Hello and welcome to a history of the United States.

Episode 90, a new hope.

Today we return to New York.

It's been a while, 35 episodes in fact, since we last covered New York in episode 55,

the Anglo-Dutch Wars Part 3, Revenge of the Dutch. It's probably worth doing a quick

refresher. The defining feature of colonial life in New York in the mid-17th century was the

dual nature of the colony between its English and Dutch elements. Centered on the city of New Amsterdam, what is now

New York City, had been the centre of New Netherland, a Dutch colony which, at its peak,

included Connecticut, New York, Vermont, New Jersey and Delaware.

During a series of wars in the 17th century, the colony changed hands between the Dutch and the English,

ultimately ending up in English hands in 1674.

This was where we left things.

Now, let's pick up the story. In the decade following the final English takeover of New York, there was a growing sense of unhappiness which spread across the colony.

There were a number of different reasons to this, but the most notable was the lack of a colonial assembly.

This had been a major gripe of the Dutch colonists during the New Netherland era,

when the Dutch enviously eyed the political liberties their neighbours in New England were enjoying.

Economic concerns also played a major role too.

The colony was suffering from the presence of economic monopolies and privileged special interests.

This was all accompanied with unhappiness at levels of taxation.

This ties together quite nicely with what we've seen across the other colonies. No taxation without representation. The Duke of York,

the future King James II, selected Thomas Dongan to fix these problems. He was a royalist and a former soldier who served both in Tangier for England and in France under King Louis 14th.

He was, interestingly, a Roman Catholic.

...