The province had originally been settled by Europeans as part of New Netherland but came under English rule after the surrender of Fort Amsterdam in 1664, becoming a proprietary colony.

The surrender of Fort Amsterdam in September 1664 gave control over the entire Mid-Atlantic region to the English as part of the Second Anglo-Dutch War.

Director-General of New Netherland Peter Stuyvesant, unable to rouse a military defense, relinquished control of the colony and was able in the articles of transfer to secure guarantees for property rights, laws of inheritance, and freedom of religion.

In March 1664, King Charles II granted his brother, James, the Duke of York, a Royal colony that covered New Netherlands and present-day Maine.

[9][10] The two proprietors of New Jersey attempted to attract more settlers to move to the province by granting sections of lands to settlers and by passing the Concession and Agreement, a 1665 document that granted religious freedom to all inhabitants of New Jersey;[11] under the British government, there was no such religious freedom as the Church of England was the state church.

This forced Berkeley to sell West Jersey to John Fenwick and Edward Byllynge, two English Quakers.

Many more Quakers made their homes in New Jersey, seeking religious freedom from English (Church of England) rule.

Edmund Andros, governor of New York, attempted to gain authority over East Jersey after the death of Sir George Carteret in 1680.

However, he was unable to remove the position of governorship from Governor Phillip Carteret and subsequently moved to attack him and brought him to trial in New York.

After news of the overthrow of James II by William of Orange in the Glorious Revolution of 1688 reached Boston, the colonists rose up in rebellion, and the Dominion was dissolved in 1689.

Border wars were not unusual in the early days of settlements of the colonies and originated in conflicting land claims.

Because of ignorance, willful disregard, and legal ambiguities, such conflicts arose involving local settlers until a final settlement was reached.

[16] The American Revolutionary War was underway, and General George Washington recently had been defeated in New York, putting the state in danger of invasion.