Who founded Providence, Rhode Island, and later sought a license to govern the settlement?

• A. Roger Williams
• B. John Winthrop
• C. William Penn
• D. James Oglethorpe

Answer: (A)

Roger Williams founded Providence, Rhode Island, as a refuge for religious liberty after leaving Massachusetts. He argued for freedom of conscience and fair treatment of Native Americans, aiming to build a community where diverse beliefs could be practiced openly. To give Providence formal political legitimacy and protect its rights to self-government and religious liberty, Williams and the settlers sought and received a royal charter—an official license to govern the settlement—creating the colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations. This combination of founding a liberty-minded settlement and obtaining a governing charter distinguishes Williams's role. The other figures led different colonies: John Winthrop helped establish the Massachusetts Bay Colony; William Penn founded Pennsylvania with its own framework of government; James Oglethorpe founded Georgia.