Royal Charter of Rhode Island 1663

In the Rhode Island Royal Charter of 1663, King Charles II of England outlined the rights and liberties of the people of the newly established colony of Rhode Island. These rights and liberties constituted a highly original answer to the growing religious diversity and tensions between rival confessions in New England. Rhode Island was indeed an experiment with democracy, the separation of church and state and religious freedom. As such it was largely the brainchild of a remarkable figure, Roger Williams. The history of its formation is particularly relevant to introducing issues of religious toleration and peace to young people, especially younger teenagers. It also offers insight into the way of life of American Indians and how they impacted upon Rhode Island. The clippings refer to the charter but also to the ideas and life of the Christian minister Roger Williams as well as the practical dimensions of religious freedom. They are both surprising and challenging: they show a radical example of religious freedom and toleration initiated by a Puritan/Baptist minister, influenced by American Indians, realising a type of society that appears very different and alien to ours, but at the same time strikingly modern and relevant. As well as reflecting on this paradox, young people may think about what can be learned from the experiment and how things could have developed differently. The clippings introduce two specific cases involving women—Anne Hutchinson and Mary Dyer—which also allows thinking about gender.