What was the difference between a royal colony and proprietary?

Colonial Government - The Council
The King of England established a council and council member both in America and England to provide Colonial Governance and management of the colonies and identified all council members. The council had the authority to benefit the natural resources of the colonies with part of the profits given to the king.

Colonial Government - Organization and Structure
The organization and structure of Colonial Government was as follows:

• A Governor held the executive power in the colony and represented the Crown (England) in the colonial government.
• The Governor’s Council was composed of influential and powerful men who advised and supported the Governor. 
• The Governor’s Council exercised various judicial and administrative powers
• An Assembly was elected by, and therefore represented, the citizens of the towns and counties

The British policy of Salutary Neglect lasted from the 1690's to the  1760's and reduced the level of involvement of Great Britain colonial affairs. Trade laws were not enforced which benefited the colonists boosting their profits from trade.

Colonial Government - Administration
Administration at the local level varied between the three regions:

• New England Colonies: Town Meetings
• Southern Colonies: Government at County level
• Middle Colonies: A mixture of town meetings and county government

Colonial Government - The Role of the Governor
The role of the Governor was extremely important in Colonial Government, he was the representative of the King.  The 13 Colonies were governed and ruled by England and its monarchs. In order to rule the colonies from a long distance a governor was appointed by the monarch. The role of the Governor was to oversee the colony and was the head of the colonial administration.  The governor was in charge of laws, taxes and made decisions which affected the colony. The role of the governor was extremely powerful - he was in charge of colonial government which meant he had to fulfil various political duties. To help him in his role he had the authority to appoint various government officials. He had the power to convene, or dissolve the legislature. He also had the power to veto any of its laws. He had command of the militia so was able to enforce Colonial Government policies.

Colonial Government - The Role of the Legislature
Despite the differences in the types of Colonial Government all of the colonies had a legislature that was elected by the people:

• Colonial Government and the Legislature: The right to vote was limited to men who owned land, paid taxes, had an annual income and were members of a Christian church

• Colonial Government and the Legislature: The legislature consisted of two branches:

  • The lower house, to which the people elected delegates
  • The upper house, or council, that was appointed by the governor.

The powers of the legislatures in Colonial Government were limited and their acts were subject to review:

• Colonial Government and the Legislature: They could do nothing contrary to the laws of England
• Colonial Government and the Legislature: Their actions and bills could be vetoed by the governors

• Colonial Government and the Legislature: All laws passed by a colonial legislature  and approved by a governor, had to be sent to England to be examined by the King and could be vetoed by the King at any time within 3 years (except for Connecticut, Rhode Island, and Maryland who were self-governed Charter Companies)

  • To avoid the Royal veto the legislatures would pass laws to run for just 2 years, and when that time expired would re-enact them for 2 years more

Colonial Government - Three Types of Government
There were three types or systems of government used within Colonial Government of the 13 Colonies. The names of these different types of government were Royal, Charter and Proprietary. These three types of government were implemented in the colonies and a colony would be referred to as either a Royal Colony, a Charter Colony or a Proprietary Colony.

• Royal Government definition: Royal Colonies were ruled directly by the English monarchy
• Proprietary Government definition: Proprietary Colonies were established in territories which had been granted by the English Crown to one, or more, proprietors who had full governing rights
• Charter Government definition: Charter Colonies were generally self-governed, and their charters were granted to the colonists as opposed to proprietors

Colonial Government - Royal Colony
Royal colonies were owned by the king.

• These governments were appointed by the Crown, and carried out the orders and wishes of the Crown as opposed to private or local interests
• By 1775 the Royal Colony system of government was in the Carolina's, Virginia, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New Hampshire and New York. See the Lords Proprietors and the Charter of Carolina

Colonial Government - Proprietary Colony
In a Proprietary Colony, an individual, or small elite group, essentially owned the colony, controlling all of the actions and institutions of government, for which they would receive political or financial favors. The governors of the proprietary colonies reported directly to the king.

