William Penn

14 October 1644 – 30 July 1718

William Penn (1644-1718) was an English Quaker writer and religious thinker who founded the Province of Pennsylvania as a haven of religious toleration. Granted a vast American charter by King Charles II in 1681, he planned the city of Philadelphia and established a frame of government notable for its democratic features and fair dealings with Native Americans. His Charter of Privileges of 1701 remained Pennsylvania's constitution until the American Revolution.

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Life events

Born in London, England
14 October 1644

William Penn was born at Tower Hill, London, the son of Admiral Sir William Penn.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
Birth ✓
Expelled from Christ Church, Oxford, for religious nonconformity
1662

Penn was sent down from Oxford for refusing to conform to the restored Church of England's practices.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
Education ✓
Converted to Quakerism in Ireland
1667

While managing his father's Irish estates, Penn joined the Religious Society of Friends after hearing the preacher Thomas Loe.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
Personal ✓
Wrote No Cross, No Crown while imprisoned in the Tower of London
1669

Jailed for publishing a tract deemed blasphemous, Penn wrote one of his most influential works of Quaker theology during his imprisonment.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
Achievement ✓
Acquitted in the landmark Penn-Mead trial
September 1670

Penn's trial for preaching to an unlawful assembly led to a jury verdict of not guilty and helped establish the independence of English juries.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
Achievement ✓
Married Gulielma Springett
4 April 1672

Penn married Gulielma Maria Springett, a fellow Quaker, with whom he had several children before her death in 1694.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
Relationship ✓
Received the royal charter for Pennsylvania
4 March 1681

King Charles II granted Penn a huge tract of land in America in settlement of a debt owed to his father, naming it Pennsylvania.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
Achievement ✓
Arrived in Pennsylvania and oversaw the founding of Philadelphia
October 1682

Penn crossed the Atlantic on the ship Welcome, implemented his Frame of Government and directed the planning of Philadelphia as a 'greene country towne'.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
Relocation ✓
Granted the Charter of Privileges during his second visit to Pennsylvania
28 October 1701

During his second and final stay in the colony, Penn issued the Charter of Privileges, which served as Pennsylvania's constitution until 1776.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
Achievement ✓
Died at Ruscombe, Berkshire, England
30 July 1718

After years of incapacity following strokes, Penn died in England and was buried at Jordans Quaker meeting house in Buckinghamshire.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
Death ✓