John Murray, 4th Earl of Dunmore, generally known as Lord Dunmore, was a Scottish peer and colonial governor in the American colonies.
Murray was named governor of the Province of New York in 1770, he succeeded to the same position in the Colony of Virginia the following year, after the death of Norborne Berkeley, 4th Baron Botetourt.
As Virginia's governor, Dunmore directed a series of campaigns against the trans-AppalachianIndians, known as Lord Dunmore's War.
However, he is more famously known for a controversial promise he made while he was in power. The royal governor of Virginia offered slaves freedom if they fought for the British in the American Revolution. After the war, the promise was kept with about 14,000 slaves being freed.