Edmund Andros, a soldier, administrator, courtier, and diplomat, served a succession of Stuart monarchs in the Old and New Worlds. This study differs from most past assessments of Andros that portray him in a negative light. Instead it concentrates on his role in protecting and defending England's New World colonies as governor of New York, the Dominion of New England, and Virginia. His most significant achievement in New York was to avoid an Indian war and to conclude the Covenant Chain agreement with the Five Nations of the Iroquois. In New England, he brought a united government to a wide territory, while in Virginia he provided for the defense of the province during King William's War. In all three gubernatorial posts, he set a standard for ethical Indian relations. Adversely affected in his American governorships by events in England, Andros's career illustrates the close relationship between Old and New Worlds. Andros left a better defined, more secure empire for England. The structure of that empire is clearly reflected in a study of his life.