Maryland Toleration Act

The Law of Maryland Concerning Religion, also known as the Maryland Toleration Act of 1649, was an attempt by Maryland's proprietor, Cecil Calvert, Lord Baltimore, to allow Catholics to continue to practice their faith without interference by the emerging militant Protestant majority in the colony. It is considered by historians to be one of the first legal guarantors of religious freedom in what would become the United States. Cecil Calvert, following the path blazed by his father, George, had founded Maryland in 1634 as a refuge for Catholics fleeing persecution in England. Years later, however, the situation for Calvert's co-religionists had become worse rather than better. Far more Protestants than Catholics had come to Maryland, hoping to profit from the tobacco boom that was encouraging migration to the Chesapeake region. As a result, Calvert sponsored legislation that enshrined freedom of conscience for all Christians, whether Catholic or Protestant.