• By 1775 the Proprietary system of government was in Delaware, Maryland, and Pennsylvania

Colonial Government - Charter Colony
The Charter Colonies were generally self-governed, and their charters were granted to the colonists via a joint-stock company

• When created, the British King granted these colonies a charter establishing the rules of government, but he allowed the colonists a great amount of freedom within those rules
• The Charter system of government was in Rhode Island and Connecticut. The Massachusetts Bay Colony was a royal province under a charter

Colonial Government - Changes to Systems of Government
The 3 systems of government in the 13 original British Colonies could change according to the political and economic changes in Great Britain. Most began as Charter Companies and were then changed to either proprietary colonies or royal colonies. The systems of government just before the American Revolutionary War were as follows:

• There were 3 Propriety colonies: Delaware, Maryland, and Pennsylvania
• There were 3 Charter Colonies: Connecticut and Rhode Island. Massachusetts was a royal province while operating under a charter
• There were 7 Royal Colonies: New Hampshire, New York, New Jersey, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina and Georgia

Colonial Government - Joint Stock Company
Definition of a Joint Stock Company. A joint-stock company issued stock to investors to raise money. Once success had been achieved a joint-stock company divided the profits amongst the investors. A joint-stock company organized and supported the colony through charters from the British government and while they worked with the government they made private profits. Refer to Charter of Virginia and the article on John Mason for examples.

Colonial Government - Congress
As time passed Colonial Government evolved into systems of American self-government. 

• Interesting Facts and information via the first Thirteen

• Colonial Government history timeline

• Fast Facts and info with the Colonial Government timeline

• The Colonial Government is great history timeline resource for kids

• Social Studies Homework help for kids on Colonial Government

Pictures and Videos of Colonial Government
The First Thirteen were classified in three separate regions consisting of the New England, the Middle and the Southern Colonies.  Virginia, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts Bay Colony (which included Maine), New Jersey, Georgia, Connecticut, Maryland, South Carolina, New Hampshire, Delaware, New York, North Carolina, and Rhode Island. We hope that this article on the first Thirteen will assist in your studies or homework and that you will enjoy watching the videos featuring many pictures of the colonists. A great educational resource for kids on the subject of the first Thirteen.

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The Original 13 Colonies Discover interesting  facts and information about the history of the original 13 Colonies starting with the arrival of the first colonists in Jamestown in 1607 who suffered the Starving Time and the Pilgrim Fathers who arrived on the Mayflower in Plymouth Settlement in 1620, refer to the Mayflower Compact and the people who immigrated to Colonial America. For a history timeline detailing specific events relating to the original 13 Colonies refer to the 13 Colonies Timeline . A fully comprehensive history reference relating to the era refer to the Colonial America Time Period . 13 Colonies Map Where were the original 13 Colonies situated? The English settlements of the original 13 Colonies were located on the Atlantic coast of North America. The original 13 colonies were Delaware, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts Bay Colony (which included Maine), New Jersey, Georgia, Connecticut, Maryland, South Carolina, New Hampshire, Virginia, New York, North Carolina, and Rhode Island and Providence Plantations.  The original 13 colonies were divided into three geographic areas consisting of the New England colonies, the Middle colonies, and the Southern colonies. The first European colonists and settlers did not know how big North America was because they didn't have a map of the continent - it was, literally unchartered land.  Colonial America - Map of the 13 Colonies ● New England Colonies ● Middle Colonies ● Southern Colonies For interesting facts and information check out the British Colonies in 1763 The 13 Colonies in Order of Establishment The list of the 13 Colonies in order of establishment and Colonization are detailed in the following table: 13 Colonies in Order of Colonization Date of Colonization Name of Colony / Settlement Famous People 1607 Virginia John Smith   John Rolfe 1620 Plymouth Colony  John Carver  William Bradford 1626 New York Peter Minuit   Peter Stuyvesant 1630 Massachusetts Bay John Winthrop 1633 Maryland George Calvert, Lord Baltimore 1636 Rhode Island Roger Williams  Anne Hutchinson 1636 Connecticut Thomas Hooker 1638 New Hampshire John Mason  John Wheelright 1638 Delaware Peter Minuit     William Penn 1653 North Carolina Lords Proprietors Charter of Carolina 1663 South Carolina 1664 New Jersey George Carteret 1682 Pennsylvania William Penn 1732 Georgia James Oglethorpe Date of Colonization Name of Colony / Settlement Famous People 13 Colonies in Order of Colonization For more facts and information refer to the article on Colonies to States for details of how and when the 13 original colonies became states

13 Colonies Map - The New England, Middle & Southern Colonies
The 13 Colonies map shows the location of each of the original 13 colonies and color coded to indicate which of the original 13 colonies were classified as the New England colonies, the Middle colonies, and the Southern colonies. Each of the 13 Colonies had specific economic, social, and political developments that were unique to their regions and locations in Colonial America - see Colonial Times .

