William and Mary in 1691 granted a new charter and united the Plymouth colony, Massachusetts, Maine, and Nova Scotia, in one colony called Massachusetts Bay.

This charter was in force when the Revolution opened.
SUMMARY 1.

The first colony established by the Plymouth Company (1607, on the coast of Maine) was a failure.
2.

Captain John Smith explored the New England coast and mapped it (1613), but did not succeed in planting any colonies.
3.

The permanent settlement of New England began with the arrival of a body of Separatists in the _Mayflower_ (1620), who founded the colony of Plymouth.
4.