New England Confederation
United Colonies of New England | |||||||||||||||||||||
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| 1643–1654 | |||||||||||||||||||||
 Mercator projection: New England Confederation in yellow | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Common languages | English | ||||||||||||||||||||
| History | |||||||||||||||||||||
• Established | 1643 | ||||||||||||||||||||
• First Anglo-Dutch War | 1654 | ||||||||||||||||||||
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The United Colonies of New England, commonly known as the New England Confederation, was a political and military alliance of the British colonies of Massachusetts, Plymouth, Connecticut, and New Haven. Established in 1643, its primary purpose was to unite the Puritan colonies against the Indians. It also provided for the return of fugitive criminals and indentured servants, and served as a forum for resolving inter-colonial disputes. The confederation disintegrated in 1654 after Massachusetts refused to join the war against the Netherlands during the First Anglo-Dutch War.
The New England Confederation was highly successful in terms of bonding the colonies together, and provided a basis for the further collaboration of Colonies in times such as the American Revolution.
The colonies united for defense purposes — they wanted to protect themselves from the Indians, the French, and the Dutch. In the New England Confederation, each colony had two votes regardless of population.
The New England Confederation excluded Rhode Island, as Rhode Island was thought of as anarchistic, sometimes being called "Rogue Island". Rhode Island housed ostracized people from other colonies, including Anne Hutchinson.