Cycle in the Casino Massimo
The principal motivation of the Nazarenes was a reaction against Neoclassicism and the routine art education of the academy system. They hoped to return to art which embodied spiritual values, and sought inspiration in artists of the late Middle Ages and early Renaissance, rejecting what they saw as the superficial virtuosity of later art.
In Rome the group lived a semi-monastic existence, as a way of re-creating the nature of the medieval artist’s workshop. Religious subjects dominated their output, and two major commissions allowed them to attempt a revival of the medieval art of fresco painting.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nazarene_movement
Fanny Corey
Posted on August 4, 2018by Royal Rosamond Press
Fanny Corey could have worked for Walt Disney. Were they aware on one another? Fanny and her brother encouraged my grandfather to become a writer. Fanny’s magical illustrations were known all over the world. Her books came out about 1920. The Hobbit was published in 1937. The Chronicles of Nania were published around 1954. I will be putting Fanny in the Liz Taylor Society I am forming.
John Presco
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pauline_Baynes
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fanny_Cory
http://baekur.is/bok/000197449/2/195/Icelandic
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/J._R._R._Tolkien%27s_influences
The famed author of The Lord of the Rings trilogy and other subsequent novels about the same fantasy world, J. R. R. Tolkien, was very much inspired by Iceland. Aspects of the landscape, the language, folk tales, and Norse mythology were influential in shaping the legendary fantasy world of Middle Earth. Tolkien had an Icelandic nanny from the West Fjords who lived with the author and his family in the early 1930s in Oxford, England. It was through the nanny that the author became further acquainted with Icelandic folk tales and mythology and was able to practice Icelandic. The author began writing The Hobbit during this time.
Heavily influenced by Norse mythology, Tolkien had been a reader of the Icelandic sagas since childhood. In the Völsunga saga – the text that also inspired Richard Wagner’s opera, Der Ring des Nibelungen – an all-powerful ring and a broken sword that is reforged are both main features of the story, similar key elements in Tolkien’s novels.
Rings and swords are both very prevalent in the Prose and Poetic Edda. The most magical rings were the Ring of Odin and the Rings of the Niflungs, both forged by dwarves. The rings were often used as a metaphor for power in Norse poems. To own rings was to have power and to share a ring is to share a property with someone – a sentiment that is carried into present day marriage ceremonies. All famous swords in Norse mythology have names which tell about their history, very similar to the swords belonging to many of the main characters of Middle Earth.
Other parts of Tolkien’s universe, the elves, and dwarves especially, were based largely on the Norse mythological sources, the Poetic and the Prose Edda. Tolkien’s Gandalf is particularly reminiscent of the Norse god Odin, who is described as having a long white beard, wide brimmed hat, staff, and cloak. Similar to Odin, Gandalf spreads wisdom, truth, and knowledge.
The geography of Middle Earth, the fantasy world in which the stories take place, greatly resemble aspects of geography in Norse mythology. The name itself is significant; in Norse mythology, ‘Midgard’ is one of three worlds that compose the universe where men, dwarves, elves, and giants live. Another location in Tolkien’s universe that shares aspects to Norse mythological locations is Valinor. In Norse mythology, Asgard is the home of the Gods and the highest world, situated above Midgard as a place of peace and joy, very similar to how Valinor is a described.
Tolkien was also influenced by more modern literature. The Ent attack on Isengard was inspired by “Birnam Wood coming to Dunsinane” in Shakespeare‘s Macbeth.[31] Charles Dickens‘ The Pickwick Papers has likewise been shown to have reflections in Tolkien.[32]
One of the greatest influences on Tolkien was the Arts and Crafts polymath William Morris. Tolkien wished to imitate Morris’s prose and poetry romances,[33] along with the general style and approach; he took elements such as the Dead Marshes in The Lord of the Rings[34] and Mirkwood in The Hobbit from Morris.[35] He was also influenced by the modern fantasy author George MacDonald, who wrote The Princess and the Goblin. Books by the Inkling author Owen Barfield are also known to have contributed to his world-view, particularly The Silver Trumpet (1925), History in English Words (1926) and Poetic Diction (1928). Edward Wyke-Smith‘s Marvellous Land of Snergs, with its “table-high” title characters, strongly influenced the incidents, themes, and depiction of Bilbo’s race in The Hobbit.[36]
The MacDowell-Stewart Knox-Witherspoon Line
Posted on July 6, 2015 by Royal Rosamond Press
Everything has changed and is now making sense. Above is a photograph of Dorothea Witherspoon and myself taken in 1971. We have just flown from Columbia South Carolina to Los Angeles. I wanted Dottie to meet my mother. We talked about getting married. I had just met about twenty members of the Witherspoon family, down South, a place I swore I would never go. However, Meher Baba’s first home in America is in South Carolina, and I wanted to see where the Avatar walked the earth. I praise the vote in this state to remove the Confederate flag. For years I have called for this, followed by “Repent!”
