Question

Before the massachusetts bay colony became a royal colony, the right to vote was limited to a. all property-owning adult male residents of the colony who owned stock in the massachusetts bay company. b. all adults who agreed to abide by the legal code of the colony. c. all property-owning adult males who were members of the puritan church. d. all residents of the colony who were members of the puritan church.

Answer 1

In my opinion, the correct answer is C. All property-owning adult males who were members of the Puritan church. These people were called "freemen", which didn't only mean that they were free in the sense that they were not slaves; it also meant they were male, property owners, and Puritans. At its beginnings, the Massachusetts Bay Colony was very strict in religious terms, not tolerating members of other religions such as Baptists, Quakers, etc. The franchise was liberalized only after the English Restoration.