Autograph Note Signed by CHARLES CARROLL of CARROLLTON [Signer: Declaration of Independence]

Maryland: Charles Carrollton, 1828. Original. Very Good. Autograph Note Signed boldly and clearly by Charles Carroll of Carrollton (a Signer of the Declaration of Independence & longest-lived signer), one page (7" x 3"), dated December 6, 1828. <br/> <br/> Plus an engraving of Charles Carroll of Carrollton suitable for framing. SUPERIOR CONTENT: [Quoting in part:] <br/> <br/> "Admired ... friend of civil & religioius liberty. I esteem your virtues, and actuated by the same feelings shall I be deemed arrogant by placing the name under yours of Charles Carroll of Carrollton." <br/> <br/> It is addressed to "Coke." [Possibly Thomas William Coke (1754 -- 1842), aka Coke of Norfolk, prominent British supporter of the American colonists during the Revolutionary War. He retired in 1832 and was made 1st Earl of Leicester in 1837.]<br/> <br/> Condition: Clear black ink and uniformly lightly age-toned paper with a faint square (2 3/4" x 3") and slightly darker block highlighting the central text. Comes with an engraved portrait of Charles Carrollton taken from a painting. Highly frameable!<br/> <br/> Charles Carroll (1737 - 1832) best known as Charles Carroll of Carrollton to distinguish him from his similarly-named relatives, was a wealthy Maryland planter and advocate of independence from Great Britain. Excluded from holding office in Maryland because of his Catholic faith, he nonetheless worked diligently to create the United States of America. He became a prominent Signer of the Declaration of Independence, and the only Catholic Founder. He also served as a delegate to the Continental Congress and Confederation Congress, and later became the first United States Senator for Maryland. He was also a major informant for Alexis de Tocqueville's, Democracy in America.<br/> <br/> Carroll was greatly appreciated for his superior intellect and virtues: integrity, patriotism, charity, and strong resistance to state-sponsored religion. He advocated freedom of choice in religious affiliation and beliefs, and did much to enshrine freedom of religion in our formative documents. <br/> <br/> Carroll was sometimes called the "First Citizen" of the American Colonies because of his editorials in the Maryland Gazette. He was perhaps the wealthiest and certainly the longest-lived survivor among the Founding Fathers. He also had the most extensive formal education of all the Signers due to his lengthy Jesuit education in France. As a result, Carroll spoke five languages fluently.<br/> <br/> References:<br/> <br/> Bradley J. Birzer, American Cicero: The Life of Charles Carroll, 2010<br/> <br/> N. Dwight, The Lives of the Signers of the Declaration of Independence, NY: A.S. Barnes & Co., 1852; pp.262-266.<br/> <br/> Scott McDermott, Charles Carroll of Carrollton: Faithful Revolutionary, 2018<br/> <br/> Wikipedia for Charles Carroll of Carrollton.