Maryland's location on the Chesapeake Bay made it an ideal spot for exporting the tobacco grown in the colony back to England.
Maryland was one of the original 13 colonies that would become the United States. This southern colony had an interesting history, as it was first founded as a proprietary or privately owned colony, became a royal colony owned by England, then went back to being a proprietary colony until the time of the American Revolution. The population of the original colony was made up of wealthy planters, indentured servants, slaves, tradesmen and American Indians. Unlike many other colonies, Maryland had a history of religious tolerance.
Founding
The colony of Maryland was founded under the proprietorship of Cecil Calvert, the second Lord Baltimore in 1633. Calvert founded the privately owned colony from his home in England. As a Catholic, Lord Baltimore believed that the colony should be a place of religious tolerance, and Maryland quickly became a haven for Catholics settling in the New World. The Maryland Colony never underwent a "starving time" like the colonists in nearby Jamestown, Virginia. The original settlers had a peaceful relationship with the American Indian tribes in the area.
Royal Colony
In 1689 in response to the Puritan takeover in England, a group calling itself the Protestant Association toppled the Calvert government and Maryland became a royal colony. In 1691, Sir Lionel Copley was appointed by King William to serve as Maryland's first royal governor. The religious freedom that had characterized the colony during its days as a proprietary colony disappeared. Maryland remained a royal colony for 26 years.
Proprietary Colony
Benedict Leonard Calvert became the fourth Lord Baltimore in 1715. In 1713, he had renounced the Catholic Church and joined the Church of England. This decision won Calvert favor with King George I, as well as other English officials so that when Calvert asked that the proprietorship of Maryland be restored to him, the king agreed. Maryland returned to being a privately owned colony and remained so for 60 years until the Revolutionary War.
1760s to 1770s
Most of the residents of the Maryland colony lived along the Chesapeake Bay. Maryland was one of the most populous and successful of the 13 colonies. Growing tobacco was a big and thriving business in Maryland, and it brought great wealth to many of the colonists. In 1760, Maryland had a population of 160,000, of which about 50,000 were slaves. The end of Maryland as a colony began with the forming of the Provincial Convention, a temporary government in 1774. By 1775, the Provincial Convention had control of the Maryland government. Governor Robert Eden returned to England in 1776.
Tags: Lord Baltimore, owned colony, privately owned, privately owned colony, royal colony