As it turns out Dottie and I are kin to the Stewarts and thus the Windsors. When Christine Rosamond Benton married Garth Benton, and begat Drew Benton, we became kin to the MacDowell family. Uchtred MacDowall of Garthland married Margaret Stewart, Lady Ochiltree.
When we pulled up to the entrance of Baba’s home in Myrtle Beach, Kitty Davy came out to greet us. She asked Dottie’s name first, and beamed brightly as she said;
“You are related the Signer Witherspoon, and John Knox!”
These men are the Scot-Irish who helped form and promote the Calvinist Presbyterian Church in England and America. The Knox, MacDowell, and Rosamond family took part in the Battle of Boyne. Their New Religion was declared a heresy. These men helped found our Democracy. This is the most religious Family Tree in the history of the United States. The Witherspoons fought under Francis Marion ‘The Swamp Fox’ as did Samuel Rosamond. Both families named their children after Francis Marion.
Dottie became a Christian and lived on the Lighthouse Ranch. I continued my secret work that was introduced by Baba when he spoke out against the use of LSD. After I saved Rena Easton, I gave her lessons about Baba on our mountain. My spiritual work with women, has been arduous. That is Kitty with her master in Venice, and, she and another woman are carrying Baba, which denotes they are The Pillars of his work. No doubt Dottie was seen as the next generation of teachers.
John Knox Witherspoon (February 15, 1723 – November 15, 1794) was a signatory of the United States Declaration of Independence as a representative of New Jersey. As president of the College of New Jersey (1768-94; now Princeton University), he trained many leaders of the early nation and was the only active clergyman and the only college president to sign the Declaration.
Jessie and John Fremont appear to have named their son, Frank Preston Fremont after Francis “Frank” Preston Blair whose daughter, Elizabeth Blair, was very close to Mary Todd. Elizabeth married a cousin of General Lee. The Todd family were prominent in Kentucky where the Preston family reigned. Mary Todd was a Scarlet. Mary and Sarah McDowell, the mother of Jessie Benton, have grandfathers named Samuel McDowell. Whether they are related, needs to investigated, because Jessie and Mary are mirror images of each other, and were Flowers of the South. How they came to wed two abolitionist candidates for the Republican Party – connected to the Blair family – needs to scrutinized.
“Our cousin, Jessie Benton Fremont, was even more than a Southern Belle. She came from a long line of aristocrats with all the cultural traits that comes with that title. From her mother’s side she learned elegance, sophistication. She was idealistic, with great passion and energy. Above all, she was… ambitious.
Her mother was spoiled rotten. Elizabeth McDowell was well bred, delicate with gentile manners. She summered at the White Sulphur Springs Resort and wintered in Richmond. Her relations were the governors, senators, and congressmen. As late as the 1880s the family still counted two senators and six congressmen. These were the uncles, cousins, and brothers. That does not include their other nobles.”
As we have seen, the McDowells were a powerful family in American history. Fortunately, there is a living McDowell genealogists who has published a massive masterpiece of research on the McDowell line. Her name is Dorothy Kelly MacDowell, and her 609 page book is titled McDowells in America, a Genealogy. It is almost impossible to read a single page without finding someone listed with a government title, from a lowly sheriff to US Senators and Congressmen. In between are the untold numbers of military officers from Lieutenants to Generals.