• The New England Colonies list consisted of four of the original 13 Colonies:

  • New Hampshire
  • Massachusetts Bay Colony
  • Rhode Island
  • Connecticut

• The Middle Colonies list also consisted of four of the original 13 Colonies:

  • New York
  • New Jersey
  • Pennsylvania
  • Delaware

• The Southern Colonies list consisted of five of the original 13 Colonies:

  • Maryland
  • Virginia
  • North Carolina
  • South Carolina
  • Georgia

The 13 Colonies Chart
The 13 Colonies chart shows the New England, Middle and Southern Colonies:

The Mayflower in Plymouth Harbor

The New England Colonies

The 13 Colonies -  Facts and Information about the New England Colonies
Information and facts about the 13 colonies. The New England Colonies are also referred to as the North Colonies - Facts about the New England Colonies of Colonial America:

• Fact 1 - Geography: The geography of New England consisted of mountains thick with trees, rivers and poor rocky soil that was difficult to farm and unsuitable for agriculture
• Fact 2 - Natural Resources: Fish, whales, forests. Imported agricultural products from other colonies
• Fact 3 - Religion: Puritans - No religious freedom. refer to Religion in the Colonies
• Fact 4 - Climate: Coldest of the three regions, leading to difficult winters but less disease

The Middle Colonies

The 13 Colonies -  Facts and Information about the Middle Colonies
The four Middle Colonies of Colonial America consisted of a mix of both northern and southern features and its early settlement was dominated by non-English Europeans, mostly Dutch and German, the English colonists were in the minority. Information and facts about the 13 colonies - Facts about the Middle Colonies of Colonial America:

• Fact 1 - The geography and climate of the Middle Colonies was a mix of the New England and Southern features
• Fact 2 - Natural Resources: Good farmland, timber, furs and coal. Iron ore was a particularly important natural resource
• Fact 3 - Religion: Not dominated by a specific religion which gave way to religious freedom for Quakers, Catholics, Lutherans, Jews and others

The Southern Colonies

The 13 Colonies -  Facts and Information about the Southern Colonies
Information and facts about the 13 colonies - Facts about the Southern Colonies of Colonial America:

• Fact 1 - Geography: The geography of the Southern Colonies was hilly coastal plains with plenty of forests
• Fact 2 - Natural Resources: The Southern colonies concentrated on developing plantations that eventually grew cotton, tobacco, rice, sugar cane and indigo (a purple dye)
• Fact 3 - Religion: Not dominated by a specific religion which gave way to religious freedom for Baptists, Anglicans and others
• Fact 4 - Climate: Warmest of the three regions, winters not difficult to survive, warmer climate gave rise to the spread of disease
• Fact 5 - Trade and Industry was dominated by the Slave Plantations

The 13 Colonies - The Original Names of the New England Colonies
The four New England Colonies of Colonial America included colonies of New Hampshire, Massachusetts Bay Colony, Rhode Island and Connecticut. The original names of the New England Colonies were the Province of New Hampshire, later New Hampshire, the Province of Massachusetts Bay, later Massachusetts and Maine, the Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, later Rhode Island and the Connecticut Colony, later Connecticut.

The Names of the Original 13 Colonies - The Middle Colonies
The four Middle Colonies of Colonial America composed of Pennsylvania, Delaware, New York, and New Jersey. The original names of the Middle Colonies were the Province of New York, later New York and Vermont, the Province of New Jersey, later New Jersey, the Province of Pennsylvania, later Pennsylvania and the Delaware Colony (before 1776, the Lower Counties on Delaware), later Delaware.

The Names of the Original 13 Colonies - The Southern Colonies
The five Southern Colonies of Colonial America composed of Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina and Georgia. The original names of the Southern Colonies were the Province of Maryland (later Maryland), the Colony and Dominion of Virginia, (later Virginia, Kentucky and West Virginia), the Province of North Carolina, (later North Carolina and Tennessee), the Province of South Carolina, (later South Carolina) and the Province of Georgia, (later Georgia). The Dominion of Virginia and the Province of Maryland comprised the Chesapeake Colonies.

13 Colonies

• Interesting Facts and information via the 13 Colonies
• 13 Colonies history timeline
• Fast Facts and info with the 13 Colonies timeline
• The 13 Colonies is great history timeline resource for kids
• Social Studies Homework help for kids on 13 Colonies

Pictures and Videos of the 13 Colonies
The 13 Colonies were classified in three separate regions consisting of the New England Colonies, the Middle Colonies and the Southern Colonies.  Virginia, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts Bay Colony (which included Maine), New Jersey, Georgia, Connecticut, Maryland, South Carolina, New Hampshire, Delaware, New York, North Carolina, and Rhode Island.. We hope that this article on the 13 Colonies will assist in your studies or homework and that you will enjoy watching the videos featuring many pictures of the colonists. A great educational resource for kids on the subject of the 13 Colonies. For facts, laws and statistics about emigration today, and in the past, please visit www.emmigration.info.