Mayflower
Mayflower was an English sailing ship that transported a group of English families, known today as the Pilgrims, from England to the New World in 1620. After 10 weeks at sea, Mayflower, with 102 passengers and a crew of about 30, reached what is today the United States, dropping anchor near the tip of Cape Cod, Massachusetts, on, 1620.
Differing from their contemporary Puritans, the Pilgrims chose to separate themselves from the Church of England, which forced them to pray in private. They believed that its resistance to reform and its Roman Catholic past left it beyond redemption. Starting in 1608, a group of English families left England for the Netherlands, where they could worship freely. By 1620, the community determined to cross the Atlantic for America, which they considered a "new Promised Land", where they would establish Plymouth Colony.
The Pilgrims had originally hoped to reach America by early October using two ships, but delays and complications meant they could use only one, Mayflower. Arriving in November, they had to survive unprepared through a harsh winter.
Local indigenous peoples assisted the colonists in food gathering, however only half of the original Pilgrims survived the first winter at Plymouth owing to an outbreak of disease. The following year, those who survived celebrated the colony's first fall harvest along with 90 Wampanoag Native American people, an occasion declared in centuries later the first American Thanksgiving. Before disembarking from Mayflower, the Pilgrims wrote and signed the Mayflower Compact, an agreement that established a rudimentary government, in which each member would contribute to the safety and welfare of the planned settlement. As one of the earliest colonial vessels, the ship has become a cultural icon in the history of the United States.
Motivations for the voyage
A congregation of approximately 400 English Protestants living in exile in Leiden, Holland, were dissatisfied with the failure of the Church of England to reform what they felt were many excesses and abuses. But rather than work for change in England, they chose to live as Separatists in religiously tolerant Holland in 1608. As separatists, they were considered illegal radicals by their home country of England.The government of Leiden was recognized for offering financial aid to reformed churches, whether English, French or German, which made it a sought-after destination for Protestant intellectuals. Many of the separatists were illegal members of a church in Nottinghamshire, England, secretly practicing their Puritan form of Protestantism. When they learned that the authorities were aware of their congregation, church members fled in the night with little more than the clothes they were wearing, and clandestinely made it to Holland.
Life in Holland became increasingly difficult for the congregation. They were forced into menial and backbreaking jobs, such as cleaning wool, which led to a variety of health afflictions. In addition, a number of the country's leading theologians began engaging in open debates which led to civil unrest, instilling the fear that Spain might again place Holland's population under siege, as it had done years earlier. England's James I subsequently formed an alliance with Holland against Spain, with a condition outlawing independent English church congregations in Holland. In aggregate, these became the separatists' motivating factors to sail for the New World, which would have the added benefit of being beyond the reach of King James and his bishops.
Their desire to travel to America was considered audacious and risky, as previous attempts to settle in North America had failed. Jamestown, founded in 1607, saw most of its settlers die within the first year. 440 of the 500 new arrivals died of starvation during the first six months of winter. The Puritan separatists also learned of the constant threat of attacks by indigenous peoples. But despite all the arguments against traveling to this new land, their conviction that God wanted them to go held sway: "We verily believe and trust the Lord is with us," they wrote, "and that he will graciously prosper our indeavours, according to the simplicity of our hearts therein."
Voyage
Leaving Holland
After deciding to leave Holland, they planned to cross the Atlantic using two purchased ships. A small ship with the name Speedwell would first carry them from Leiden to England. The larger Mayflower would then be used to transport most of the passengers and supplies the rest of the way.File:Embarkation of the Pilgrims.jpg|thumb|Pilgrims John Carver, William Bradford and Myles Standish at prayer during their voyage to North America. 1844 painting by Robert Walter Weir.
Not all of the Separatists were able to depart, as many did not have enough time to settle their affairs and their budgets were too meager to buy the necessary travel supplies. The congregation therefore decided that the younger and stronger members should go first, with others possibly following in the future. Although the congregation had been led by John Robinson, who first proposed the idea of emigrating to America, he chose to remain in Leiden to care for those who could not make the voyage.
In explaining to his congregation why they should emigrate, Robinson used the analogy of the ancient Israelites leaving Babylon to escape bondage by returning to Jerusalem, where they would build their temple. "The Pilgrims and Puritans actually referred to themselves as God's New Israel", writes Peter Marshall. It was therefore considered the destiny of the Pilgrims and Puritans to similarly build a "spiritual Jerusalem" in America.
When it was time to leave, the ship's senior leader, Edward Winslow, described the scene of families being separated at the departure: "A flood of tears was poured out. Those not sailing accompanied us to the ship, but were not able to speak to one another for the abundance of sorrow before parting." William Bradford, another leader who would be the second governor of the Plymouth Colony, similarly described the departure:
The trip to the south coast of England took three days, where the ship took anchor at Southampton on, 1620. From there, the Pilgrims first laid eyes on their larger ship, Mayflower, as it was being loaded with provisions.
