Charles Calvert, 3rd Baron Baltimore

Charles Calvert, 3rd Baron Baltimore

Charles Calvert, 3rd Baron Baltimore, 2nd Proprietor and 6th and 9th Proprietary Governor of Maryland (August 27, 1637 – February 21, 1715), inherited the colony in 1675 upon the death of his father, Cecilius Calvert, 2nd Baron Baltimore. He had been his father's Deputy Governor since 1661 when he arrived in the colony at the age of 24. However, Charles left Maryland for England in 1684 and would never return. The events following the Glorious Revolution in England in 1688 would cost Calvert his title to Maryland; in 1689 the royal charter to the colony was withdrawn, leading to direct rule by the British Crown. Calvert's political problems were largely caused by his unwavering commitment to the Roman Catholic faith at a time when Protestantism was the dominant religion in England. Calvert married four times, outliving three wives, and had at least two children. He died in England in 1715 at the age of 78, his family fortunes much diminished. With his death he passed his title, and his claim to Maryland, to his second son Benedict Leonard Calvert, 4th Baron Baltimore (1679–1715), his eldest son Cecil having died young. However, Benedict Calvert would outlive his father by just two months, and It would fall to Charles' grandson, Charles Calvert, 5th Baron Baltimore (who converted to the Anglican faith) to see the family proprietorship in Maryland restored by the king.