The Royal Governors of Massachusetts Bay Colony 1692-1780. The first governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony, or company as it was known at the time was Matthew Cradock. When the constitution was first adopted, the Governor's Council was charged with acting as governor in the event that both the governorship and lieutenant governorship were vacant. By the next morning, leaders called the event a \"bloody massacre.\" Six years later, shots were heard again in the square. Elected governors are then inaugurated on the first Thursday of the following January after the 1st. On that night violence boiled over in response to the British plans to impose the Stamp Act on the colonies. [24] Colonial officials (governor, deputy governor, and the council of assistants) were elected annually from then on by the freemen of the colony. Hand-colored woodcut - DB1BWE from Alamy's library of millions of … [37] Sir Edmund Andros governed the Dominion for most of its brief existence, but he alienated New Englanders by forcing the Church of England into Puritan Boston and vacating land titles issued under the old charter. The governor-elect is then escorted by the sergeant-at-arms to the House Chamber and sworn in by the senate president before a joint session of the House and Senate. He intended to renovate the 19th-century mansion into a splendid governor's residence. [15], Upon completion of his term, the departing governor takes a "lone walk" down the Grand Staircase, through the House of Flags, into Doric Hall, out the central doors, and down the steps of the Massachusetts State House. Although he lost his case, John Adams would later call this the event that motivated the revolutionary movement. The governorship was dominated by a small group of early settlers who sought to ensure that the vision of a Puritan settlement was maintained; Richard Bellingham, John Leverett, and Simon Bradstreet all served extended terms, in addition to Winthrop and Endecott, and Thomas Dudley served 4 1-year terms. [14] The colony was dissolved in late March 1623, and the surviving colonists either joined the Plymouth Colony or returned to England. Read The Life of Thomas Hutchinson, Royal Governor of the Province of Massachusetts Bay book reviews & author details and more at Amazon.in. Benjamin Butler started the tradition in 1884. Life Of Thomas Hutchinson: Royal Governor Of The Province Of Massachusetts Bay The Boston Port Act was part of the. He, like most other state officers, senators, and representatives, was originally elected annually. Now the Province of Massachusetts Bay, the colony then encompassed the territory of the Massachusetts Bay Colony, the Plymouth Colony, and areas of what is now the state of Maine. In order to ease tensions with royal authorities and the colonists the General Court was reestablished and given significant powers. Settlements that failed or were merged into other colonies included the failed Popham Colony (1607) on the coast of Maine, and the Wessagusset Colony (1622–23) in Weymouth, Massachusetts, whose remnants were folded into the Plymouth Colony. Hand-colored woodcut - MP5W23 from Alamy's library of millions of … Most recently, Jane Swift became acting governor upon the resignation of Paul Cellucci. [23], Head of state and of government of the U.S. commonwealth of Massachusetts, Commonwealth of Massachusetts: 1780–present, Gubernatorial lines of succession in the United States § Massachusetts, List of colonial governors of Massachusetts, Re-elected in 1966 (first four-year term), "Which States Have Term Limits On Governor? Delegate to the Continental Congress, Co-commissioner to France, Vice President of the United States, President of the United States. When that ended the British government proposed to tax colonists help pay for it. One of its principal backers was Sir John Popham; his nephew George Popham was the colony's governor for most of its brief existence. [11] The province was governed by civilian governors until 1774, when Thomas Hutchinson was replaced by Lieutenant General Thomas Gage amid rising tensions between the Thirteen Colonies and the British Parliament. The early stages of the American Revolution saw political turmoil in Massachusetts Bay. 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