ca. 5 May 1642–ca. 1710 John Archdale, colonial governor and
proprietary shareholder of Carolina, was born in England, the
son of Thomas and Mary Nevill Archdale and the grandson of
Richard Archdale, a London merchant. Archdale's first connection
with America came through the marriage of his sister Mary to
Ferdinando Gorges the younger, one of the heirs to the
proprietorship of Maine. Claim to the proprietary was contested
by the Massachusetts government, which annexed Maine in 1652 and
governed the province until the restoration of Charles II, when
Gorges moved to make good his claim. Gorges ordered Charles II
proclaimed in the province, commissioned civil officers in
opposition to the Massachusetts ones, and appealed to the Privy
Council for confirmation of his proprietary rights. When, in
1664, Gorges received confirmation of his title to Maine, he
sent Archdale to make good his claim against Massachusetts and
to settle the government of Maine on a sure foundation under
authority of his charter. Archdale's