Freeman

The term "freeman" was generally an English or American Colonial expression in Puritan times, which referred to those persons who were not under legal restraint – usually for the payment of an outstanding debt, because of their continual drunkeness, because they had recently relocated, or because they were idle and had no way in which they could continue the justification of their stay within the colony. In general, the word colonial means of or relating to a colony. In United States history, the term Colonial is used to refer to the period before US independence. ... Jump to: navigation, search The Puritans were members of a group of English Protestants seeking further reforms or even separation from the established church during the Reformation. ...

"Freedom" was earned after an alloted time, or until the person demanding "payment" was satified – this was known as indentured servitude, and was not originally intended as a stigma or embarrassment for the person involved since many of the sons and daughters of the wealthy and famous of the time found themselves forced into such temporary servitudes. It was a sort of debtor's prison without the walls, torture, or meager subsistance. An Indentured servant is an unfree labourer under contract to work (for a specified amount of time) for another person, often without any pay, but in exchange for accommodation, food, other essentials and/or free passage to a new country. ... A debtors prison is a prison for people unable to pay a debt to another. ...

However, as time wore on, the name "freeman" somehow became associated with the servitude of slavery, and many of those who had thought that their servitude was only temporary, soon found out that their master was asking them to work a little bit too hard, or that he was taking a little bit too long in setting them free. Jump to: navigation, search The Buxton Memorial Fountain, celebrating the emancipation of slaves in the British Empire in 1834, London. ... Master is a term that indicates a consummate level of skill, proficiency, superiority or power. ...

As a result, many "servants" began escaping and eventually the entire system of "freemen" was officially eliminated by 1691, though parts of the system did still remain through the 18th Century. Servant has a number of meaning: A servant is another word for domestic worker, a person who is hired to provide regular household or other duties, and receives compensation. ... Events March 5 - French troops under Marshal Louis-Francois de Boufflers besiege the Spanish-held town of Mons March 29 - Siege of Mons ends to the city’s surrender October 3 - Treaty of Limerick which guaranteed civil rights to catholics was signed. ... (17th century - 18th century - 19th century - more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 18th century refers to the century that lasted from 1701 through 1800. ...

Initially, anyone ...

Initially, anyone first entering into a colony, or just recently having become a member of one of the local acceptable churches, was formally not free. Such persons were never forced to work for another individual, per se, but their movements were carefully observed, and if they veared from the Puritanical ideal, they were asked to leave the colony. If they stayed or later returned to the colony, they were put to death. Look up Free on Wiktionary, the free dictionary Free is an English language adjective, verb, and adverb. ...

There was an unstated probationary period that the prospective "freeman" needed to go through, and if he did pass this probationary period of time – usually one to two years – he was allowed his freedom. Probation is the suspension of a prison or jail sentence - the criminal who is on probation has been convicted of a crime, but instead of serving prison time, has been found by the Court to be amenable to probation and will be returned to the community for a period in... Jump to: navigation, search Personal Liberty is one of the meanings of freedom. Statue of Liberty - Societal Liberty is one of the meanings of freedom. For proper-noun uses of Freedom, see Freedom (disambiguation). ...

A Freeman was said to be free of all debt, owing nothing to noone except God Himself – which "debt" the churches of the times made certain was paid on a daily basis.

Free planter

A "free planter" as opposed to a "freeman", was any one singular land holder, who possessed land outright that was usually given to him by the colony after he had finished his probationary period – except of course in those cases where the land owner had inherited his property; but if he was deemed legally incompetent, didn't pass his probationary period, or again lost his freedom through some irresponsibility of his own, he would have had his land and property confiscated from him and redistributed amongst the remaining freemen even if the inheritor was a well respected citizen. Use of the term The concept of property or ownership has no single or universally accepted definition. ... To inherit something is to get it from ones ancestors. ...

Oath of a freeman

Initially, all persons seeking to be free needed to take an oath, which essentially avowed the fact that they would defend the Commonwealth and not conspire to overthrow the Government.

The first printing of the "Freeman's Oath" was printed by Stephen Daye in 1639 in the form of a broadside or single sheet of paper intended for posting in public places. Events January 14 - Connecticuts first constitution, the Fundamental Orders, is adopted. ... A broadside is a large sheet of paper, generally printed on one side and folded into a smaller size, often used as a direct-mail piece or for door-to-door distribution. ...

It was the body of 100 or so original freemen in about 1634 who appointed the first governors, magistrates, and other important persons when the country was first started giving rise to the maxim that America is "a country of the people, for the people, and by the people," since that's what the original founding fathers had intended. Events Moses Amyrauts Traite de la predestination is published Curaçao captured by the Dutch Treaty of Polianovska First meeting of the Académie française The witchcraft affair at Loudun Jean Nicolet lands at Green Bay, Wisconsin Opening of Covent Garden Market in London English establish a settlement... Maxim may refer to: Maxim (saying), an aphorism Maxim (magazine), an international mens magazine Maxim gun, the first self-acting machine gun Gricean maxims, conversational principles theorized by philosopher Paul Grice Maxim (law) Maxim_(philosophy), a principle of willing Maxim is the name of: Maxim Litvinov (1876-1951), Russian...

References

• James Savage, Winthrop's Journal 'The History of New England' 1630-1649 (1825–26 edition)
• Nathaniel Bradstreet Shurtleff, M.D., editor Records of the Governor and Company of the Massachusetts Bay in New England (1853-54, 5 volumes) [especially volumes 1–3, and lists of "freemen"]
• James Truslow Adams, LLD, The Founding of New England (1927)
• James Hammond Trumbull, The True-Blue Laws of Connecticut and New Haven and the False Blue-Laws Invented by the Reverend Samuel Peters (1876)
• Theophilus Eaton, et al, New-Haven's Settling in New-England and Some Laws for Government Published for the Use of That Colony (1656) [or any reasonable facimile edition of the "Blue Laws" of New Haven or Connecticut]
• Silas Andrus, The Code of 1650 [of Conn.] to which is added some Extracts from the Laws and Judicial Proceedings of New-Haven Colony. Commonly called Blue Laws (1822)
• John Fiske, The Beginings of New England or the Puritan Theocracy in its Relations to Civil and Religious Liberty (1889, 1898 edition)
• Francis J. Bremer, The Puritan Experiment (1976)
• Lucias R. Paige, List of Freemen of Massachusetts 1631–1691 (1849, 1988 edition)