Founding of Philadelphia
- When
- 1681–1682
- Where
- Province of Pennsylvania; Philadelphia
- Episodes
- 2
In 1682, William Penn, an English Quaker and advocate of religious freedom, founded Philadelphia. The city served as the capital of the colonial Province of Pennsylvania, established under a charter granted by King Charles II in 1681 to settle debts owed to Penn's father.
Episodes
- Charter Grant
King Charles II granted William Penn a charter for Pennsylvania in 1681 to offset debts owed to Penn's father.
- Founding of Philadelphia
William Penn founded Philadelphia in 1682, establishing it as the capital of the colonial Province of Pennsylvania.
Background and detail
Charter Background. In 1681, King Charles II granted William Penn a charter for the Pennsylvania colony as partial repayment of a debt owed to Penn's father, Sir William Penn. This grant included land corresponding to present-day Pennsylvania and Delaware, establishing the legal basis for the colony's creation.
Founding Event. Philadelphia was founded in 1682 by William Penn, who was an English Quaker and advocate of religious freedom. The city was established to serve as the capital of the colonial era Province of Pennsylvania, centralizing the administration of the new colony.
People involved
- William Penn · Founder of Philadelphia and the Province of Pennsylvania
- Charles II · King of England who granted the colonial charter
Sources
- Philadelphia Wikipedia, revision of 2026-09-21
- William Penn Wikipedia, revision of 2026-09-05
Machine-drafted from the cited Wikipedia passages and checked by a reviewing model, not by a human editor. Every passage cites the revision it was written from; dates and places follow those passages.