# George Dent
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{{Short description|American planter and politician (1756–1813)}}
{{for|the English footballer|George Dent (footballer)}}
'''George Dent''' (1756 – December 2, 1813) was an [American](/source/Americans) planter and politician from [Maryland](/source/Maryland) who served in the [House of Representatives](/source/United_States_House_of_Representatives) from 1793 to 1801.
==Early life==
Dent was born on his father's estate, "Windsor Castle", on the [Mattawoman Creek](/source/Mattawoman_Creek) in [Charles County](/source/Charles_County%2C_Maryland). His father, General John Dent (1733-1809), was a planter who was a patriot during the [Revolutionary War](/source/American_Revolutionary_War).[Newman, Harry Wright (1971). ''Charles County Gentry: A Genealogical History of Six Emigrants - Thomas Dent, John Dent, Richard Edelen, John Hanson, George Newman, Humphrey Warren.'' Baltimore, MD: Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc. p.37.]
==Revolutionary War==
He initially served during the [Revolutionary War](/source/American_Revolutionary_War) in 1776 as a 1st lieutenant in the Third Battalion of the [Flying Camp](/source/Flying_Camp) from [Maryland](/source/Maryland).[Steuart, Rieman (1969). ''A History of the Maryland Line in the Revolutionary War, 1775-1783.'' [Society of the Cincinnati](/source/Society_of_the_Cincinnati) of Maryland, p. 73.] After the [Flying Camp](/source/Flying_Camp) was disbanded in December 1776, Dent returned to [Maryland](/source/Maryland) and was commissioned a 1st lieutenant in the [Charles County](/source/Charles_County%2C_Maryland) militia under Captain Thomas H. Marshall. He was subsequently promoted to captain and assigned to the Twenty-sixth Battalion in May 1778.[Newman, p.38]
==Political career==
After the war, Dent served as a member of the [Maryland House of Delegates](/source/Maryland_House_of_Delegates) from 1782 to 1790, where he was speaker [pro tempore](/source/pro_tempore) in 1788 and [speaker](/source/Speaker_of_the_Maryland_House_of_Delegates) in 1789 and 1790. During his tenure as a delegate, he was an unsuccessful candidate for [Maryland's 1st congressional district](/source/Maryland's_1st_congressional_district) in [1789](/source/1789_United_States_House_of_Representatives_elections_in_Maryland).[{{Cite web |date=n.d. |orig-date= |title=Our Campaigns - MD US District 1 Race - Jan 07 1789 |url=https://www.ourcampaigns.com/RaceDetail.html?RaceID=47398 |access-date=April 15, 2023 |website=www.ourcampaigns.com |publisher=Our Campaigns |language=en |df=mdy-all}}] He served as the justice of the [Charles County](/source/Charles_County) Court in 1791 and 1792, and as member of the [Maryland Senate](/source/Maryland_Senate) in 1791 and 1792, where he was [President of the Senate](/source/President_of_the_Maryland_Senate) during the latter year until his resignation on December 21, 1792.
In 1792, Dent was elected as a Pro-Administration candidate to the Third Congress and reelected as a [Federalist](/source/Federalist_Party_(United_States)) to the Fourth through Sixth Congresses, serving from March 4, 1793, to March 3, 1801. In Congress, Dent served as chairman of the [Committee on Elections](/source/United_States_House_Committee_on_Elections) (Sixth Congress). He also served as Speaker pro tempore of the House at various times from 1797 to 1799.
Upon leaving Congress, Dent was appointed by President [Thomas Jefferson](/source/Thomas_Jefferson) as [United States marshal](/source/United_States_marshal) of the District Court for the Potomac District at [Washington, D.C.](/source/Washington%2C_D.C.), on April 4, 1801.
==Family and later life==
His father had been a [general](/source/general) during the [Revolutionary War](/source/American_Revolutionary_War). His grandfather, George Dent, had been Chief Justice of [Maryland](/source/Maryland). Judge [Thomas Dent, Sr.](/source/Thomas_Dent%2C_Sr.) was his grandfather's grandfather. The Dent family had been part of [Maryland](/source/Maryland) society from the very beginning of the colony. His son, Captain [John H. Dent](/source/John_H._Dent), was a naval hero of the [Barbary Wars](/source/First_Barbary_War). George Dent left his family and public service behind when he moved to [Georgia](/source/Georgia_(U.S._state)) in 1802 and settled about twelve miles from [Augusta](/source/Augusta%2C_Georgia). He died in 1813 in a horseback riding accident and is interred on his plantation.
==References==
{{CongBio|D000254}}
{{Reflist}}
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{{succession box | before = [Thomas Cockey Deye](/source/Thomas_Cockey_Deye) | title = [Speaker of the Maryland House of Delegates](/source/Speaker_of_the_Maryland_House_of_Delegates) | years = 1789–1790 | after = [Levin Winder](/source/Levin_Winder)}}
{{succession box | before = [William Smallwood](/source/William_Smallwood) | title = [President of the Maryland State Senate](/source/President_of_the_Maryland_State_Senate) | years = 1792 | after = [William Perry](/source/William_Perry_(Maryland))}}
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{{US House succession box| state=Maryland| district=1| before=[Philip Key](/source/Philip_Key_(U.S._politician)) | after=[John Campbell](/source/John_Campbell_(1765%E2%80%931828)) | years=1793–1801}}
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Dent, George}}
Category:Presidents of the Maryland Senate
Category:Speakers of the Maryland House of Delegates
Category:Maryland militiamen in the American Revolution
Category:People from Charles County, Maryland
Category:United States Marshals
Category:1756 births
Category:1813 deaths
Category:18th-century owners of plantations in the United States
Category:18th-century owners of plantations in the Thirteen Colonies
Category:American militia officers
Category:Federalist Party United States representatives from Maryland
Category:Law enforcement officials from Washington, D.C.
Category:18th-century members of the Maryland General Assembly
George
Category:18th-century United States representatives
Category:Candidates in the 1788–1789 United States elections
Category:Owners of plantations in Maryland
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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [George Dent](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Dent) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Dent?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.