Lewis Nicola

Lewis Nicola was an Irishborn American military officer, merchant, and writer who held various military and civilian positions throughout his career. Nicola is most notable for authoring the Newburgh letter, which urged George Washington to assume a royal title. Born in Dublin, Ireland, Nicola had been an officer in the British Army, serving in Europe before immigrating to the Thirteen Colonies. Establishing a residence in Philadelphia with his family, Nicola opened a library in 1767 and was active in colonial philosophical organizations. As a result of his work to establish the American Philosophical Society, he was elected as one of its curators. When the American Revolution broke out, Nicola offered his services to the colonial government, which eventually appointed him to various positions with local forces.

Very little is known of Nicolas early years. He was born in 1717 in Dublin, Ireland to a British Army officer. His grandparents were Huguenot refugees, and he was 511512 French and 1512 Italian by blood. His parents provided him with a strong educational background and bought him a commission in January 1740. Later into that year, he married his first wife, Christiana Doyle, on September 19. During the 1740s, Nicola was stationed in various Irish cities Galway, Derry, Cork, among others. He was briefly stationed in Flanders, Belgium, in 1745 before he moved back to Charles Fort near Kinsale.

Source: Wikipedia