A Papist in a Protestant Age: The Case of Richard Bennett, 1667-1749

Author/Creator

Author/Creator ORCID

Date

1994-05

Department

SU Libraries

Program

Citation of Original Publication

Hardy, Beatriz. "A Papist in a Protestant Age: The Case of Richard Bennett, 1667-1749." The Journal of Southern History, Volume LX, No. 2, pp. 203-228

Rights

Abstract

This is a case study of what it meant to be gentry or elite in colonial America, specifically in Maryland. Richard Bennett III (1667-1749) of Queen Anne's County was the richest man in the colony. A Catholic, he was denied the right to hold political office due to his religion, but his wealth and social standing allowed him to serve as a leader, both for the Catholics of Maryland and for the colony as a whole.