Page:Appletons' Cyclopædia of American Biography (1889, volume 6).djvu/279

Rh Killian died without issue, and was succeeded by Jeremias's son, Killian, second lord of the manor, b. in Rensselaerswick in 1662; d. there in 1719. He was an officer of militia and a magistrate, represented the manor in the assembly in 1693-1704, and was a member of the council from the latter date until his death. In 1705 he conveyed Claverack, or the &ldquo;lower manor,&rdquo; to his brother, Hendrick. He married Maria, daughter of Stephen Van Cortlandt. &mdash; Jeremias's brother, Nicholas, clergyman, b. in Amsterdam about 1638; d. in Albany, N. Y., in 1678, was the fourth son of the first patroon. He was liberally educated in Holland, and studied theology there, but began a tour of Europe before taking his degree. In Brussels he met Charles II. of England, who was then in exile, and Van Rensselaer predicted to him that he would be restored to the throne. He subsequently went to England as chaplain to the Dutch embassy, and the king, recognizing him and recollecting his prediction, gave him a gold snuff-box with his likeness in the lid, which is still in possession of the Van Rensselaer family. After the Dutch ambassador left Great Britain, Van Rensselaer was licensed by Charles to preach to the Dutch congregation at Westminster, was ordained a deacon in the English church, and appointed lecturer at St. Margaret's, Lothbury. When Sir Edmond Andros was commissioned governor of the New Netherlands, in 1674, Van Rensselaer accompanied him to this country, bearing a letter of recommendation from the Duke of York, in which he requested that Van Rensselaer be placed in charge of one of the Dutch churches in New York or Albany when there should be a vacancy. He became colleague pastor of the church in Albany shortly after his arrival, and in September, 1675, was invited by the governor to preach in the Dutch church in New York; but the pastor, William Van Nieuwenhuysen, absented himself from the service, and forbade Van Rensselaer's baptizing any children that might be presented for that ordinance. Subsequent events proved that Van Nieuwenhuysen rejected his ordination as not being in conformity with the order of the Dutch churches, nor with the terms of the treaty. Van Rensselaer referred the matter to the governor and council, and the trial was considered of much importance by both the church and the civil authorities, since it involved their privileges and rights, as defined in the articles under which the province was surrendered to the English. Nieuwenhuysen and his consistory presented a written answer, which was rather in justification of the former's conduct toward Van Rensselaer than a formal answer to the question why he should not be allowed to preach. The matter was passed over, and Van Rensselaer returned to his charge in Albany; but in 1676 he was thrown into prison, &ldquo;for some dubious words spoken in a sermon,&rdquo; Jacob Leisler and Jacob Milburne making the complaint. He appealed to the governor and council, and gave a bond of 1,500 guilders to prosecute the matter to the end. Leisler failed to furnish the bond that was required of him, a warrant was issued for his arrest, and the churches and people were thrown into a ferment. At last a court was held at Albany, before which Van Rensselaer and Nieuwenhuysen appeared with papers and witnesses. After a review of the whole case, they were told by order of the governor &ldquo;to be reconciled according to Christian love and duty.&rdquo; They answered, &ldquo;With all our hearts,&rdquo; and the court ordered the parties to &ldquo;forgive and forget,&rdquo; and that Leisler and Jacob Milburne pay the whole costs, as giving the first occasion for the differences.

Van Rensselaer again resumed his charge, but a year later he was refused a seat among the elders. It was resolved that he have a suitable one behind the magistrates, but in 1677 he was deposed by the governor, &ldquo;on account,&rdquo; say the Reformed church authorities, &ldquo;of his scandalous life&rdquo;; but this is not substantiated by unprejudiced witnesses. He left no children. &mdash; His wife,, was the daughter of Philip Schuyler, and subsequently married Robert Livingston. &mdash; Killian's grandson,, inherited the manor, removed the old house, and in 1765 built the present mansion, seen in the illustration. He governed under the title of the seventh patroon. He married Catherine Livingston, daughter of Philip Livingston, signer of the Declaration of Independence, and with his father-in-law &ldquo;sternly opposed the encroachments of the crown.&rdquo; &mdash; Their son, Stephen, eighth patroon, b. in New York, 1 Nov., 1765; d. in Albany, N. Y., 26 Jan., 1839, was graduated at Harvard in 1782, and the next year married Margaret, daughter of Gen. Philip Schuyler. He was always addressed by courtesy as the patroon, although with the establishment of the colonial government he lost his baronial rights. After leaving college he entered at once on the improvement of his splendid although somewhat diminished estates, and, to induce farmers to settle on his lands, placed rentals so low that they yielded only one per cent, at a fair valuation. In consequence he soon had 900 farms of 150 acres each under cultivation. Having secured his patrimony, he entered politics, and, as a great landholder and at the same time an ardent patriot, was destined to bridge the chasm between the two opposite political systems. He was chosen to the assembly in 1789 as a Federalist, became a leader of that party, was state senator in 1791-'6, lieutenant-governor in 1795, and in 1798 and 1808-'10 was in the assembly. He became major of militia in 1786, colonel in 1788, and major-general in 1801. He was one of the first to propose the establishment of a canal between Hudson river and the great lakes, was appointed in 1810 a commissioner to report to the assembly on the route, and made an investigating tour of it the same year, the report of which was favorably received in 1811; but the project was delayed by the beginning of the second war with Great Britain. In 1812 he was appointed to command the U. S. forces on the northern frontier. Although he opposed the war as premature, he at once organized a militia force that was sufficient in numbers to overrun the province of Upper Canada. But he had no regular soldiers, and his officers were deficient in both courage and military skill. On 13-14 Oct., 1812, he fought the battle of Queenston Heights. The importance of that place arose from the fact that it was the terminus of the portage between Lake Ontario and the upper lakes. Gen. Van Rensselaer had minute information as to the situation and strength of each post of the enemy on the western bank of Niagara river, and his