FREE ESSAY ON PURITANS

PURITANS

The Tale of Two Colonies
North America was first discovered by European country in the late 1400's. A little over
100 years later two men by the names of John Smith, leader of the Jamestown settlement,
and William Bradford, the Governor of the Plymouth, decided to adventure cross the
Atlantic Ocean in a ship in search of the "New World." The Puritans and Jamestown
settlers left England in search of a new way of life. The colonists left England for
different reasons and ambitions. In "The General History of Virginia" and "Of Plymouth
Plantation," had the authors outline these groups different reasons to leave England.
These include reasons for settling, compacts and relations with the Indians, and
hardships of the immigrants.
First, the colonizers of Jamestown had very different reasons for settling from the
Pilgrims. The people of Jamestown were entirely motivated to move to the New World purely
for economic reasons. The folks of Jamestown were entrepreneurs, coming to America for
business and economic gain not for freedom for themselves. They came to America because
of the tales of huge deposits of gold. The pilgrims settled in what is now known as
Massachusetts Bay. They were responsible for giving New England its Puritan Heritage. The
Puritans had one reason for settling and that was for religious freedom. The Puritans
colonized in America because they wished to "purify" the Church of England. The pilgrims
wished to change because "they felt it resembles the Roman 
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Catholic Church too closely.(3)" An instance of the strong belief in God was that the
Colony wished to organize a Theocracy instead of the usual Democracy because of the
strong beliefs in God. 
Next, the settlers from both colonies would run into the Native Americans, which could
help or hurt the colonies. The Jamestown settler's unfamiliar to the land would explore
the nearby area resulting in confrontation. This example demonstrates the relationship
the Jamestown settlers had with the Indians. Once while Jon Smith and a group of men were
exploring up-river, they ran across an Indian village, which caused the abduction of Jon
Smith by the so-called "savages." Smith's men were killed in this conflict by "three
hundred bowmen"(16) that followed them. While the Puritans were lucky in choosing a spot
to settle, the natives in the area were peaceful and did not want conflict. When the
Puritans first settled the Indians never would show themselves or approach the colony.
Finally one day a Native American by the name of Samoset approached the colony and spoke
to the pilgrims in broken English. He told them of Squanto an Indian who could speak even
better than he could. Squanto in tuned with the land, taught the colonists how to
cultivate and plant crops, for example, corn and wheat. The Puritans also made a compact
with the Indians, which continued for 14 years after it's signing. The compact favored
the white-man and left the Indians with little power.
Lastly, the hardships of both colonies differ in many ways. For instance, the Jamestown
colony came to a land that was not well suited. The colonists settled on an island on the
James River thus the name Jamestown was started. The island was marshy and susceptible to
flooding and the spread of disease such as Malaria. Also, the people from Jamestown were
mostly rich and were called "Gentlemen," which meant wealthy men not accustom to working
with their hands. The weather in Virginia was very hot and
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humid which made for a hard and hot summer. The Puritans also had their hardships, which
included a long hard winter in which many Pilgrims died. In the New World an early winter
meant disaster. More than half the colony was buried by spring. The pilgrims had
experienced their first northeastern winter that had brutal wind and below freezing
temperatures for sustained amount of time. Pneumonia set in after people couldn't recover
from their colds. Different disease and harsh weather affected both adversely.
In conclusion, the two colonies although similar, differ in many ways according to "The
General History of Virginia," and "Of Plymouth Plantation." The two colonies set assail
risking their own lives for freedom and riches. The two colonies differed in three as
discussed; the reasons for settling, their compacts and relations with the Indians, and
the hardships they endured. Thirteen years separated their travels, hardships, and
successes. Both the colonists and the Puritans had courage and a vision. Their vision was
similar, their motivation was different.