How Anti-Catholicism Drove the Development of Early Maryland

A painting depicting  the Maryland colonists’ first voyage aboard the Ark and the Dove (msa.maryland.gov).

Anti-Catholicism in American History did not simply manifest during mass immigration waves of Catholic Irish migrants in the 18th century. While tensions then were undoubtedly high, Catholicism had been under attack in America long before the Revolution. In the early seventeenth century, the surging Protestant Reformation contributed to much religious and political conflict in England. Tensions between Catholics and Protestants pervaded virtually all of Britain’s affairs. This was especially true regarding England’s colonization efforts of the North American continent. The Catholic George Calvert sought to establish a colony in this new world. George Calvert, the First Lord Baltimore from his seat in Ireland, endeavored to do so for many years, navigating the complex and risky social and political environment of his time. His motivations in this endeavor are often speculated and debated on by historians. The prospect of wealth and power was likely a great concern for Calvert, as it was for many figures riding the wave of new world colonization in the early modern period. Freedom from religious oppression, however, undeniably took center stage. 

The Catholic Calvert family had lost political power in the 1620s in the wake of Reformation politics. Driven by the unfavorable conditions of his faith during the time, George Calvert sought to create a haven for Catholics in the New World. By 1632, Lord Baltimore saw a clear path to obtaining a royal charter to settle on America's east coast. He had a working relationship with King Charles I, which was critical to the survival of his family’s political power in the realm of British Reformation politics. The charter, which served as an official document outlining the establishment of the colony, was to be officially granted on June 20th, 1632. Unfortunately, George would never receive the charter, as he passed away weeks prior. Instead, King Charles I granted it to his son, Cecilius Calvert, the Second Lord Baltimore, who carried on with the colonization effort.

The charter praised Cecilius for “pursuing his Fathers intentions, being excited with a laudable and pious zeale for the propagation of the Christian Faith…” in addition to celebrating the endeavor’s expansion of the British Empire. The charter also gave Calvert the power to establish and promote religion as he saw fit. Despite this, it mentions nothing of Catholicism specifically. Many among the British considered Catholicism a great evil, and the king sought to avoid provoking further suspicions that he himself harbored Catholic sympathies. Nonetheless, the Catholic Calvert family was granted proprietary rule over the new colony of Maryland, named after the king’s wife, who was herself a devout Catholic. Cecilius installed his brother, Leonnard Calvert, as the first governor of the colony.

From the very first voyage to settle Maryland, the Catholics were a ruling minority. Most on board the Ark and the Dove were non-Catholic. Protestants often disputed the Catholic rule of the Calvert family, as both grievances of popular representation and widespread religious paranoia took hold. To remedy this, William Stone, a Protestant ally of the Calvert family, was installed as governor following the death of Leonard Calvert in 1647. The Second Lord Baltimore hoped this would quell some of the unrest that festered within the colony. Despite this, religious tension had already been flaring on two other fronts. For one, the 1640s English Civil War broke out, leading to the execution of King Charles I in 1649. Charles had long held to the divine authority of the monarch and found himself in constant conflict with Parliament because of it. Moreover, he couldn’t overcome the inflamed religious conflict between Catholics and Protestants of the time, which many of his detractors and rivals in Parliament used against him. Charles was painted as not only a Catholic sympathizer, but as a deceitful conspirator working to reinstall Catholicism to dominance in Great Britain. The second problem came from Maryland’s colonial neighbors, rather than across the Atlantic. The government of Virginia proclaimed Anglican Protestantism as the Colony’s official religion in 1642, causing a substantial Puritan migration to Maryland. Here, the more extreme Puritans found themselves in ideological conflict with yet another governing faith, one with which they had even less in common. The many factors that drove disdain for Maryland’s Catholic proprietary government contributed to a powder keg of a colony, seemingly on the brink of combustion.

Recognizing the threats to his government, the Second Lord Baltimore worked with the Maryland legislature to produce the 1649 An Act Concerning Religion. The document was, as its title suggests, an act developed by the colonial government of Maryland regarding the practice of religion in the colony, and the protection thereof.  The Act provided financial punishment for those who defamed any sect of Christianity or antagonized a practitioner thereof. Furthermore, it criminalized disorderly conduct and otherwise defamatory actions taken on the Christian sabbath. The writers stated that the purpose of the Act was “…to preserve mutuall love and unity amongst the Inhabitants here,” protecting all sects of Christianity within the colony from harassment. Protestant detractors of the proprietary government argued that this law, in reality, was just another means of protecting Catholic minority rule. As it is evident here, Anti-Catholicism had a stranglehold on statecraft and society in early colonial Maryland.

A 1905 painting symbolizing Cecil Calvert’s proposal of the Religious Toleration Act by Edwin Howland Blashfield (msa.maryland.gov)

The Act Concerning Religion was unsuccessful in quelling the growing unrest. The Puritans revolted against the Calvert family in 1650, lasting until 1658 when the Second Lord Baltimore reclaimed control over the colony by convincing the Puritan rebels that he would enact religious tolerance and fairness for all Christians, regardless of denomination. Following the short reign of the anti-Catholic demagogues, An Act Concerning Religion, otherwise known as the Religious Toleration Act, was reinstated, including Roman Catholics under religious protection once more. This peace did not last, however. In 1689, Protestant planters revolted against the proprietary government. This came to be known as the Glorious Revolution, taking its name from the British revolt against the Catholic King James II, which began a year prior. Its leaders exploited the fears of Protestants in the colony, from economic instability to paranoia of Native Americans. The rebels spread rumors that the Calverts made deals with local Native tribes to attack Protestant towns and settlements in the colony. Because of this, the movement gained traction quickly among Protestant planters as the inflammatory rhetoric piled on top of long-standing anti-Catholic sentiment. This revolt spelled the end of Catholic Rule in Maryland, as it became a Royal Colony in 1691, being directly controlled by the British Monarch. This persisted until 1716, when the Calverts were restored to power only after Charles Calvert publicly proclaimed that he was a Protestant.

Maryland’s Glorious Revolution was yet another key example of how anti-Catholicism drove both law and political power shifts in Maryland’s foundational history. It further demonstrates how anti-Catholic rhetoric drove the development of Maryland as a colony. Acknowledging this history is important, as it gives often overlooked insights into the historical oppression of Catholics in United States history.