by David White

Charlestonians say the confluence of the Ashley and Cooper Rivers forms the Atlantic Ocean. Students in South Carolina schools learn in state history class that the rivers are named for Anthony Ashley Cooper, who was one of “the Eight Lords Proprietors.” However, it is not usually taught that the “Province of Carolina” (from the Latin “Carolus” for Charles) was conceived in regicide and almost stillborn. We take a look back at the times and the profile of “Lord Ashley,” as he came to be known.

By 1640, Europe was embroiled in bitter religious strife between emerging Protestants, with notions of reviving classical republican governance, and entrenched Roman Catholic monarchies, for the establishment (read “appropriation”) of colonies around the world. In 1642, Civil war broke out in Great Britain between Royalists and Parliamentarians, resulting in the execution of King Charles I and the flight of his heir, Charles II, to exile in Amsterdam.

Anthony Ashley Cooper, a wily politician of the era, was flexible enough to change with the prevailing winds. He was a member of the House of Commons during the Long Parliament from 1640 until 1660. In the Civil War, he fought as a Royalist, then switched to the Parliamentary side in 1644. He was a member of the Rump Parliament that arranged for the trial and execution of Charles I in 1649. Then, he served not only on the Council of State during the Protectorate of Oliver Cromwell (1653 -1658) but also, in 1660, in the Convention Parliament that determined to restore the monarchy. He was one of twelve MP’s who travelled to the Dutch Republic to invite Charles II to resume the throne. Shortly before his coronation, Charles II made him Lord Ashley Cooper, 1st Earl of Shaftsbury. Lord Ashley then moved from the House of Commons to the House of Lords in 1661 and served the crown as Chancellor of the Exchequer from 1661 to 1672 and later as Lord Chancellor of England.

At the time of Charles II’s restoration, England had colonies in the Caribbean, Canada, New England, and Virginia, even though much of the new world was claimed by Spain, Portugal, France, the Dutch Republic, and others. The English crown had no legitimate title to the continent of North America, which perhaps made it easier for Charles II to grant a huge territory to his political allies.

On March 24, 1663, as a reward to eight key supporters of the restoration, Charles II issued a charter, whose first article contained the following florid introduction:

The grant covered a vast area, including what is today North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia and lands westward to the Pacific Ocean, which, however, was not necessarily of great value or importance at the time. In fact, the birth of the colony was slow and uncertain, as the Proprietors, although “excited with a laudable and pious zeal,” were for a long time unwilling to risk significant investment in the venture. None of them ever visited South Carolina. The colony probably would not have materialized without the strong interest of Lord Ashley. Ashley finally convinced the others to make relatively modest commitments that financed the voyage of the first group of about 90 settlers, who founded Charles Towne in 1670 on the south side of the Ashley River (the site now known as the “Charles Towne Landing”).

Within a few years, the settlers were joined by colonists from Barbados. The settlement was later moved to the safety of Oyster Point, on the peninsula between the two rivers, where the old section of the Holy City (re-named “Charleston”) now stands. Its street plan was specified by Lord Ashley. In 1680, the first French Huguenot refugees arrived. The settlement grew more rapidly than other settlements in Carolina due in large part to a superior harbor and easy access to trade with the West Indies. It became the principal seat of government for the entire province.

One of the most important aspects of the life of Lord Ashley was his relationship with the now famous philosopher, John Locke, who was to become his personal physician and secretary. In 1669 Lord Ashley and Locke drafted The Fundamental Constitutions of Carolina, which provided a climate of tolerance that greatly affected Charleston’s early development and led to immigration of such diverse groups of dissenters as French Huguenots, Baptists, English Presbyterians, and Sephardic Jews.