After years of shifting control by the Dutch, Swedes, and English,
Delaware came under permanent English rule in 1674. It was part of the Duke of
York's colonial lands, and thus was a proprietary colony.
It became known as the Three Lower Counties on Delaware.
In 1682, the Duke of York
transferred title to his territory on the west side of the Delaware River
to William Penn. William Penn already held the province (colony) of
Pennsylvania as a grant from the Duke of York's brother, King Charles II.
When William Penn arrived in Pennsylvania in late 1682,
he controlled two different colonies. He could not join the two
colonies into one because he had received each under different terms. He
did, however, set up an
assembly that included delegates from both Pennsylvania and Delaware. This was the
first time Delawareans took part in representative government.
Penn hoped that the assembly with members from both colonies would
continue permanently, but tensions between Pennsylvania and Delaware arose almost
immediately. After more than twenty years of conflict, Delaware elected its
own one-house assembly in 1704.
For the rest of the
colonial period, Delaware had its own legislature but shared a governor
with Pennsylvania.
The governor of Pennsylvania, however, rarely visited Delaware and did not play a
big role in its government.
