John Endecott

John Endecott (1588?-1665), Puritan colonial leader known for his intolerance of religious dissenters. Endecott was born in Devon, England. After obtaining a patent for land in New England with five other people, Endecott led a company of about 60 settlers to Massachusetts, where they joined an already existing community at Naumkeag (now Salem) in 1628. He placed the colony under strict Puritan control and governed it until replaced by John Winthrop, who arrived in Salem as the governor in 1630. Between 1630 and 1664, Endecott was at various times assistant governor, deputy governor, or governor of the colony. In 1636 he led an expedition against the Pequot which caused the already difficult relationship between the native peoples and the colonists to deteriorate into a state of war. The Pequot War of 1637 eventually resulted in the death or capture of most of the Pequot. During the 1650s, Endecott was responsible for the persecution of many Quakers, whom he either imprisoned, banished, or executed. The United Colonies of New England, a confederation formed for mutual defense and to safeguard religious orthodoxy, elected him president in 1658.