What was the government like in Jamestown?

The type of government in Jamestown changed over time. Jamestown was established by a expedition sponsored by the Virginia Company, a royally-chartered company in England. The Virginia Company was essentially responsible for governing the colony at first, and they appointed a governor who would govern the colony along with a council. This structure persisted until 1619, when the governor, responding to the demands of the growing colony's landowners, convened a representative body, the House of...

The type of government in Jamestown changed over time. Jamestown was established by a expedition sponsored by the Virginia Company, a royally-chartered company in England. The Virginia Company was essentially responsible for governing the colony at first, and they appointed a governor who would govern the colony along with a council. This structure persisted until 1619, when the governor, responding to the demands of the growing colony's landowners, convened a representative body, the House of Burgesses, to meet at regular intervals to establish laws for the colony. Five years later the Virginia Colony lost control of the colony, as the Crown took its charter, assuming responsibility for naming the governor and approving laws passed by the House of Burgesses. After the Glorious Revolution, the capital of the colony moved from Jamestown to what would become known as Williamsburg (after King William III) and the size and influence of the Virginia legislature, dominated by gentry, would expand. But the general structure of the Virginia government was established by the establishment of the House of Burgesses at Jamestown in 1619 under the Virginia Company.