I believe this is the missing link in a new consciousness and unity between the Protestant Nations of Britain and the United States. I was destined to found a new church, which I did. Hubert Armstrong subscribed to British Israelism and would be amazed at this Family Tree. https://rosamondpress.com/2015/06/16/genesis-of-the-new-radio-church/
Jon Presco
President: Royal Rosamond Press Co.
Copyright 2015
http://www.meherbabatravels.com/his-close-ones/women/kitty-davy/
Andrew Stewart, 2nd Lord Ochiltree (c.1521-1591) fought for the Scottish Reformation. His daughter married John Knox and he played a part in the defeat of Mary, Queen of Scots at the battle of Langside.
Margaret Stewart, Lady Ochiltree 
Birth: circa 1541
Methven, Perthshire, Scotland
Daughter of Henry Stewart, 1st Lord of Methven and Janet Stewart, Countess Dowager of Sutherland
Wife of Uchtred MacDowall of Garthland and Andrew Stewart, Governor of Edinburgh Castle
Mother of Margaret MacDowall of Garthland; Janet Hay; ; James Stewart; Janet Stewart, of Ochiltree and 2 others
Sister of Margaret Kennedy of Girvanmainly; Henry Stewart; Joan Campbell (Stewart) and Dorothea Stewart of Avondale
Half sister of John Gordon, 11th Earl of Sutherland; Janet Gordon-Sutherland; Beatrice Gordon-Sutherland; William Gordon-Sutherland; Alexander Gordon and 1 other
Dottie Witherspoon almost became Christine’s sister-in-law. She may have fathered my child the Seers said I had. They saw two faint leaves on my rose. A year later, my sixteen year old daghter appear in my life for the first time.
I fought with real witches on Beacon Hill, the same time I took the Mafia to court – and won! I saved Dottie from a guy who said he was a Warlock. I encouraged Dottie to stay away from drugs as I did most folks I befriended after my terrible fall on the rocks at MacLure’s Beach in 1967. Dottie descends from the Signer, John Witherspoon, and it looks like I descend from the Signer, John Hart. The Witherspoons are in the famous Preston genealogy, as is Jessie and John Fremont who founded the Republican Party. I discovered the Prestons are close kin to the Stewart family, and thus, William and Harry. I discovered the Hart family are kin to Princess Diana.
You can not BUY this family history. Many rich and conservative Americans would kill to own this history, be of this blood. But, what bounds this blood in true Democracy, is my kindred who made the simple headstone you see above. These rosy folks descend from Samuel Rosamond who was a captain in the War of Independence, and fought under Francis Marion in South Carolina. So did John Witherspoon. This is why both families named family members after Francis Marion. There is a Francis Marion Witherspoon, and a Francis Marion Rosamond.
It is fitting that I a very poor descendant of James Rosamond, who also fought alongside his brother and Marion, compile this family history, gather my ancestors together, so……..We can soar like eagles! Our wings are not made of money! They are made of courage!
We Americans have got to stop demonizing each other, and stop believing our great wealth gets us closer to God, and in turn He gives us special privileges. If a mere rock can suffice these Patriots for a headstone, then, anything is possible if we put our minds to it!
Here is the proof! These humble roses help found our Democracy!
Wake up! The whole world is beholding our dream, our work to establish Social Good for all of humanity. We have just begun! Our days of experimenting, are over. We have grown up!
Jon Presco
http://clanmckee.org/witherspoon-family-history/
http://www.williamsburgcounty.sc.gov/index.aspx?page=258
Thorntree, the plantation home of James Witherspoon (1700-1768), was built in 1749. After the death of James Witherspoon, Thorntree became the home of Gavin Witherspoon, the son of James and Elizabeth Witherspoon. During the Revolution, Tarleton with one hundred British dragoons, and a large number of Tories under Col. Elias Ball, encamped at the plantation of Gavin Witherspoon, south of the lower bridge, on Black River, early in August 1780
http://www.gutenberg.org/files/923/923-h/923-h.htm
In addition to the descents from James VII/II, Charles II, and Charles I, the Hamilton lineage of Princess Diana’s granny includes two other important royal ancestors. Both come, yet again, via the Dukes of Richmond.
