William Stone (governor)
William Stone (born around 1603 in England , † December 21, 1660 in Charles County , later in the US state of Maryland ) was an English colonial governor of the Province of Maryland .
Life
The place of birth of William Stone is given differently in the sources. The counties are Northamptonshire , Lancashire and Derbyshire . It is no longer possible to determine which information corresponds to the facts. The sources also contain partly contradicting information for the rest of his life. It seems certain that he originally emigrated to the English colony of Virginia . When tensions arose there between the supporters of the Church of England and the Puritans , William Stone, although not a Puritan himself, managed to convince the Catholic owner of the Maryland colony, Cæcilius Calvert, 2nd Baron Baltimore , to accept Puritans from Virginia in Maryland. As a result, the Maryland Tolerance Act was passed and William Stone was appointed in 1649 to succeed Thomas Greene as the new and first non-Catholic governor of the colony. These events took place against the backdrop of the English Civil War . The establishment of the Puritans in Maryland proved a mistake for Lord Baltimore. With the tail wind from England after Oliver Cromwell came to power there , they began a revolt against the Catholic lord and the governor. The latter had to flee in the meantime. He put together his own force with which he wanted to restore the old balance of power in Maryland. In this context it came on March 25, 1655 to the Battle of the Severn (Battle of the Severn) , in which Stone was wounded and was taken prisoner. The victorious Puritans meanwhile toyed with the idea of executing him. There was a turning point in Maryland in 1657 when Lord Baltimore was reinstated in his old rights. William Stone has since been released. As governor he was replaced by Josias Fendall . So Stone's tenure as governor between 1649 and 1656 was very unfortunate. From 1656 to 1659 he held the office of Councellor for Maryland . He also took over a judge's office (Provincial Court Justice) . William Stone died on December 21, 1660 at his Poynton Manor estate in Charles County, Maryland.
Web links
- William Stone in the database of Find a Grave (English)
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Stone, William |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | Governor of the Province of Maryland |
| DATE OF BIRTH | around 1603 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | England |
| DATE OF DEATH | December 21, 1660 |
| Place of death | Charles County , Maryland |