Province of Maryland

Quick Facts: Who was Province of Maryland?

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Province of Maryland

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A proprietary English colony in North America, established for Catholic refuge and commerce.

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2Day Chrono-Wiki & Primary Historical Archives

Origins & Early Life

The Province of Maryland was an English and later British colony in North America from 1634 until 1776, when the province was one of the Thirteen Colonies that joined in supporting the American Revolution against Great Britain. In 1781, Maryland was the 13th signatory to the Articles of Confederation. The province's first settlement and capital was in St. Mary's City, located at the southern end of St. Mary's County, a peninsula in the Chesapeake Bay bordered by four tidal rivers. The province began in 1632 as the Maryland Palatinate, a proprietary palatinate granted to Cecil Calvert, 2nd Baron Baltimore, whose father, George, had long sought to found a colony in the New World to serve as a refuge for Catholics at the time of the European wars of religion. Palatines from the Holy Roman Empire also immigrated to Maryland, with many settling in Fredrick County, with Maryland Palatines (Palatine German: Marylandisch Pälzer) reaching a population of 50,000 by 1774.

Career & Major Achievements

Provincial Maryland served as an early pioneer of religious toleration in the English colonies. However, religious strife among Anglicans, Puritans, Catholics, and Quakers was common in the early years and Puritan rebels briefly seized control of the province. Later, in 1689, the year following the Glorious Revolution in Great Britain, John Coode led a rebellion that removed Lord Baltimore, a Catholic, from power in Maryland. That power was restored to the Baltimore family in 1715 after Charles Calvert, 5th Baron Baltimore, declared in public that he was a Protestant. Despite early competition with the colony of Virginia to its south, and the Holland Dutch colony of New Netherland to its north, the province of Maryland developed along similar lines to Virginia.

Enduring Legacy & Impact

Its early settlements and population centers tended to cluster around the rivers and other waterways that empty into the Chesapeake Bay, and, like Virginia, Maryland's economy quickly became centered on the cultivation of tobacco for sale in Europe. However, after tobacco prices collapsed, the need for cheap labor to accommodate the mixed farming economy that followed led to a rapid expansion of the Atlantic slave trade and the concomitant North American enslavement of Africans—as well as the expansion of indentured servitude and British penal transportation. Maryland received a larger felon quota than any other province. Maryland was an active participant in the events leading up to the American Revolution, echoing events in New England by establishing committees of correspondence and hosting its own tea party similar to the one that took place in Boston. By 1776 the old order had been overthrown as Maryland's colonial representatives signed the Declaration of Independence, presaging the end of British colonial rule.

Chronological Milestones & Life Events

1. 1632: 1632 Milestone — The province began in 1632 as the Maryland Palatinate, a proprietary palatinate granted to Cecil Calvert, 2nd Baron Baltimore, whose father, George, had long sought to found a colony in the New World to serve as a refuge for Catholics at the time of the European wars of religion.
2. 1634: 1634 Milestone — The Province of Maryland was an English and later British colony in North America from 1634 until 1776, when the province was one of the Thirteen Colonies that joined in supporting the American Revolution against Great Britain.
3. 1689: 1689 Milestone — Later, in 1689, the year following the Glorious Revolution in Great Britain, John Coode led a rebellion that removed Lord Baltimore, a Catholic, from power in Maryland.
4. 1715: 1715 Milestone — That power was restored to the Baltimore family in 1715 after Charles Calvert, 5th Baron Baltimore, declared in public that he was a Protestant.
5. 1774: 1774 Milestone — Palatines from the Holy Roman Empire also immigrated to Maryland, with many settling in Fredrick County, with Maryland Palatines (Palatine German: Marylandisch Pälzer) reaching a population of 50,000 by 1774.
6. 1776: 1776 Milestone — By 1776 the old order had been overthrown as Maryland's colonial representatives signed the Declaration of Independence, presaging the end of British colonial rule.
7. 1781: 1781 Milestone — In 1781, Maryland was the 13th signatory to the Articles of Confederation.

Historical Fact-Check Quiz: Province of Maryland

True or False: “The original charter granted to the 2nd Baron Baltimore covered an area smaller than modern-day Maryland.”

Answer (FALSE ❌): The initial grant was described as being potentially up to 18,750 square miles (48,600 km2), which was significantly larger than the current state boundaries.

Contemporary Figures & Related Historical Timelines

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Frequently Asked Questions about Province of Maryland