The first is from yet another line senior in descent to the current royals, via Caroline Charlotte Duchess of Schomberg & Leinster. She was a daughter of Charles Louis, Elector Palatine (1617-1680), via his morganatic (or, bigamous) marriage to Marie Louise von Degenfield. Charles Louis was the eldest surviving son of Elizabeth Stuart, the “Winter Queen” Bohemia and daughter of James VI/I. (The Hanoverians, remember, descend from Charles Louis’ youngest sister, the Electress Sophia of Hanover.)
https://rosamondpress.wordpress.com/2011/09/12/saving-dottie-witherspoon/
https://rosamondpress.wordpress.com/2011/09/06/the-witherspoons-and-rosamonds/
http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~edgmon/lurrosmur.htm
http://clanirwin.org/hbonshaw.php
http://www.zimbio.com/The+Royals/articles/neOHhn6_oMN/Princess+Charlotte+Christening+See+Adorable
Andrew Stewart, 2nd Lord Ochiltree (c.1521-1591) fought for the Scottish Reformation. His daughter married John Knox and he played a part in the defeat of Mary, Queen of Scots at the battle of Langside.
Andrew’s father, Andrew Stewart, 2nd Lord Avondale, exchanged his lands and title to became Lord Ochiltree. When resistance to the Catholic religion and the rule of Dowager Queen Mary of Guise began to grow, Andrew was one of the first of the Lords of the Congregation who marched towards Perth in June 1559, and joined up with the rest at Edinburgh by 1 July. Ochiltree was a signatory to the Congregation’s letters to Elizabeth I of England and William Cecil on 19 July 1559. John Knox wrote the letters, which state their whole intent was to remove superstition and “maintain the liberty this our country from the tyranny and thraldom of strangers.” Cecil replied mentioning the example of the polity of Denmark, and wondering what place the Hamiltons, the former Duke of Châtelherault, the Earl of Arran and Lord David Hamilton might have in their scheme.[1]
On 27 April 1560, Ochiltree was a signature to the “Band of the Scottish Nobility”, which pledged to expel the Queen Dowager’s French forces and take plain part with the Queen of England’s army, which had entered Scotland under the terms of the Congregation’s Treaty of Berwick.[2] John Knox wrote in his History of the Reformation in Scotland that Ochiltree was a man more likely to look for peace than fight in the causeway.
Family[edit]
Lord Ochiltree married Agnes Cunningham of the Caprington family. His son and heir, Andrew Stewart, known as the Master of Ochiltree, predeceased him in 1578, and he was succeeded by his grandson, Andrew Stuart, 1st Baron Castle Stuart, 3rd Lord Ochiltree.[citation needed] The Master of Ochiltree also had a daughter Mary (died 11 April 1606) who married Sir Roger Aston a favourite of James VI who appointed him Gentleman of the Bedchamber in 1587.[3][4]
Lord Ochiltree’s second son James Stewart became Lord Chancellor of Scotland.
