Winthrop & Williams: Religious Persecution & Freedom in New England
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The Puritans who settled New England claimed they came to the New World for religious freedom but, once settled, made it clear that this freedom was for themselves only and dissent would not be tolerated. Although the most famous example of this is Anne Hutchinson (l. 1591-1643 CE) who was banished from Massachusetts Bay Colony for her religious views in 1638 CE, an earlier illustration of this same kind of reaction to dissent is the banishment of the Puritan separatist minister Roger Williams (l. 1603-1683 CE) by the Puritan magistrate and second governor of Massachusetts Bay Colony, John Winthrop (l. c. 1588-1649 CE) in the fall of 1635 CE.