Podcast – The Pilgrims – Part 1

The Pilgrims – Part 1
In this episode the author talks about the beginning of the Pilgrim’s journey to the New World.
From the Book:
Colonial American History Stories – 1215 – 1664

Transcript:

Greetings, in this episode I talk about the beginning of the Pilgrim’s journey to the New World.

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The first charter granted to the Pilgrims was the First Pierce Patent on February 02, 1620. This patent granted by the Virginia Company of London to John Pierce never took effect. The Pilgrims sailed in September 1620 and reached the New World by early November. However bad weather and bad luck forced them to land in an area outside the land granted to them by the charter. Governor John Bradford drew up the Mayflower Compact on November 11, 1620 to provide a governmental framework in lieu of the invalid charter. It would not be until April 1621 to get a charter that covered their colony and 1630 before they received a patent that put them on firm legal ground.

July 22, 1620 – Pilgrims Depart Delfshaven, Netherlands for England
The group of Englishmen that Americans have come to call the Pilgrims left England to live in the Netherlands in 1607 because of religious persecution in England. After much discussion and soul searching, the congregation decided to leave the Netherlands and migrate to the new worlds across the Atlantic Ocean in 1620. After months of negotiations, the congregation left Delfshaven, Netherlands for England. From there they would board the Mayflower and the Speedwell to sail into the new lands to the west.
Religious Persecution
The Pilgrims did not call themselves Pilgrims. That term did not originate until the early Nineteenth Century. Their origins were at a congregation at Scrooby, Nottinghamshire, England whose ministers, Richard Clifton and John Robinson began teaching a policy of separatism from the Anglican Church around 1586. Under the 1559 Act of Uniformity, it was illegal not to attend services of the Anglican Church. Disobedience to the law meant fines and possible imprisonment. The early non-conformists in Scrooby became known as Separatists and suffered severe religious persecution. Thus, hearing that the Netherlands were more tolerant of religious differences, the group moved there in 1607 to escape England.
Decision to Leave
They had settled in Leiden, Holland, which had about 100,000 inhabitants at the time. Leiden University in the city provided jobs for many, and many more managed to work as printers, brewers and as textile workers. Others struggled to find employment in the city. They were also troubled because their children were growing up Dutch. They feared losing their English identity. Another European war loomed between the Netherlands and Spain, a conflict in which they did not wish to involve themselves. So, in the words of their leader at the time, William Bradford, they decided to leave “that goodly & pleasante citie which had been their resting place for near 12 years; but they knew they were pilgrimes, & looked not much on those things, but lift up their eyes to ye heavens, their dearest cuntrie, and quieted their spirits.” Thus, later historians used Bradford’s term, pilgrim, to designate the group of separatists that migrated from England to the Netherlands, and finally the land that became Plymouth, Massachusetts.
Negotiations and Departure
The leaders to of the Leiden separatists opened negotiations with the Virginia Company of London to allow them to migrate to the New World. On February 02, 1620, the Virginia Company granted the Separatists a patent allowing them to settle in the new lands across the Atlantic. They departed Delfshaven, Netherlands on the ship Speedwell for their first destination, Northampton, England on July 22, 1620.

The episode is based upon my book, Colonial American History Stories – 1215 – 1664, available on the web site, http://www.mossyfeetbooks.com. The book is the first book in the 6 volume Timeline of United States History Series . Discover some of the famous and almost forgotten historic stories of America. The story begins with the signing of the Magna Carta in 1215 and the beginnings of the concept of limited government and ends, for now, with the beginning of the American Revolution in 1775. The articles in the book have much more detail as well as articles not included in this podcast series.
I hope you enjoyed this podcast and thank you for listening