Margaret Stewart[edit]
Ochiltree’s daughter, Margaret, who was around 16 years old married John Knox in 1563. The English resident diplomat in Scotland, Thomas Randolph noted that she was a near kinswoman of the Duke, meaning James Hamilton, Duke of Châtellerault (Andrew’s mother was the Duke’s half-sister). He thought that Cecil would think his report madness.[5] They were married on Palm Sunday after the banns had been proclaimed in St Giles, Edinburgh. Randolph wrote that the Queen was angry at the marriage because Margaret was of the royal “blood and name”.[6]
http://www.thepeerage.com/p2519.htm
https://rosamondpress.wordpress.com/2013/04/15/kin-to-the-stewarts-and-windsors/
Margaret Stewart, Lady Ochiltree
Birth: circa 1541
Methven, Perthshire, Scotland
Managed by: Justin Swanström
Daughter of Henry Stewart, 1st Lord of Methven and Janet Stewart, Countess Dowager of Sutherland
Wife of Uchtred MacDowall of Garthland and Andrew Stewart, Governor of Edinburgh Castle
Mother of Margaret MacDowall of Garthland; Janet Hay; ; James Stewart; Janet Stewart, of Ochiltree and 2 others
Sister of Margaret Kennedy of Girvanmainly; Henry Stewart; Joan Campbell (Stewart) and Dorothea Stewart of Avondale
Half sister of John Gordon, 11th Earl of Sutherland; Janet Gordon-Sutherland; Beatrice Gordon-Sutherland; William Gordon-Sutherland; Alexander Gordon and 1 other
| John MacDowell | |
| Also Known As: | “MacDowall” |
| Birthdate: | circa 1575 |
| Birthplace: | Galloway, Scotland |
| Death: | Died 1631 in Gleno, Antrim, Ulster, Ireland |
| Place of Burial: | Glenoe, Antrim, Ulster, Ireland |
|---|---|
| Immediate Family: | Son of Uchtred MacDowall of Garthland and Margaret Kennedy of Girvanmainly Husband of mary wylie Father of Alexander McDowell and isabella mcdowell Brother of Uchtred MacDowall of Garthland; Cathrine MacDowall of Garthland and Thomas MacDowall Half brother of Margaret MacDowall of Garthland and Janet Hay |
| Managed by: | Randy Lee Weisz |
| Last Updated: | February 18, 2015 |
Ephriam’s family fled from Scotland to Ireland and settled near Londonberry. Ephriam was born in 1672 in Londonberry County. He was only sixteen years of age when on December 9, 1688, McDonell of Antrim approached the walls of Londonberry. Ephriam went to the defense of the heroic town and assisted in closing the gates against the intruders. He also fought against the forces of James II at Boyne River.
http://home.comcast.net/~davidmartin/ppl/a/b/abc80ae0c8a698883d5.html
Children:
2 Elizabeth BENTON b: 12 Feb 1822 + William Carey JONES b: ABT 1822
2 Jessie (Julia ?) Ann BENTON b: 31 May 1824 d: 27 Dec 1902 + John Charles FREMONT b: ABT 1824; 3 Darie BENTON b: ABT 1844; 3 Anthony BENTON b: ABT 1844
2 Sarah BENTON b: Mar 1826 + Richard Taylor JACOB b: ABT 1826
2 John Randolph BENTON b: 11 Nov 1829 d: 17 Mar 1852
2 James McDowell BENTON b: Jun 1831 d: 1835
2 Susan BENTON b: 1833 + Gauldree DE BOILEAU b: ABT 18
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clan_Stewart
- [S37] BP2003. [S37]
John Knox1
M, #25187, b. circa 1505, d. 24 November 1572
Last Edited=1 Oct 2006
John Knox was born circa 1505. He married Margaret Stewart, daughter of Andrew Stewart, 2nd Lord Stewart of Ochiltree and Agnes Cunningham, in March 1564.1 He died on 24 November 1572.1
He was the Scottish Reformer and historian.1
Citations
- [S37] BP2003 volume 1, page 712. See link for full details for this source. Hereinafter cited as. [S37]
Margaret Stewart
F, #25188, b. circa 1548, d. after 1612
Margaret Stewart was born circa 1548. She was the daughter of Andrew Stewart, 2nd Lord Stewart of Ochiltree and Agnes Cunningham.1 She married, firstly, John Knox in March 1564.2 She married, secondly, Sir Andrew Ker of Faldonside between 8 January 1573 and 1574.2 She died after 1612.
