The Province of New York (1664–1776) is a British crown colony that originally includes all of the present U.S. states of New York, New Jersey, Delaware and Vermont, along with inland portions of Connecticut, Massachusetts and Maine, as well as eastern Pennsylvania.
The majority of this land is soon reassigned by the Crown, leaving territory that includes the valleys of the Hudson and Mohawk Rivers, and Vermont.
The territory of western New York is Iroquois land, also disputed between the English colonies and New France, and that of Vermont is disputed with the Province of New Hampshire.
The province results from the Dutch Republic surrender of Provincie Nieuw-Nederland to the Kingdom of England in 1664.
Immediately after, the province is renamed for James, Duke of York, brother of Charles II of England.
The colony is one of the Middle Colonies, and ruled at first directly from England.
The New York Provincial Congress of local representatives declares itself the government on May 22, 1775, first referred to the "State of New York" in 1776, and ratifies the New York State Constitution in 1777.
While the British regain New York City during the American Revolutionary War using it as its military and political base of operations in North America, and a British governor is technically in office, much of the remainder of the former colony is held by the Patriots.
British claims on any part of New York end with the Treaty of Paris of 1783.
After the American Revolution, the former colony becomes the State of New York.
