GSAPTEB zxrn.
 

Beligionj—Protestant EpiioopnL
 

Advent of Proteitant Episcopal Church—Support of Church of England Made

Compulsoiy^-The Establishment of Trini^—Its Baptism of Fir6—

Bnildii^ of St. Geoi^'s, St. Paul's and St. Jchn'i Chapels.

The advent of Benjamin Fletcher, on August 29, 1692, as Oovemor
of New York, and also of Pennsylvania and Delaware, by royal warrant
Of William and Marr, may be said to have been the advent also of tbe
Protestant Episcopal Church In the colony. Next to bis personal ag-
grandlaement—and thia waa alwaya tho Arst conaideratlon in tho minds
of England's ropresentativea in the old days—Governor Floicher's chief
aim waa the Introduction Into the province of tbe English church and the
English language.

*' Early in the government of one of Fletcher's predecessors, Dongan, the
flrat act of the flrat Assembly elected by the people, in accordance with
tbe inatructlona of Dongan'a auporlor, the Duke of York, was to frame a
Charter of Liberties, one of whose ordinations was "that no peraon pro¬
fessing faith in God, by Jeans Christ, should at any time be In any way
diaquloted or questioned for any ditTerence of opinion In matters of re¬
ligion," But this was before tbe Duke of York succeeded to the throno
under tho tltlo of James II. With his acceaslon, Dongan received new
Instructions to favor the introduction of the Roman Catholic religion Into
the province—& policy which he waa reluctant to adopt, though a Catholic
himself, Tbo citizens of tbe province wore mostly Protestants, many of
them Waldenses and Huguenots, wbo had lied from the religious peraecu-
tions in Europe to seek protection under the tolerant Dutch government,
and Dongan, deapite hla creed and the new inatructlona, doalred to proaorve
their rellgloua freedom. He also saw the increasing induonce of the
French iu Canada over the Iroquoia In matters Catholic, and believed
it was necessary, in order to preserve tbo province to the Engllah govem¬
ment, to exercise a Judicious policy In Interpreting the ordera of hla royal
maater. Hla apathy diapleaaed James, whose settled purpose was to
encourage tbe growth of Catholicism in hla domlniona, rather than adhere
to the ordination of the Charter of Liberties, and Dongan was recalled. He
afterward returned as a private cltlien, and took up hla residence on an
estate on Staten Island, for which be bad prevloualy procured a patent, and
which for many years was in the posseaaion of ble family.

It la not to be wondered at tbat with the accession to the throne of
the Prince and Princess of Orange, stanch Proteatants, an overturning of
religious affairs should occur in the colony.    On Uarch 19, 1$01, Governor