From March 1564, her married name became Knox. From between 8 January 1573 and 1574, her married name became Ker.2
http://www.cracroftspeerage.co.uk/online/content/avandale1500.htm
| Uchtred MacDowall of Garthland, 10th Lord of Garthland | |
| Birthdate: | circa 1541 |
| Birthplace: | Garthland, Stoneykirk, Wigtownshire, Scotland |
| Death: | Died 1593 in France or Ulster |
| Immediate Family: | Son of John MacDowall of Garthland and Margaret Campbell of Corswall Husband of Margaret Kennedy of Girvanmainly and Margaret Stewart, Lady Ochiltree Father of Uchtred MacDowall of Garthland; John MacDowell; Cathrine MacDowall of Garthland; Thomas MacDowall; Margaret MacDowall of Garthland and 1 other; and Janet Hay « less Brother of Gilbert Macdowall, Vicor of Inch; Helen MacDowall of Garthland and Florence MacDowall of Garthland Half brother of Alexander McDowell |
|---|---|
| Occupation: | 10th Laird of Garthland |
http://www.geni.com/people/Uchtred-MacDowall-of-Garthland/6000000005411786114
| John Knox Witherspoon | |
| Birthdate: | February 5, 1723 |
| Birthplace: | Manse Of Yester, Gifford, East Lothian, Scotland, United Kingdom |
| Death: | Died November 15, 1794 in Princeton, Mercer, New Jersey, United States |
| Place of Burial: | Princeton, Mercer, New Jersey, United States |
|---|---|
| Immediate Family: | Son of James Alexander Witherspoon, III and Ann Witherspoon Husband of Elizabeth Witherspoon and Anne Witherspoon Father of Anne Witherspoon Smith; Christian Witherspoon; James Witherspoon; Robert Witherspoon; Barbara Witherspoon and 9 others; John Knox Witherspoon, Jr.; Frances Ramsay; David Witherspoon; George Witherspoon; Anna Witherspoon; Joseph Witherspoon; Infant Witherspoon; Marianne Ann Woods and Frances Witherspoon « less Brother of Captain David Witherspoon; Susan Ann Witherspoon; Josias Witherspoon; James Witherspoon; Margaret Ann Witherspoon and 1 other; and John Witherspoon « less |
| Occupation: | President of College of New Jersey [present Princeton], Presbyterian minister |
| Managed by: | Private User |
| Last Updated: | April 28, 2015 |
Margaret Kennedy of Girvanmainly MP
Birth: circa 1535
Galloway, Scotland
Managed by: Justin Swanström
Daughter of Henry Stewart, 1st Lord of Methven and Janet Stewart, Countess Dowager of Sutherland
Wife of Uchtred MacDowall of Garthland
Mother of Uchtred MacDowall of Garthland; John MacDowell; Cathrine MacDowall of Garthland and Thomas MacDowall
Sister of Margaret Stewart, Lady Ochiltree; Henry Stewart; Joan Campbell (Stewart) and Dorothea Stewart of Avondale
Half sister of John Gordon, 11th Earl of Sutherland; Janet Gordon-Sutherland; Beatrice Gordon-Sutherland; William Gordon-Sutherland; Alexander Gordon and 1 other
http://www.geni.com/people/Uchtred-MacDowall-of-Garthland/6000000005411786114
https://archive.org/stream/heraldryofstewar00johnuoft/heraldryofstewar00johnuoft_djvu.txt
http://www.thepeerage.com/p2519.htm
http://www.maryqueenofscots.net/scottish-family-trees-in-the-16th-century/stewarts-avandale-ochiltree-methven-doune-later-earls-moray/
http://fabpedigree.com/s000/f198254.htm
On Sunday the fourteenth of August, I discovered that the Preston family married into the House of Stewart, and thus my family are kin to this royal family that includes Princess Diana and her two sons, William and Harry Windsor. Now I know why the Queen stayed at Blair House, and why John Breckenridge fled to England after he lost the Civil War – that the House of Stewart may have backed! This is huge!
Mary Stewart. She was the daughter of William Stewart, 1st Viscount Mountjoy and Hon. Mary Coote.1,2 From 1692, her married name became Preston.2 From 1709, her married name became Forbes. As a result of her marriage, Hon. Mary Stewart was styled as Countess of Granard on 24 August 1734.
Children of Hon. Mary Stewart and Phineas Preston
Jane Preston+2 b. c 1690, d. a 12 Nov 1746
Mary Preston2 b. 1696, d. 1749
Colonel John Preston+2 b. 1699, d. 1747
In her book that was shown me at the Portland Historic Society ‘A Year Of American Travel’ by Jessie Benton’ I read the following;
“At the Astor hotel where we were staying, we found a party of our relatives, my cousin, General William Preston, and his family assemble to welcome back from Europe a member who had been away for years.”
