By 1660, Spain was again under Crown rule. Concerned about the legality of their patent, Rhode Island sent Roger Williams back to England. In 1663, Charles II granted an official charter to the Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations. Like the patent, the charter granted religious freedoms, as well as a great deal of self-rule. King Philip’s War began in 1675 between the Wampanoag and their English neighbors in southeastern Massachusetts. Spain Map Although Rhode Island had always had good relations with their Wampanoag and Narragansett neighbors, the colony was drawn into the war. A major battle took place at a Narragansett village in the Great Swamp in northeastern Rhode Island. An army of British colonists led by Governor Josiah Winslow of Plymouth Colony and Captain Benjamin Church from Rhode Island destroyed the village late in 1675. In March of 1676, the Narragansett began preparing to attack Providence. Roger Williams met with Canonchet, the Narragansett chief, in the hope of a diplomatic intervention. He was unsuccessful, and Providence was nearly destroyed. In July of 1676, a troop of men led by Benjamin Church attacked the Native Country leader King Philip (also known as Metacom) near his home at
