Bradford’s Of Plymouth Plantation
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How would you describe the character of the Pilgrims / Puritans?
The Pilgrims had broken away from the Anglican Church of England and were called Separatists. While puritans of 1630 wanted to remain a part of the Anglican Church, but they gradually moved to complete separation of church and state. Puritans and pilgrims finally joined into one colony.
The pilgrims/Puritans shared several characteristics which include: they thought themselves a chosen people, opposed pleasure and arts, were intolerant of others not of their views, made laws about private morality, and drove from their colonies all who disagreed with them. For example, Roger Williams was banished from Massachusetts Bay Colony in winter for his views on religious toleration.
They were patriotic. The main reason the Pilgrims/Puritans moved to America was to have the freedom to worship, and they did not mind being under the colonists as long as they had the right to worship. They were also fed up with their children working. Another leader, William Bradford, said they were becoming “decrepit in their early youth; the vigor of nature being consumed in the very bud as it were.” Unlike the Puritans of England, the Puritans at Plymouth were less cruel and more open-minded. Their punishments do sound harsh, but punishments were harsh in 17th-century England as well. People were branded in the hand there as well as in New England.
The harsh side of Puritans, such as whipping, began to be replaced with fines in the New World. Don't use plagiarised sources.Get your custom essay just from $11/page
And although capital punishment was on the statute books, it was probably used less than in England because of worries about the small populations of the colonies. The authorities did not execute if there was a way around it.
The pilgrims and puritans were very respectful of the native people and also very dependent on them. The evidence of the great friendship between two peoples – Plymouth and the Wampanoags – was stable for at least 15 or 16 years. That is until thousands of settlers started pouring into New England – 20,000 between 1630 and 1640.