On this day in 1644, the Rhode Island Colony was established. Roger Williams, an important American religious leader and the founder of the Providence settlement, was awarded a royal charter by Parliament to establish the colony.

Working His Way Through Massachusetts. Williams was a Puritan who originally settled in the Massachusetts Bay Colony, where he worked as a teacher. He went on to work as a pastor at Plymouth and then at Salem. His preaching angered the Puritans, who wanted to send Williams back to England.

South by Southwest. In 1635, he fled to the southwest, where he was befriended by the Natives. Together with the Narragansett tribe, Williams established a settlement near Narragansett Bay, within what is now Rhode Island.

First Settlement to Offer Religious Freedom. He declared the settlement open to those seeking freedom of conscience and the removal of the church from civil matters. It was the first community in history to offer complete religious freedom. Believing the settlement's success was a sign from God, Williams named it Providence.

• Anne Hutchinson, who was exiled from Massachusetts for religious reasons
• some of the first Jews to settle in North America
• the Quakers.