John Macarthur

John Macarthur (1766 – 11 April 1834) was a soldier, entrepreneur, politician and pioneer of the Australian wool industry. Macarthur was born in Plymouth, Devon, the second son of Alexander Macarthur, who had fled to the West Indies after the Jacobite Rising before returning and working as a linen draper and 'seller of slops', according to some accounts. His exact date of birth is unknown, but it is known that his birth was registered on 3 Septem... more

John Macarthur (1766 – 11 April 1834) was a soldier, entrepreneur, politician and pioneer of the Australian wool industry. Macarthur was born in Plymouth, Devon, the second son of Alexander Macarthur, who had fled to the West Indies after the Jacobite Rising before returning and working as a linen draper and 'seller of slops', according to some accounts. His exact date of birth is unknown, but it is known that his birth was registered on 3 September 1767. He spelled his surname "M'Arthur" for most of his life. He occasionally varied it to "MacArthur". The spelling "Macarthur" (with a lower case "a") became established only very late in his life. In 1782, John Macarthur was commissioned as an ensign in Fish's Corps, a regiment of the British Army formed to serve in the American War of Independence. The war ended before the regiment was ready to sail and was disbanded in 1783. On half-pay, Macarthur went to live on a farm near Holsworthy in Devon, where he evidently pursued a program... less