The First American Colonies: Charter, Proprietary and Crown

1
The First American ColoniesCharter, Proprietary
and Crown

• Michael D. Berdine, Ph.D.
• Pima Community College
• Tucson, Arizona
• http//wc.pima.edu/mberdine/

2
The Original ColoniesCharter Colonies

• There were three types of colonies that existed
  in the British Empire during its height
• Charter colony
• Proprietary colony
• Crown, or royal colony
• Charter colonies were promoted through free
  enterprise under charters from the Crown.
• Generally, they were established by groups of
  settlers who were granted charters by the king.

3
The Original ColoniesCharter Colonies

• A chartered company is an association formed by
  investors or shareholders for the purpose of
  trade, exploration and colonialization.
• Typically, these companies were formed in the
  16th century and on by groups of European
  investors.
• They underwrote ventures to profit from the
  exploration of Africa, India, the Caribbean and
  North America, usually under the patronage of the
  state, which issued the companys charter.

4
The Original ColoniesCharter Colonies

• Chartered companies were usually formed and
  legitimized under a royal charter.
• This document set out the terms under which the
  company could trade.
• It also defined its boundaries of influence, and
  described its rights and responsibilities

5
The Original ColoniesCharter Colonies

• Charter colonies had more control over their own
  affairs than did the other types of colonies.
• The others proprietary and royal colonies
  were ruled more directly by the British.
• Charter companies were founded variously by
  trading companies, by lords proprietors, and by
  squatters later incorporated.

6
The Original ColoniesCharter Colonies

• Charter colonies for the most part either
  disappeared or changed their status early.
• The Virginia Colony lost its charter in 1624, and
  the Plymouth Colony surrendered its patent
  (charter) in 1635).
• The Massachusetts Bay Colony became a theocracy,
  and Connecticut and Rhode Island were squatter
  colonies founded by dissenters from Massachusetts.

7
The Original ColoniesProprietary Colonies

• The predominating type of colony throughout the
  17th century was the proprietary colony.
• All colonies ultimately had a governor, council
  and house of representatives.
• Some of the latter were chosen by the company, or
  Lords Proprietor, and in the corporation
  colonies, by the people.

8
The Original ColoniesCrown Colonies

• Several colonies were royalized, with the colony
  ruled by the King or Queen of England and its
  appointed governors.
• These Royal, or Crown Colonies, were controlled
  by the king, who named a governor to each colony
  and a council to assist him.
• The Crown was responsible for appointing colonial
  judges, usually for life.

9
The Original ColoniesCrown Colonies

• The Crown controlled all unsold land public
  lands, and the royal governor retained the power
  to disperse these lands.
• In Crown colonies, like charter and proprietary
  governments, the assembly was popularly elected
  according to various definitions of franchise.
• Though the governor and his council theoretically
  controlled appropriations and expenditures, in
  reality colonial assemblies undermined the power
  over time.

10
The Original ColoniesCrown Colonies

• By 1720, most colonial assemblies had wrestled
  from the governor the power to initiate
  legislation.
• This included laws governing taxation and the
  management of colonial revenue.
• With the exception of Georgia, most royal
  governors depended upon the assemblies for
  financial support.

11
The Original ColoniesCrown Colonies

• By the 18th century, royal colonies became the
  standard form of colonial government.
• The governors themselves now began to lodge
  complaints with the Crown that the assemblies had
  way too much power as governing bodies.
• They reported that the assemblies were more
  inclined to reflect the will of the electorate
  rather than that of the king.

12
The Original ColoniesCrown Colonies

• An Act of Parliament in 1767 attempted to diffuse
  some of the financial control of colonial
  assemblies.
• It made colonial governors, councils, and judges
  independent of the assemblies thereafter, they
  were paid directly from colonial revenue.
• Additionally, laws passed by colonial assemblies
  had to be approved by both the governor and the
  Board of Trade in England.

13
The Original ColoniesCrown Colonies

• With the exception of New York and several
  Caribbean islands, a majority of Englands 17th
  century American colonies were corporate.
• Between settlement and the American Revolution,
  however, the royal colony became the standard
  form of colonial government.
• By 1775, only Pennsylvania and Maryland retained
  their proprietary status.