Annapolis Roots. Religious Freedom, Chivalry in Naming, Slavery, and Wealth. Anomalies. MD.

Annapolis, Maryland, MD.  Roots of Annapolis. Annapolis' history and anomalies.

Annapolis' Roots in religious freedom, women, slavery, and Ego Alley.

Lord Baltimore's Religious Revenge.

1.  Annapolis, the town, has roots in religion.  As a colony, it reflected religious tolerance by the Roman Catholic Lord Baltimore in offering land there as a sanctuary for persecuted Puritans, their settlement known as Providence; and for his wife. Then came Protestant preeminence with naming for Queen Anne Stuart of England, and then what? Is that freedom of religious observance now tilted back in the Academy in favor of Lord Baltimore with the prominent placement of the sectarian chapel in Bancroft Hall, the huge common residence, see the disparity of Place for various religions at USNA, see Bancroft Hall, Annapolis, Naval Academy. Pride of Place for One.

2. Annapolis Roots in women.   Annapolis, after the Puritans lost center stage, also reflects, new interests as they arose, the chivalric nod to roles of women (the usual diminution) who furthered the rank of the men.  The child-bride of Lord Baltimore, Anne Arundell, who was age 13 at her marriage in England, inherited vast lands that her husband used to establish the Maryland colony.  Without that where would he be, pray tell? Her Anne Arundell's Towne became Annapolis later, however, for city of (polis) Anne.  This Anne was different, however. The town was now to be known for its original benefactress, but for Queen Anne Stuart of England.  See http://msa.maryland.gov/megafile/msa/speccol/sc3500/sc3520/002800/002811/html/2811bio.html/ 

So, tradition easily gave way to the new interest du jour.  Expedience, and pleasing the Powers of the time. This is not new -- colonies and their dominant towns changed names for those reasons frequently.  Ethnic backgrounds, politics.

3.  Annapolis' Roots in slavery.  CityDock, just outside the Naval Academy gates, shows other city roots. 

 The port here was used for the loading and unloading of slaves.  CityDock now displays a memorial to Alex Haley's Roots.  Alex Haley:  author, 1921-1992.  Read Roots.  It is not just for TV, see http://www.biography.com/people/alex-haley-39420/.  Alex Haley also wrote a biography of Malcolm X, documenting the struggles of black Americans during and after slavery,  but that aspect is not memorialized that I could see at Annapolis.  Just show cute kids, and not too close to each other.

Annapolis , Alex Haley memorial, Roots. CityDock

Kunta Kinte: a root-main character in Roots. You can sit on the bench and squirm around to read it.

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4.  Annapolis' Roots in Ego Alley.

This docking area in the larger marina is also a place where slaves were downloaded. It is at the end of the narrow waterway known as Ego Alley, see http://www.tripadvisor.com/Travel-g29494-d196116/Annapolis:Maryland:Ego.Alley.html.

This vast marina and CityDock sets a holiday mood, drink and spend invitation for the military overhang just on the next block. Enjoy a BLT with this local and splendid addition:  with fried softshell crab.  Roots in spending money.  Is this Washington-Military-Wall Street Whatever.  Ego Alley in motion.  Whose yacht?  This is Spring Day, out of Yakima Washington.  See http://www.dol.wa.gov/vehicleregistration/docvessels.html, as a start.  Little children in an inflatable motorized dinghy are enjoying the ego of Ego Alley.


 Spring Day, motor launch at CityDock, Annapolis, out of Yakima Washington

A yacht registered in Yakima.  Has it set wet foot there?  Or can it be registered by mail?  Scoot it through the Panama Canal to get here?

Annapolis.  What religion prevails:  not the Puritans, who lost Providence to Anne Arundell's Towne.  Not Anne Arundell's, Catholicism, who lost out to Queen Anne Stuart and her Protestantism.  Not Queen Anne who -- if a passerby is asked, might not even know who she was;  perhaps the military industrial complex.  But that idea depends on tracing the yachts so close to Washington DC and so easy to get away and not see.

Religion at Annapolis:

Lord Baltimore's religious revenge:  the chapel located right in the main residence hall, Bancroft Hall at http://worldwar1worldwar2.blogspot.com/2014/09/bancroft-hall-annapolis-role-of.html