Background: From New Netherland to New York

After the English seized the former Dutch colony in 1664, New Amsterdam became New York and Fort Amsterdam was renamed Fort James. The change of flags brought uncertainty to towns shaped by Dutch Reformed worship, and to newer settlements on Long Island such as Hempstead, Flushing, and Southampton where a mix of congregations had already taken root. In this season, everyday believers—farmers, tradesmen, mothers and fathers—needed more than promises; they needed laws that protected ordinary faithfulness: gathering for worship, teaching children, and living peaceably with neighbors.

March 11, 1665: The New Legal Code

On March 11, 1665, English deputies meeting under Governor Richard Nicolls approved a comprehensive legal code for the colony, often linked with the “Duke’s Laws.” Among its provisions was a clear safeguard that Protestants were to practice their religious observances without hindrance. In a land where Dutch, English, and other settlers lived side by side, the code aimed at ordered liberty—freedom shaped by public peace and moral restraint, not chaos.

Nicolls’s administration sought stability, yet this protection also served a higher good: it acknowledged that conscience answers to God before it answers to magistrates. The courage here was not the loud kind, but the steady kind—leaders choosing restraint, and communities choosing worship over fear, trusting that God preserves His people through changing times and rulers.

“It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.” (Galatians 5:1)

Faith, Holiness, and the Growth of the Church

The safeguard encouraged believers to worship openly, to form congregations, and to pursue holiness without hiding. True liberty did not mean indifference to truth; it created space for Protestant churches to preach, administer the ordinances, and call families to repentance and new obedience. It also pressed Christians toward charity and self-government: to be known not for strife, but for steadfast devotion, honest labor, and neighborly peace.

“Live in freedom, but do not use your freedom as a cover-up for evil; live as servants of God.” (1 Peter 2:16)

Over time, such protections helped Christian communities endure, multiply, and send the light of the gospel across towns and waterways—trusting the Lord to build His church in every land.