Who was Sir Ferdinando Gorges?

   Sir Ferdinando Gorges (1566-1647) was an English soldier and colonizer, born in Somersetshire, entered the army at an early age, and distinguished himself in the French wars. He became interested in the New World, and was a member of the Plymouth Company, to which, together with the London Company, permission to establish settlements was granted in 1606. The first attempt at Sagadahoc failed; but when the charter was surrendered, Gorges was instrumental in securing the charter to the New England Council in 1620. In 1622 a grant was made to him and Captain John Mason of the territory between the Merrimac and Kennebec rivers. When the council surrendered its charter in 1635, Gorges was confirmed in the possession of the region between the Piscataqua and Kennebec rivers, and in 1639 the king granted him full governmental rights over the province of Maine.