History of The Connecticut Constitution - The Connecticut Charter of 1662

The Connecticut Charter of 1662

In 1660, King Charles II reassumed the monarchy in England, effectively ending the period of the English Revolution. Since Connecticut had never been officially recognized as a colony by the crown, the General Court determined that the independence of Connecticut must be legitimized. Connecticut’s governor, John Winthrop, Jr., was sent as an emissary to negotiate with the English government, and set sail for England on July 23, 1661. He proved successful in his mission, and the English attorney general approved a bill for incorporation of the Connecticut Charter. After being officially sealed and registered, the document was returned to Connecticut and adopted by the General Court on October 9, 1662.

The Connecticut Charter displaced the Fundamental Orders to become the governing authority for the colony. Its practical effect on the government however, was minimal and Connecticut continued to operate much as it had under the Fundamental Orders. The Charter did however, incorporate a few noteworthy changes. All colonials in Connecticut were given “all liberties and immunities” of the realm of England. The governor was granted the additional power of the authority to convene a session of the General Court. Freemen were stripped of this ability. The most surprising aspect of the Charter concerned the geographical boundaries of Connecticut. The colony’s borders were to be Narragansett Bay on the east and Massachusetts on the north. Of greater significance however, was Connecticut’s southwestern boundary which expanded to the “South Sea on the West.” While Connecticut’s borders never approached this limitation, the Charter placed the separate territory of New Haven squarely within Connecticut’s jurisdiction. It is believed that this expansion by Charles II was quite deliberate. Several “regicide” judges who sentenced Charles I of England to death had subsequently sought and been given refuge in New Haven, and Charles II may have been exacting revenge upon New Haven. After a brief dispute, New Haven decided to voluntarily join Connecticut in 1665. Today the city of New Haven still maintains Three Judges Cave on West Rock, as a tribute to the regicides who hid from Charles II's agents.