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Daniel Leonard (May 18, 1740 – June 27, 1829) was a lawyer fromcolonial Massachusetts and aLoyalist in theAmerican Revolution.
Born inNorton, Massachusetts, Leonard was a member of a prominent family who made their fortune from their iron works inTaunton, Massachusetts. After graduating fromHarvard College, Leonard began to practice law in Taunton.
During the Revolutionary crisis, theBritish Parliament passed theMassachusetts Government Act, which, among other things, abolished elections for theMassachusetts Governor's Council and instead called for the councilors to be appointed by the royal governor. Leonard accepted an appointment by GovernorThomas Hutchinson to this new royal-controlled Council. MassachusettsPatriots were outraged, and attacked Leonard's house. He fled to British-occupiedBoston for safety.
In 1774 and 1775, Leonard, writing under the name "Massachusettensis," wrote a series of letters[1] in support of royal government that were published in a Loyalist Boston newspaper, theMassachusetts Gazette.John Adams, writing as "Novanglus," answered the letters in theBoston Gazette. The exchange ceased with theBattles of Lexington and Concord. Many, including Adams, erroneously believed thatJonathan Sewall had written the Massachusettensis letters.
During theWar of Independence, Leonard left with the British when theyevacuated Boston in 1776. His property, like that of other Loyalists, was confiscated.
Exiled from Massachusetts, he served asChief Justice of Bermuda from 1782 to 1806, and later retired to London. In 1821, he revealed himself to be "Massachusettensis."
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