''Speedwell'' and ''Mayflower''
Carrying about 65 passengers, Mayflower left London in mid-July 1620. The ship then proceeded down the Thames to the south coast of England, where it anchored at Southampton, Hampshire. There she waited for the planned rendezvous on July 22 with the Speedwell, coming from Holland with members of the Leiden congregation. Although both ships planned to depart for America by the end of July, a leak was discovered on Speedwell, which had to be repaired.The ships set sail for America around August 5, but Speedwell sprang another leak shortly after, which necessitated the ships' return to Dartmouth for repairs. They made a new start after the repairs, but more than 200 miles beyond Land's End at the southwestern tip of England, Speedwell sprang a third leak. It was now early September, and they had no choice but to abandon Speedwell and make a determination on her passengers. This was a dire event, as vital funds had been wasted on the ship, which were considered very important to the future success of their settlement in America. Both ships returned to Plymouth, England, where 20 Speedwell passengers joined the now overcrowded Mayflower, while the others returned to Holland.
They waited for seven more days until the wind picked up. William Bradford was especially worried: "We lie here waiting for as fair a wind as can blow... Our victuals will be half eaten up, I think, before we go from the coast of England; and, if our voyage last long, we shall not have a month's victuals when we come in the country." According to Bradford, Speedwell was refitted and seaworthy, having "made many voyages... to the great profit of her owners." He suggested that Speedwells master may have used "cunning and deceit" to abort the voyage by causing the leaks, fearing starvation and death in America.
''Mayflower'' sets sail
In early September, western gales turned the North Atlantic into a dangerous place to sail. Mayflowers provisions were already quite low when departing Southampton, and they became lower still by delays of more than a month. The passengers had been on board the ship this entire time, feeling worn out and in no condition for a very taxing, lengthy Atlantic journey cooped up in the cramped spaces of a small ship.When Mayflower sailed from Plymouth alone on, 1620, with what Bradford called "a prosperous wind", she carried 102 passengers plus a crew of 25 to 30 officers and men, bringing the total aboard to approximately 130. At about 180 tons, she was considered a smaller cargo ship, having traveled mainly between England and Bordeaux with clothing and wine, not an ocean ship. Nor was she in good shape, as she was sold for scrap four years after her Atlantic voyage. She was a high-built craft forward and aft, measuring approximately in length and about at her widest point.
The trip across the Atlantic
The living quarters for the 102 passengers were cramped, with the living area about or and the ceiling about high. With couples and children packed closely together for a trip lasting two months, a great deal of trust and confidence was required among everyone aboard.John Carver, one of the leaders on the ship, often inspired the Pilgrims with a "sense of earthly grandeur and divine purpose". He was later called the "Moses of the Pilgrims", notes historian Jon Meacham. The Pilgrims "believed they had a covenant like the Jewish people of old", writes author Rebecca Fraser. "America was the new Promised Land." In a similar vein, early American writer James Russell Lowell stated, "Next to the fugitives whom Moses led out of Egypt, the little shipload of outcasts who landed at Plymouth are destined to influence the future of the world."
The first half of the voyage proceeded over calm seas and under pleasant skies. Then the weather changed, with continuous northeasterly storms hurling themselves against the ship, and huge waves constantly crashing against the topside deck. In the midst of one storm, William Butten, the young, indentured servant of physician Samuel Fuller, died—the sole fatality of the voyage—and was buried at sea. A baby was also born, christened Oceanus Hopkins. During another storm, so fierce that the sails could not be used, the ship was forced to drift without hoisting its sails for days, or else risk losing her masts. The storm washed passenger John Howland overboard. He sank about, but a crew member threw a rope, which Howland managed to grab, and he was safely pulled back on board.
The passengers were forced to crouch in semi-darkness below deck. With waves tossing the boat in different directions, men held onto their wives, who themselves held onto their children. Water was soaking everyone and everything above and below deck.
In mid-ocean, the ship came close to being totally disabled and might have had to return to England or risk sinking. A storm had so badly damaged its main beam that even the sailors despaired. By a stroke of luck, one of the colonists had a metal jackscrew that he had purchased in Holland to help in the construction of the new settler homes. They used it to secure the beam, which kept it from cracking further, thus maintaining the seaworthiness of the vessel.
The ship's cargo included many essential stores the Pilgrims would need for their journey and future lives. It is assumed that they carried tools, food and weapons, as well as some live animals, including dogs, sheep, goats, and poultry. The ship also held two small boats powered by oars or sails. There were also artillery pieces aboard, which they might need to defend themselves against enemy European forces or indigenous tribes.