NEW ENGLANDBy Madison, Sarah, Emma and Anndean~Chapter 3; Section 2

The Beginning~• In the 1600’s, the Church of England was head of state • A group of people known as, "Separatists”, did not believe in

the church and wanted to separate from it• The Separatists wanted to form their own church with

different religious beliefs• Because of this, they were threatened with death for defying

the church (authority)• They set sail from Scrooby, England for Holland in 1608 • Holland was known to offer the freedom to practice any

religion

A Second Attempt~• Once in Holland, the Separatists were unhappy that they

would have to conform to Dutch society; this combined with the fact that they experienced discrimination in the job market lead them to seek out a new home

• After this failed attempt of re-settling, the Separatists tried again, deciding that this time they would move to Virginia

• The Pilgrims were quite poor and were not capable of coming up with the money needed to make this long journey so... they rallied financial support from fellow Separatists

• In return for financing the Separatist’s journey, the financers received a share of the profits made in America

The Journey~• So, the Separatists sailed back to Plymouth, England; where

their new journey began • July of 1620, the Separatists were granted permission by the

King to settle in Virginia• They booked two ships for the journey, “Speedwell” and

“Mayflower”• The ship “Speedwell” was in poor condition and was not

used in the voyage to Virginia, the 102 passengers crammed onto “ Mayflower” and set sail for their new life

Mayflower

Speedwell

A New Life~• On November 11th, 1620, land was spotted but, it was

not the Separatist’s intended destination of Virginia, instead, they ended up on coast of Massachusetts• November 11th is also the same day that the

Mayflower Compact was made and signed on the ship “Mayflower”; because the Separatists did not reach their intended destination, they did not have a patent for the land; they therefore considered themselves an independent government and drew up the compact• The Mayflower compact expressed that the

government is in power because of the people it governs (considered to be first democratic constitution in U.S.A)

A New Life~ [cont’d]

• After spotting land, a ‘scouting party’ was sent out to find suitable land • They travelled around the coast and eventually, on

December 11th, 1620, the Pilgrims found land that suited needs: fertile land, clean water and accessibility to the coast• December 16th, 1620, Pilgrims began building a new life;

named their colony, “Plymouth” after the port they descended from in England

The End of A Long Journey~• The first winter was quite difficult for the Pilgrims

because of 2 major factors:1) They were not accustomed to North America’s

weather conditions 2) They did not know how to live off the land; because of

this, about half of the settlers died• However after this difficult start, the Pilgrims learned

quickly and were able to thrive in their new land • Around 1630, more settlers came and as a result of the

increasing numbers in the Plymouth area, the colony later became apart of the Massachusetts Bay Colony

The First Thanksgiving~• Took place in 1621 as a result of a good harvest• It is believed that the first Thanksgiving derived

from England’s traditions of giving thanks • The celebration included the Pilgrims and

members of the Wampanoag tribe and lasted for a total of 3 days• The feast consisted of sea food, various types of

meat(deer, wild turkey, duck) and local fruit and vegetables

Facts About Thanksgiving~

* Thanksgiving wasn’t a consistent holiday until President Lincoln made it so in 1863; because of the civil war, he wanted to have a day of unity and patriotism, the date was set for the last Thursday of November* President Franklin Roosevelt decided to change the date of the holiday to the fourth Thursday of November; to allow a greater time period between the holiday and Christmas

Did you know?

Massachusetts Bay Company & the Charter~1625 – Charles I became the king of England

Wanted to suppress Puritanism

1629 – Puritans secured charter from king Allowed them to settle along the Massachusetts Bay

Great Migration~

1630-1640 – Great Migration Over 20 000 Puritans migrated to the New World

Many who migrated were familiesCame as congregations

Puritan Religion in the New World~• Were a Christian society• Wanted to create a “nation of saints”• Would not accept any other religion

Government & Churches~• Charter did not require the seat of government to

stay in England• It became the constitution of the colony• Massachusetts was ruled by:

• Governor• Deputy• A number of assistants

• Churches were organized under ministers

From England to Massachusetts~

• Unlike others, Massachusetts Bay Charter of head quarters or where shareholders meeting were• Taking advantage, shareholders voted to move

from New England to Massachusetts• Governor John Winthrop carried charter

across Atlantic ocean, where shareholders would have freedom from kings control

• Winthrop transformed from a trading company to commonwealth• First of its kind in America• At the start, few shareholders of company,

called “freeman”, held all power in colony• Under governor Winthrop, shareholders made

up the general court

Transformation~

• Soon more than 100 colonists demanded to be admitted to company as freemen• Under pressure, governor consented demands• In 1631, a law passed. Gave all puritan men

who were church members admission to general court as freemen• When population grew to large, they made a change

Passing the Law~

• Company allowed freemen in each town to elect 2 representative to General Court• What began with as directors meeting of

trading company ended as colonial legislative with power to make law

Continuing~

Introduction~• The Puritans did not want to pass on the right of

worshiping to people of other religions • Most of the Puritans had little tolerance for the

religious beliefs of others

Roger Williams~• He believed that the Puritans should not force their

religion on others and that everyone should be allowed to worship as they wanted• The church and state should work separately• He began to gain followers for what he believed in• He was soon discovered and banished in 1635 by

Governor John Winthrop because he was seen as a threat to the Puritan community• He fled from the colony of

Massachusetts

• He lived with an Algonquin Native American called the Narragansett• Many of the followers he had back in Massachusetts joined

him there• Since he had so many followers, he decided to make an

agreement with the tribe and buy their land so they could make a new colony that would uniquely allow any religion to be worshipped• This colony became Rhode Island, chartered in 1636• Rhode Island was the first ever colony that made the

church and the state completely separate

Anne Hutchinson~• She began to question the

Puritan’s interpretation of the Bible• Just as Roger Williams, she believed in the freedom of

religious belief• Hutchinson gained followers through a women’s group

she had • The Puritan officials heard what she had been doing• She was sent to trial and was later banished• She, her husband, children and followers went a settled

in Rhode Island with Roger Williams

Reverend John Wheelwright~• Just as Roger Williams and Anne Hutchinson, he also

believed in freedom of religion• He wanted to break free from the Puritan's controlling

State• He began to spread his beliefs • Puritan’s discovered what he was doing and banished

him• He and his followers settled in New Hampshire and

chartered it in 1623 as a new colony

Thomas Hooker~• Disagreed with the policy of allowing only male church

members to vote• The followers that wanted more freedom went with

Hooker to valley of the Connecticut River • This led to many more “River Towns” to be created

• This then lead to a new colony called Connecticut • In 1639, The Fundamental Orders of Connecticut

was created • It was set up just like Massachusetts Colony

except that voting rights and government was not only limited to church members