Through the brilliant marriage of my later sister, Christine Rosamond Benton, I and my stepson, Hollis Lee Williams, are kin to William and Harry, and their late mother, Princess Diana.
My daughter and my sister, who formed a secret bond behind my back, and betrayed me as family trustees, shall have not part in this Family Tree, and are hereby bannished from the family.
Jon Presco
Copyright 2011
http://thepeerage.com/p15313.htm
Rev. John Knox Witherspoon, Signer of the “Declaration of Independence”
A Patriot of the American Revolution for NEW JERSEY. DAR Ancestor # A127172
John Knox Witherspoon (February 15, 1723 – November 15, 1794) was a signatory of the United States Declaration of Independence as a representative of New Jersey. As president of the College of New Jersey (1768-94; now Princeton University), he trained many leaders of the early nation and was the only active clergyman and the only college president to sign the Declaration. Witherspoon has been described by some historians as being “not a profound scholar” but “an able college president”.
Marriage and Children
John Knox Witherspoon married:
- Elizabeth Montgomery (29 May 1722 – 1 October 1789)
- Anne Witherspoon (23 July 1749 – 1 April 1817)
- Christian Witherspoon, d.s.p. (14 August 1750 – 1756)
- James Witherspoon, Major (17 November 1751 – 4 October 1777)
- Robert Witherspoon (b. 1753)
- Barbara Witherspoon, d.s.p. (19 February 1756 – 1763)
- John Knox Witherspoon, Jr. (29 July 1757 – 30 January 1796)
- Frances Witherspoon (16 August 1759 – 11 November 1784)
- David Witherspoon (1760-1801)
- George Witherspoon (b.1762)
- Infant Witherspoon (b. 16 August 1763)
- Anna Witherspoon
- Joseph Witherspoon (b.1768)
- Anne Marshall (1768-1811)
- Frances Witherspoon (b. 1792)
- Mary Ann Witherspoon (1794 – 1846)
Biographical Sketch
John Witherspoon was born at Gifford, a parish of Yester, at East Lothian, Scotland, as the eldest child of the Reverend James Alexander Witherspoon and Anne Walker, a descendant of John Welsh of Ayr and John Knox. He attended the Haddington Grammar School, and obtained a Master of Arts from the University of Edinburgh in 1739. He remained at the University to study divinity.
Witherspoon was opposed to the Jacobite rising of 1745-46. Following the Jacobite victory at the Battle of Falkirk (1746), he was briefly imprisoned at Doune Castle, which had a long-term impact on his health.
He became a Church of Scotland (Presbyterian) minister at Beith, Ayrshire, serving there from 1745 to 1758, where he married Elizabeth Montgomery. They had ten children, only five surviving to adulthood.
From 1758-1768, he was minister of the Laigh Kirk, Paisley (Low Kirk). Witherspoon became prominent within the church as an Evangelical opponent of the Moderate Party. During his two pastorates he wrote three well-known works on theology, notably the satire “Ecclesiastical Characteristics” (1753) opposing the philosophical influence of Francis Hutcheson. He was awarded a Doctorate of Divinity from the University of St Andrews, Fife.
At the urging of Benjamin Rush and Richard Stockton, whom he met in Paisley, Witherspoon finally accepted a second invitation to become president and head professor of the small Presbyterian College of New Jersey in Princeton. To fulfill this, he and his family emigrated to New Jersey in 1768. He became the sixth president of the college, now known as Princeton University. As the College’s primary occupation at the time was training ministers, Witherspoon became a leader of the early Presbyterian church in America. Witherspoon also helped organize Nassau Presbyterian Church in Princeton, New Jersey.
Upon his arrival at then College of New Jersey, Witherspoon found the school in debt, with weak instruction and an outdated library. At once he began fund-raising, added three hundred of his own books to the library, and began the purchase of scientific equipment, including the Rittenhouse orrery, many maps and a “terrestial” globe. He also firmed up entrance requirements. These changes helped the school be more on par with Harvard and Yale, soon transforming the college into a school that would equip the leaders of a revolutionary generation. Many of his students, including James Madison, Aaron Burr, Philip Freneau, and John Breckenridge, would play prominent roles in the development of the new nation.
