JUNE 20, 1632, King Charles I of England granted a charter for the Colony of Maryland, named for his Catholic wife, Queen Henrietta Maria, stating: "Charles, by the Grace of God, of England, Scotland, France, and Ireland, King, Defender of the Faith...Whereas our well beloved...subject Coecilius Calvert, Baron of Baltimore, in our Kingdom of Ireland...

being animated with a laudable, and pious Zeal for extending the Christian Religion...hath humbly besought Leave of Us that he may transport, by his own...expense, a numerous Colony of the English Nation, to certain...parts of America...partly occupied by Savages, having no Knowledge of the Divine Being." Maryland's Charter continued: "With the increasing Worship and Religion of Christ within said Region...shall...be built...Churches, Chapels, and Places of Worship."

Lord Baltimore sent two ships, the Ark and the Dove, to settle the colony. Buying land from the Indians, they founded the city of St. Mary's as a refuge for persecuted Catholics. In 1649, they extended liberty to Protestants by issuing the Toleration Act, which stated: "That no person... within this province...professing to believe in Jesus Christ shall...from henceforth be any ways troubled or molested...in respect of his or her religion."