born Jan. 22, 1588, Edwardstone, Suffolk, Eng.
died April 5, 1649, Boston, Massachusetts Bay Colony
American colonial political leader, first governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony .
In 1629 he joined the Massachusetts Bay Co., and he was elected governor of the colony that was to be established by the company in New England. An ardent Puritan, he envisioned a colony based on his religious beliefs. He guided the colonists on his arrival in North America in 1630 and was elected governor 12 times during the period from 1631 to 1648. Though widely respected, he was criticized for opposing the formation of a representative assembly (1634), and the colony's limitations on religious freedom were decried by Roger Williams and Anne Hutchinson . His son, John Winthrop (1606–76), was an influential governor of Connecticut (1659–76).
John Winthrop, detail of an oil painting, school of Sir Anthony Van Dyck, c. 1625–49; ...
By courtesy of the American Antiquarian Society, Worcester, Mass.