1689 Boston revolt The 1689 Boston revolt was a popular uprising on April 18 , 1689 , against the rule of Sir Edmund Andros , the governor of the Dominion of New England . A well - organized " mob " of provincial militia and citizens formed in the city and arrested dominion officials . Members of the Church of England , believed by Puritans to sympathize with the administration of the dominion , were also taken into custody by the rebels . Neither faction sustained casualties during the revolt . Leaders of the former Massachusetts Bay Colony then reclaimed control of the government . In other colonies , members of governments displaced by the dominion were returned to power . Andros , commissioned governor of New England in 1686 , had earned the enmity of the local populace by enforcing the restrictive Navigation Acts , denying the validity of existing land titles , restricting town meeting s , and appointing unpopular regular officers to lead colonial militia , among other actions . Furthermore , he had infuriated Puritans in Boston by promoting the Church of England , which was disliked by many Nonconformist New England colonists . Background . In the early 1680s , King Charles II of England began taking steps to reorganize the colonies of New England . The charter of the Massachusetts Bay Colony was revoked in 1684 after its Puritan rulers refused to act on his demands for reforms in the colony , when Charles sought to streamline the administration of the small colonies and bring them more closely under crown control . He died in 1685 and his successor , the Roman Catholic James II , continued the process , which culminated in the creation of the Dominion of New England . In 1686 , the former governor of New York , Sir Edmund Andros , was appointed as dominion governor . The dominion was composed of the territories of the Massachusetts Bay , Connecticut , New Hampshire , and Rhode Island colonies . In 1688 , its jurisdiction was expanded to include New York , and East and West Jersey . Andros ' s rule was extremely unpopular in New England . He disregarded local representation , denied the validity of existing land titles in Massachusetts ( which had been dependent on the old charter ) , restricted town meeting s , and actively promoted the Church of England in largely Puritan regions . He also enforced the Navigation Acts , unfavored laws that threatened the existence of certain trading practices of New England . The royal troops stationed in Boston whose officers included Anglicans and Roman Catholics were also mistreated . Some of the officers , considered supporters of the governor , abused the colonial militia they commanded . Meanwhile , in England , James became increasingly unpopular . The king alienated otherwise supportive Tories with his attempts to relax penal laws , and in 1687 issued the Declaration of Indulgence , establishing some freedom of religion , a move opposed by the Anglican church hierarchy . He increased the power of the regular army , an action seen by many Parliamentarians as a threat to their authority , and placed Catholics in important military positions . James also attempted to place sympathizers in Parliament who he hoped would repeal the Test Act , which required a strict Anglican religious test for many civil offices . With the birth of his son and potential successor James in June 1688 , some Whigs and Tories set aside their political differences and conspired to replace James with his Protestant son - in - law , William , Prince of Orange . The Dutch prince , who had tried fruitlessly to get James to reconsider his policies , agreed to an invasion , and the nearly bloodless revolution that followed in November and December 1688 established William and his wife Mary as co - rulers . The religious leaders of Massachusetts , led by Cotton and Increase Mather , were opposed to the rule of Andros , and they organized dissent targeted to influence the court in London . After King James published the Declaration of Indulgence , Increase Mather sent an appreciation letter to the king regarding the declaration , and suggested to other Massachusetts pastors that they also express gratitude to the king as a means to gain favor and influence . Ten pastors agreed to do so , and they decided to send Increase Mather to England to press their case against Andros . Despite dominion secretary Edward Randolph ' s repeated attempts to stop him ( including pressing criminal charges ) , Mather was clandestinely spirited aboard a ship bound for England in April 1688 . He and other Massachusetts agents were received by James , who promised in October 1688 that the colony ' s concerns would be addressed . The events of the revolution , however , halted this attempt to gain redress . The Massachusetts agents then petitioned the new monarchs and the Lords of Trade ( predecessors to the Board of Trade that oversaw colonial affairs ) for restoration of the Massachusetts charter . Mather furthermore convinced the Lords of Trade to delay notifying Andros of the revolution . He had already dispatched , to previous colonial governor Simon Bradstreet , a letter containing news of a report ( prepared before the revolution ) that the annulment of the Massachusetts charter had been illegal , and that the magistrates should " prepare the minds of the people for a change . " Rumors of the revolution apparently reached some individuals in Boston before official news arrived . John Nelson , a Boston merchant who would figure prominently in the revolt , wrote of the events in a letter dated late March , and the letter prompted a meeting of senior anti - Andros political and religious leaders in Massachusetts . Andros first received a warning of the impending revolt against his control while leading an expedition to fortify Pemaquid ( present - day Bristol , Maine ) , intending to protect the area against French and Indian attacks . In early January 1688 / 9 , he received a letter from James describing the Dutch military buildup . On January 10 he issued a proclamation warning against Protestant agitation and prohibiting an uprising against the dominion . The military force he led in Maine was composed of British regulars and militia from Massachusetts and Maine . The militia companies were commanded by regulars , who imposed harsh discipline that alienated the militiamen from their officers . Alerted to the meetings in Boston , and in receipt of unofficial reports of the revolution , Andros returned there from Maine in mid - March . Amid wild rumors that Andros had brought them to Maine as part of a so - called " popish plot " , the militia there mutinied , and those from Massachusetts began to make their way home . When a copy of a proclamation announcing the revolution reached Boston in early