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WHO
WERE THE PILGRIMS?
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Detail of Edgar
Parker's Embarkation of the Pilgrims |
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"They
knew they were pilgrims, and looked not much on those things, but
lifted up their eyes to the heavens, their dearest country." |
William
Bradford
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The Pilgrim saga began with
a group of religious dissidents who believed it was necessary to separate
from the Church of England. Persecuted in England, these
"Separatists" moved to Holland in 1607/1608.
The group, joined by other colonists recruited by the venture's
financial backers, began the move to America in 1620.
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Bacon's Landing of the Pilgrims |
Early Plymouth records refer to all
passengers from the first four ships as "First
Comers." These ships were the Mayflower (1620), the Fortune
(1621), the Anne and the Little James (1623). The
term "Pilgrim" was not generally used until the early 1800s.
There is no single definition of "Pilgrim." Many
families, Separatists and non-Separatists and Separatist sympathizers alike, traveled to
America in several ships in the 1620s.
However defined, the story of these Pilgrims has provided inspiration for
centuries.
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