History of Maryland
    In 1632, Calvert wanted to build a colony for Catholics in the New World, because Catholics were not allowed to pray as they wanted in England.  He persuaded King Charles I of England to give him a large plot of land next to the Chesapeake Bay.  The king named this land Maryland, after his wife, Queen Henrietta Maria.  He wanted Catholics to be able to pray in peace.  Before he could carry out his plans, he died.  His son, Lord Baltimore took over the colony.

     In 1634, the Ark and Dove carried about 300 people to Maryland.  When they arrived, they planted crops in the rich soil.  By the 1640s, most of the colonists were not Catholic.  Lord Baltimore became worried.  He asked Maryland's assembly to protect the religious freedom of Catholics in Maryland.  So in 1649, the Maryland Toleration Act was passed.  This protected all Christians to follow his or her religion.

     Maryland was a place for Catholics to pray in peace.  It also offered people fertile land to farm.