Comment

Mayflower

a Story of Courage, Community, and War
Dec 16, 2017DorisWaggoner rated this title 4.5 out of 5 stars
Philbrick is a masterful writer, and does his research. He traces the Pilgrims from their formation in England, where they were known as Separatists, who illegally left England for Holland, a religiously tolerant country where they could worship as they wished. That was appreciated, but their children were growing up Dutch, so they began to look across the Atlantic. They got a patent from the English King to found a colony at the mouth of the Hudson River. Enough wanted to leave to need two ships, but the captain of the Speedwell was a plant from a group who wanted a Dutch colony on the Hudson. He used the Pilgrims' naivete about marine matters to spring constant leaks that meant they had to ultimately abandon it, overcrowd into the Mayflower, and use up too many of their provisions before even leaving. Because of storms, they landed far north of their original destination, in one of the hardest Novembers in years. Many died that first winter, and more would have without Native help. Plymouth was empty of people because a recent plague had decimated its Native population. It also happened not to have good soil. The community's ability to pull together to make life work in cooperation with local tribes fell apart within 50 years, leading to King Phillip's War in the 1670s. He says this war had far reaching consequences for White/Native relationships up to the present. The weakest part is that he doesn't really follow through on explaining this, though much of it is implicit. Still, an excellent, exciting corrective to what many of us were taught in grade school.