In a message dated 6/12/2002 12:59:30 AM Eastern Daylight Time, jlstokes@supernet.com writes: << Are you saying there was no Royal Governor in Rhode Island or Connecticut ? >> Jim: Going to answer you on the List, as there's a lot of information. I can speak only for CT, which had an elected governor (Jonathan Trumbull, patriot of the Rev). He was not a royal gov. I have read that CT and RI were the only fully self-governing colonies, and I think the only 2 without royal governors. Don't know who RI's governor was at the time of the Rev. Remember the story of the Connecticut Charter Oak? Andros, the English governor sent to Mass in the late 17th c (which is when Mass first acquired a royal gov), tried to get possession of CT's charter, given to it by the King. But someone in the room (presumably in the CT General Assembly) doused the lights, and the charter could not be found - till much later, when it surfaced outside, somewhere in or near what came to be known as the Charter Oak tree. This supposedly is how CT saved itself from becoming a royal colony. Here is a description of the CT charter, from my notes in Word 5.0 - if you can decipher my abbreviations: Conn's charter of 1662 truly an amazing doc wh gave to ppl of Conn not only a clear leg basis for thr col but also, and most imp, a very hi degree of self-govt King Chas II, in charter md John Winthrop, Jr, and others a body corporate called the "Governour and Company of the English Colony of Conecticut in New England in America." Membs of the co were the freemen of Conn, and the co cd lease, grant, alienate, bargain, sell, and dispose of property as other corporations cd do. Charter provided for a gov, dep gov, and 12 assistants, to b chosen yearly in May by the freemen. The freemen of Conn, enjoying all the "liberties and Immunities" of natural-born Englishmen, were required to take the oath of supremacy. Full judicial powers were granted to the legislature or to the gov or dep and any 6 asstnts. The lawmaking powers resided in the legisltr, but it must enact none "contrary to the lawes and Statutes of this our Realme of England." Other imp provisions: authorized the erection of courts, the free carrying on of trade, the raising of troops whenever nec for defense and safety, the exec of all laws passed and pubd under the common seal of Conn, and the enjoyment of fishing rights on the coasts and adjoining seas. The charter est Narragansett Bay as e boundary, the Mass line on n, LI Sound and ocian on s. On west, Conn to run all the way to the "South Sea," the Pacific Ocean To all intents and purps, the freemen cd run thr govt in the accustomed pattern, w so little Engl control as scarcely to b noticed. V, p 70 [Van Deusen; this quote may not be verbatim, but is probably close.] The inhabitants of Connecticut held their charter dear. When the British, under the Boston Port Bill of early 1774, abolished the Massachusetts charter, all Connecticut was alarmed, fearing the same could happen to it. This aroused the colony and subsequently sent its men on the march whenever its neighbor to the north appeared to be threatened. The False Alarm of Sept 1774 showed Gage, in Boston, that Connecticut would mobilize. The last days of summer were upon us, suddenly and surprisingly short.... The military presence to the north loomed over us. Not long before, General Gage had sent out a party of soldiers to seize the gunpowder stockpiled by Patriots in Charlestown. The news raced through Massachusetts. By the time it reached Connecticut, it had grown to include stories of rape and pillage. Boston, we heard, had been cannonaded. Within twenty-four hours, four thousand minutemen--more than Gage's army--were marching on Boston. Over the next days the number grew to twenty thousand. It was a false alarm. The minutemen returned to their homes. But by now it was clear that Americans would fight. The British high command had seen its peril and, it was commonly believed, began writing home for more troops. As the green-gold of September turned yellow and sere, feelings ran high. Patriots clamored for action... Anne

Anne: I hate to burst your bubble, but "Brother Jonathan" Trumbull *was* a Royal Governor. It fact, one of the things he is remembered for is because he was the *only* Royal Governor to go over to the Patriot side when war came. Best regards, Ed -- For Revolutionary War information on the Internet, your first choice should be AMERICANREVOLUTION.ORG