Considered firm but good-humored in his leadership, Witherspoon was very popular among both faculty and students. Some of the courses he taught personally were Eloquence or Belles Lettres, Chronology (history), and Divinity. Of his courses, none was more important than Moral Philosophy (a required course), which Witherspoon considered vital for ministers, lawyers, and those holding positions in government (magistrates). Witherspoon instituted a number of reforms, including modeling the syllabus and university structure after that used at the University of St. Andrews and other Scottish universities.
As a native Scotsman, long wary of the power of the British Crown, Witherspoon soon came to support the Revolution, joining the Committee of Correspondence and Safety in early 1774. His 1776 sermon “The Dominion of Providence over the Passions of Men” was published in many editions and he was elected to the Continental Congress as part of the New Jersey delegation and, in July 1776, voted for the Resolution for Independence. In answer to an objection that the country was not yet ready for independence, according to tradition he replied that it “was not only ripe for the measure, but in danger of rotting for the want of it.”
In John Trumbull’s famous painting Declaration of Independence, Witherspoon is among those shown in the background facing the large table, the second seated figure from the viewer’s right. Witherspoon served in Congress from June 1776 until November 1782 and became one of its most influential members and a workhorse of prodigious energy. He served on over 100 committees, most notably the powerful standing committees, the board of war and the committee on secret correspondence or foreign affairs. He spoke often in debate; helped draft the Articles of Confederation; helped organize the executive departments; played a major role in shaping foreign policy; and drew up the instructions for the peace commissioners. He fought against the flood of paper money, and opposed the issuance of bonds without provision for their amortization. “No business can be done, some say, because money is scarce,” he wrote. He also served twice in the New Jersey Legislature, and strongly supported the adoption of the United States Constitution during the New Jersey ratification debates.
In November 1778, as British forces neared, Witherspoon closed and evacuated the College of New Jersey. The main building, Nassau Hall, was badly damaged and his papers and personal notes were lost. Witherspoon was responsible for its rebuilding after the war, which caused him great personal and financial difficulty.
In 1780 he was elected to a one-year term in the New Jersey Legislative Council representing Somerset County.
Witherspoon had suffered eye injuries and was blind by 1792. He died in 1794 on his farm Tusculum, just outside of Princeton, and is buried in the Princeton Cemetery. He was 71 when he died.
Legacy
- From among his students came 37 judges, three of whom made it to the U.S. Supreme Court; 10 Cabinet officers; 12 members of the Continental Congress, 28 U.S. Senators, and 49 United States congressmen. His most prominent students were Aaron Burr and James Madison. When the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church in America met in 1789, 52 of the 188 delegates had studied under Witherspoon.
- The President’s House in Princeton, New Jersey, was his home from 1768 to 1779 and is a U.S. National Historic Landmark.
- A bronze statue at Princeton University by Scottish sculptor Alexander Stoddart is the twin of one outside The University of the West of Scotland, Paisley, Scotland.
- In Princeton today, a University dormitory built in 1877, the street running north from the University’s main gate, and the local public middle school all bear his name.
- Another statue stands near Dupont Circle in Washington, D.C., at the intersection of Connecticut Avenue, N Street and 18th Street.
- Paisley, Scotland, honored Witherspoon’s memory by naming a new street in the town center after him, in honor of his having lived in Paisley for a portion of his adult life.
- A son-in-law was Congressman David Ramsay, who married Frances Witherspoon on 18 March 1783. Another daughter, Ann, married Samuel Stanhope Smith, who succeeded Witherspoon as president of Princeton.
- The Witherspoon Society is a body of laypeople within the Presbyterian Church (USA), in existence since 1979, that is activist in liberal and progressive causes.
- A merchant ship, the SS John Witherspoon, saw service during World War II as part of convoy PQ-17, and was sunk by a German U-boat in the North Atlantic on 6 July 1942.
- The Witherspoon Institute is an independent research center that works to enhance public understanding of the moral foundations of free and democratic societies. Located in Princeton, it promotes the application of fundamental principles of republican government and ordered liberty to contemporary problems through a variety of centers, research programs, seminars, consultations, and publications.
Rosamond Press 