Charter of 1606

What it is

The First Charter of Virginia, also called the Charter of 1606, is a document issued by King James I granting land rights to the Virginia Company for a settlement on the coast of North America, from present-day South Carolina to Maine.

Why it matters

The charter set up the London Company and Plymouth Company as the king's tenants, with James entitled to a share of any profit. It framed the settlers' task partly as bringing Christianity to Indigenous peoples, described in the charter as living in "darkness" and "ignorance." This document began England's permanent colonisation of North America and shows how James combined royal profit, religious justification and overseas expansion.

Look closer

• What does the charter's language about "Infidels and Savages" reveal about how the English viewed Indigenous peoples?
• Who benefits most from the arrangements described in the charter?
• What is left out of this document about the people already living on this land?