Photo: Polegreen Walk of Religious Liberty

Photographer: Bernard Fisher
Taken: July 4, 2010
Caption: Polegreen Walk of Religious Liberty
Additional Description: 64–304 Rome begins persecution of Jews and Christians but the underground Christian church thrives
312 Emperor Constantine converts to Christianity and allows limited religious toleration
391 Christianity becomes official religion of Rome
1478 Spanish Inquisition begins persecution of Jews and heretics
1490s Spain expels Muslims and Portugal expels Jews
1517 Martin Luther nails his 95 theses to the door of church at Wittenberg
1534 King Henry VIII renounces papal authority and becomes head of the Church of England
1541 John Calvin introduces Protestant Reformation to Geneva
1572 St. Bartholomew’s Day massacre of Protestants in France
1598 King Henry IV in France issues the Edict of Nantes granting Protestants freedom of worship
1607 English colonize Virginia and establish the Church of England as the official church
1620s–1640s Separatist Pilgrims and Puritans colonize New England
1660 Virginia House of Burgesses passes first laws restricting religious liberty of Quakers
1685 King Louis XIV in France rescinds the Edict of Nantes, prompting a mass exodus of Huguenots
1689 John Locke authors A Letter Concerning Toleration that becomes a foundation in the quest for religious freedom
1689 English Parliament passes the Act of Toleration allowing Protestants dissenting from the Church of England limited freedom of worship
1699 Virginia House of Burgesses confirms the Act of Toleration
1699 Presbyterian minister Francis Makemie is licensed to preach in Accomack County
1700 French Protestant refugees, called Huguenots, settle on the James River west of Richmond
1740 First Great Awakening comes to Virginia with the preaching of George Whitefield
1740s Samuel Morris, David Rice, Stephen Leacy and Thomas Watkins lead meetinghouses in Hanover County and vicinity
1743 William (One Eye) Robinson, Presbyterian missionary from New Castle, Pa, preaches at Samuel Morris’s Polegreen meetinghouse
1747 Presbyterian minister Samuel Davies is licensed to preach by Governor William Gooch
1748-1755 Presbyterian dissenters in central Virginia are harassed by the established Anglican Church
1748-1759 Samuel Davies becomes minister at Polegreen and preaches elsewhere in central Virginia. Patrick Henry hears Davies preach at Polegreen
1754- 1759 During the French and Indian War, Governor Robert Dinwiddie names Samuel Davies the best military recruiter in the colony
1755 Hanover Presbytery is founded here at Polegreen
1758 Presbyterians are assured by Governor Faquier that their rights will be respected
1776 Virginia’s Revolutionary Convention adopts Declaration of Rights guaranteeing free exercise of religion
1776 George Washington leads Colonial and French forces in revolution against English rule
1776 Baptists in Virginia begin campaign to disestablish the Church of England
1785 James Madison authors A Memorial and Remonstrance Against Religious Assessments promoting the free exercise of religion
1786 Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom, authored by Thomas Jefferson, is adopted
1791 Virginia General Assembly ratifies Bill of Rights; First Amendment to U.S. Constitution guarantees free exercise of religion
Submitted: July 5, 2010, by Bernard Fisher of Richmond, Virginia.
Database Locator Identification Number: p116008
File Size: 1.096 Megabytes

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