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Amanda Anderson
Mrs. Professor
Freshman Studies
1 October 2015
Anne Hutchinson
Anne Hutchinson was seen an opinionated and outspoken woman (“People and Ideas:
Anne Hutchinson”). Mrs. Hutchinson was the leader of a Puritan religious group known as the
Antinomians. Her fellow Antinomians, a group seen as rebels or those against the law, were not
favored by the Puritan leaders and ministers. Questioning the religious teachings and practices of
the Massachusetts Bay Colony Puritan ministers and community leaders led to her banishment.
As seen in her teachings and actions, Anne Marbury Hutchinson had a powerful influence on
religious freedom and tolerance.
In 1591, Anne Hutchinson was born in Alford, Lincolnshire, England with the given
name Anne Marbury (Maier, “Hutchinson, Anne Marbury”). Her father, an English minister,
greatly influenced her religious beliefs and convictions (“People and Ideas: Anne Hutchinson”).
A year after the death of her father, Anne married her husband, William Hutchinson, in 1612.
Shortly after they were married, William and Anne began traveling to hear the sermons of the
Puritan preacher, John Cotton. During this time, many Puritans were settling in Boston,
Massachusetts due to exile. John Cotton also decided to settle in Boston to begin ministering to
those exiled. William and Anne Hutchinson followed the minister, John Cotton, and settled in
Massachusetts (“Anne Marbury Hutchinson”). The move to Massachusetts set the stage for the
beginning of Anne’s religious influence on people.
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Anne’s training as a midwife and nurse enabled her to hold meetings in the family home
to discuss the religious teachings of the Puritan minister, John Cotton. Many members of the
colony trusted Anne Hutchinson and agreed with what she said in regards to Cotton’s sermons.
Approximately, sixty people attended the meetings held on a weekly basis at Anne’s home. Now,
these meetings were not favored by the Puritan leaders. During that time, a woman outspoken
enough to discuss her religious beliefs in public forums was seen as troublesome, something out
of the norm (“People and Ideas: Anne Hutchinson”). The leaders also believed what was
discussed in the meetings challenged the leadership of the colony; therefore, the meetings were
seen as dangerous. One example of a challenging belief discussed by the Antinomians included
Mrs. Hutchinson’s view that one is not favored by God by merely doing good deeds. Another
Antinomian belief challenging the Puritan leaders and minister was the idea that God
communicated with all people, not just the leaders and minister, directly. (Maier, “Hutchinson,
Anne Marbury”). These meetings and shared beliefs led to the court trial and verdict to banish
Mrs. Hutchinson from the Massachusetts Bay Colony.
The belief of Hutchinson and the Antinomians, God communicating directly with people,
led to the revelation the Bible could be interpreted by anyone. This angered and troubled the
Puritan leaders, believing the Bible was the ultimate authority and could only be interpreted by
ministers, and divided the members of the colony. The leaders saw this as a personal attack and
charged Anne with sedition in 1637. After the trial, the assembly voted on banishment. After
banishment, the Hutchinson family found refuge with the Roger Williams’ colony in Providence,
Rhode Island (“People and Ideas: Anne Marbury”). The Antinomians bought the island from the
Native Americans, and it was led by William Coddlington. Coddlington was a dictator and
forced his religious beliefs on the members of the colony. Anne Hutchinson led a movement to
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force out Coddlington and was successful. Her husband, William Hutchinson, was the new
leader. After her husband’s death, Anne feared being apprehended by the authorities, and fled
with her children to New York. There was great conflict in New York between the Native
Americans and the Dutch which led to the massacre by the Native Americans that killed Mrs.
Hutchinson and all but one of her children in 1643.
Due to her ability to lead people and spread her religious beliefs, Mrs. Anne Marbury
Hutchinson is seen by historians to be the leading support and a great example of religious
freedom in action (“Anne Marbury Hutchinson”). From the religious discussions she led in her
home to her movement to overturn a dictator of a leader, Mrs. Hutchinson was truly an
influential person and a woman to be respected and feared. John Winthrop, the leader of the
Massachusetts Bay Colony, used the following words to describe Anne Hutchinson: “a woman
of haughty and fierce carriage, of a nimble wit and active spirit, and a very voluble tongue, more
bold than a man” (“People and Ideas: Anne Hutchinson”). At the front of the State House in
Boston, a statue in her honor was erected in 1922. Part of the inscription reads “courageous
exponent of civil liberty and religious toleration” (“Anne Marbury Hutchinson”). A person’s
freedom to express his religious beliefs may be partially contributed to this great woman, Anne
Marbury Hutchinson.
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Works Cited
"Anne Marbury Hutchinson." Office of the Secretary of State: Nellie M. Gorbea:. N.p.,
12 Sept. 2015. Web. 21 Sept. 2015.
<http://sos.ri.gov/library/history/famous/hutchinson/>.
Maier, Pauline. "Hutchinson, Anne Marbury." World Book Advanced. World Book,
29 June 2015. Web. 21 Sept. 2015.
<http://www.worldbookonline.com/advanced/article?id=ar268180>.
"People & Ideas: Anne Hutchinson." God in America: People: Anne Hutchinson | PBS. PBS,
27 July 2015. Web. 21 Sept. 2015. <http://www.pbs.org/godinamerica/people/annehutchinson.html>.