Why did Roger Williams and Anne Hutchinson leave the Massachusetts bay colony?

Roger Williams and Anne Hutchinson, two prominent figures in early colonial America, left the Massachusetts Bay Colony for different reasons, both related to religious and ideological differences with the Puritan authorities.

1. Roger Williams: He was a Puritan minister with strong beliefs in the separation of church and state and advocated for the complete separation of the church from the English Crown. He also believed that the land belonged to the Native Americans and that it was unjustly taken by the colonists without proper compensation. Williams clashed with the Puritan leaders due to his dissenting views and criticisms of the colony's religious policies. He was eventually banished from the Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1635 due to his outspoken opinions. Williams went on to found Rhode Island in 1636, establishing it as a safe haven for religious freedom and the separation of church and state.
2. Anne Hutchinson: She was a charismatic religious leader who held meetings in her home, discussing religious and theological ideas that diverged from the established Puritan doctrine. Hutchinson’s teachings emphasized the concept of antinomianism, which challenged the Puritan belief in the importance of good works for salvation. Her growing influence and her criticism of the colony's ministers led to her trial in 1637, where she was charged with heresy and sedition. She was eventually excommunicated and banished from the Massachusetts Bay Colony. Hutchinson along with her followers settled in what is now Rhode Island and later in New York where she was killed in a conflict with Native Americans in 1643.

In both cases, Williams and Hutchinson were exiled from the Massachusetts Bay Colony due to their radical religious views and challenges to the religious and political authorities of the Puritan leaders. Their departures contributed to the shaping of religious freedom and the establishment of colonies that valued individual liberty and religious tolerance.