British Brigadier General. Born in New York City and of French Huguenot and Dutch ancestry, he was a veteran of the French and Indian War (Seven Years War) and a Loyalist during the American Revolution. In 1776, raised three battalions of volunteers which came to be known as De Lancey's Brigade. Upon the Brigade's formation, he personally commanded the 1st Battalion, Lieutenant Colonel George Brewerton commanded the 2nd Battalion, and Lieutenant Colonel Gabriel Ludlow commanded the 3rd Battalion. His force was initially organized for the defence of Long Island and the protection of Loyalist civilians in New York City and those who had fled persecution from the rebelling colonists in neighboring Connecticut, however the 1st and 2nd Battalions of the De Lancey's Brigade were ordered south and engaged the enemy in multiple battles in the Carolinas and Georgia while the 3rd Battalion remained stationed in New York. At the conclusion of the Revolution, De Lancey's soldiers and their families were evacuated from New York City to Nova Scotia and New Brunswick where they became among the founding families of British North America in the region of Canada formerly known as New France. De Lancey and most of his family members settled in England despite not having any British ancestry. He passed away at 97 years of age and his remains were laid to rest inside Beverley Minster. He and his wife, Phila (Franks) Oliver of New York City, were the parents of two sons who also served in the British Army despite not having any British ancestry: Lt. Colonel Stephen De Lancey (1748-1798) of the 1st New Jersey Loyal Volunteers and General Oliver De Lancey, Jr. (born about 1749 - died 1822). Oliver and Phila De Lancey's grandson (Stephen's son) Colonel Sir William Howe De Lancey, KCB (1778-1815) was mortally wounded by French artillery as he was speaking with the Duke of Wellington during the Battle of Waterloo. DeLancey Street in Manhattan is named for Brigadier General De Lancey's family in recognition of their contribution to the growth and prosperity of the City of New York. For information covering the first two years of De Lancey's Brigade, see: Kelby, William. "Orderly Book of the Three Battalions of Loyalists Commanded by Brigadier Oliver De Lancey, 1776-1778." New York: New York Historical Society, 1917.