April , Andros had the messenger arrested , but his news was distributed , emboldening the people . Andros wrote to his commander at Pemaquid on April 16 that " there is a general buzzing among the people , great with expectation of their old charter " , even as he prepared to have the returning deserters arrested and shipped back to Maine . The threat of arrests by their own colonial militia increased tensions between the people of Boston and the dominion government . Revolt in Boston . At about 5 : 00 am on April 18 , militia companies began gathering outside Boston at Charlestown just across the Charles River and at Roxbury , located at the far end of the neck connecting Boston to the mainland . At about 8 : 00 am the Charlestown companies boarded boats and crossed the river , while the Roxbury companies marched down the neck and into the city . Simultaneously , conspirators from the Ancient and Honorable Artillery Company entered the homes of the regimental drummers in the city , confiscating their equipment . Joined by a growing mob , the militia companies met up at about 8 : 30 and began arresting dominion and regimental leaders . They eventually surrounded Fort Mary , where Andros was quartered . Among the first to be arrested was Captain John George of the HMS " Rose " , who came ashore between 9 : 00 and 10 : 00 , only to be met by a platoon of militia and the ship ' s carpenter , who had joined the rebels . When George demanded to see an arrest warrant , the militiamen drew their swords and took him into custody . By about 10 : 00 , most of the dominion and military officials either had been arrested or had fled to the safety of Castle Island or other fortified outposts . Boston Anglicans , including a churchwarden and an apothecary , were rounded up by the mob . Sometime before noon an orange flag was raised on Beacon Hill , signaling another 1 , 500 militiamen to enter the city . These troops formed up in the market square , where a declaration was read . In it , the leaders claimed to support " the noble Undertaking of the Prince of Orange " , and to rise up because of a " horrid " Popish Plot " " that had been uncovered . The old Massachusetts colonial leadership , headed by ex - governor Simon Bradstreet , then urged Governor Andros to surrender for his own safety , citing the mob of which they claimed to be " wholly ignorant " . He refused and instead tried to escape to the " Rose " . A boat that came ashore from the " Rose " was intercepted by militia , and Andros was forced back into Fort Mary . Negotiations ensued and Andros agreed to leave the fort to meet with the rebel council . Promised safe conduct , he was marched under guard to the townhouse where the council had assembled . There he was told ( as an anonymous account of the exchange described it ) that " they must and would have the Government in their own hands " , and that he was under arrest . He was taken to the home of dominion official John Usher , and held under close watch . The " Rose " and Fort William on Castle Island refused to surrender immediately . On the 19th , when the ship ' s crew on the " Rose " was told that the captain had planned to take the ship to France to join the exiled James , a struggle ensued , and the Protestants among the crew took down the ship ' s rigging . After the troops on Castle Island saw this , they surrendered . Aftermath . After Fort Mary fell on the 19th , Andros was moved there from Usher ' s house . He was confined with Joseph Dudley and other dominion officials until June7 , when he was transferred to Castle Island . A story circulated widely that he attempted an escape dressed in women ' s clothing . This was disputed by the Anglican minister in Boston , Robert Ratcliff , who claimed that story and others had " not the least foundation of Truth " , and that they were " falsehoods , and lies " propagated to " render the Governour odious to his people . " Andros did make a successful escape from Castle Island on August2 , after his servant bribed the sentries with liquor . He managed to flee to Rhode Island , but was recaptured soon thereafter and kept in what was virtually solitary confinement . He and others arrested in the wake of the revolt were held for 10 months before being sent to England for trial . Massachusetts agents in London refused to sign the documents listing the charges against Andros , so he was summarily acquitted and released . He later served as governor of Virginia and Maryland . Dissolution of the dominion . When the other New England colonies in the dominion were informed of the overthrow of Andros , pre - dominion colonial authorities moved to restore their former governments to power . Rhode Island and Connecticut resumed governance under their earlier charters , and Massachusetts resumed governance according to its vacated charter after being temporarily governed by a committee composed of magistrates , Massachusetts Bay officials , and a majority of Andros ' s council . The committee was disbanded after some Boston leaders felt that radical rebels held too much sway over it . New Hampshire was temporarily left without formal government and was controlled by Massachusetts and its governor , Simon Bradstreet , who served as " de facto " ruler of the northern colony . Plymouth also resumed its previous form of governance . During his captivity , Andros had been able to send a message to Francis Nicholson , his New York - based lieutenant governor . Nicholson received the request for assistance in mid - May , but most of his troops had been sent to Maine , and with rising tensions in New York , he was unable to take any effective action . Nicholson himself was overthrown by a faction led by Jacob Leisler , and he fled to England . Leisler governed New York until 1691 , when a detachment of troops arrived , followed by Henry Sloughter , commissioned governor by William and Mary . Sloughter had Leisler tried on charges of high treason ; he was convicted and executed . After the suppression of Leisler ' s Rebellion and the reinstatement of colonial governments in New England , no further effort was made by English officials to restore the " shattered " dominion . Once the " fait accompli " of Andros ' arrest was known , the discussion in London turned to dealing with Massachusetts and its revoked charter . Out of these discussions came the formation of the Province of Massachusetts Bay in 1691 , merging Massachusetts with the charterless Plymouth Colony and territories previously belonging to New York , including Nantucket , Martha ' s Vineyard , the Elizabeth Islands , and parts of Maine . Increase Mather was unsuccessful in his attempts to restore the old Puritan rule : the new charter called for an appointed governor and religious toleration .