Proprietary colony

A proprietary colony was a type of colonial administration in British America during the 17th century, and in the East Indies until the 1850s. In the English overseas possessions, all land belonged to the Crown, which held ultimate authority over their management. All English colonial territories were partitioned by the Crown via royal charters into one of three types: proprietary, royal, or charter. Under the proprietary system, individuals or companies (often a joint-stock company) were granted commercial charters by the Crown to establish overseas colonies. These proprietors were then granted the authority to select the governors and other officials in the colony.

This type of indirect rule eventually fell out of favour as the sociopolitical situation in England's American colonies gradually stabilised and administrative difficulties eased, or due to the proprietary company's administrative or economic failure. Successive English sovereigns sought to solidify their power and authority, and gradually converted all proprietary colonies to Crown colonies, which were administered by colonial officials appointed by the government in London. By the 18th century, most former proprietary colonies had been converted into Crown colonies.