The New England Colonies

The New England Colonies

The Pilgrims These were people who believed that the Church of England was too much like the Catholic Church. They wanted to separate from the Church

The Mayflower To escape the harsh treatment from King James, they asked the Virginia Company for permission to move to America. A storm blew them off course

Plymouth They landed at Plymouth rock, outside of the Virginia Company’s control. Suddenly, they had no rules to live by. . .

The Mayflower Compact The Pilgrims wrote and signed the Mayflower Compact to act as their laws. This is the first written Constitution in America!

The Pilgrims Starve The Pilgrims had no idea how to survive a harsh, northern winter. Many starved or died of illness. Natives actually helped to teach the Pilgrims how to farm the rocky soil and hunt local wildlife.

The first Thanksgiving???

The Puritans Like the Pilgrims, they believed that the Church of England had problems Unlike the Puritans, they wanted to stay with the church and purify it, or reform it.

“The Great Migration” Facing persecution in England, the Puritans left for America by the thousands. In 1630, 1000 Puritans settled in Massachusetts Bay This map shows British migration to America.

Puritan Life The congregation was the center of Puritan society. All Puritans, by law, had to go to church. Puritan beliefs stressed hard work.

The Fundamental Orders of Connecticut In 1636, Thomas Hooker (stop laughing) moved his congregation to Connecticut. There they wrote the Fundamental Orders of Connecticut, a constitution the expanded representative government in the colonies

Rhode Island Some people did not support the Puritan system. These people would move to Rhode Island Roger Williams founded RI in 1636. People like Anne Hutchinson, would find tolerance in Rhode Island.

The Puritans Go CRAZY!!! By the late 1600’s, lots of Puritan youth were straying away from Puritan ways. To get out of trouble, the youth would claim that they were under spells from witches.

The Salem Witch Trials More than 100 people (mostly girls) were accused of witchcraft. 20 were found guilty and put to death.