Throughout the book of “The Puritan Dilemma”, Mr. Morgan talks about John Winthrop, born during the “year when English sailors defeated the Spanish Armada . . .” (Morgan 1). Also father to Adam Winthrop. While reading the book Morgan explains Winthrop’s personality and life history, like the settling of New England and the events that happened between 1630 and 1640. I found it hard to follow the book because of the different views but contained a lot of information, such as the when and why of early Massachusetts. Morgan does a great job in explain Winthrop as a “mediator and compromiser” and that his (Winthrop) positions are believed to understandable and necessary.
The book starts out with the childhood of john in New England where he inherited
…show more content…
his grandfathers land in Groton Manor. After he was a student at Cambridge, Winthrop later served as justice in his county. Once in his early adulthood, Winthrop strived for for religious belief and “emerged as someone experienced with the tempering of worldly pleasures with deep and overwhelming love for god.” (historicalbookreview.com). Suddenly in the 1620s “Winthrops own county of Suffolk, a textile center, was especially hard hit by the depression”(Morgan 18) that was spreading, and as a result John seeked out another job as a common attorney in his Majesty’s Court of Wards and Liveries. Which gave him a new strata of English society. Meanwhile in 1628, a group of puritan merchants, which later became known as the Massachusetts Bay Company, was given a charter for a colony in New England. Then in 1629 a Royal charter was granted which struck interest in Winthrop. Winthrop decided to emigrate given several reasons to do so, such as small opportunities in England and the English decline. But the most important one was Gods will and mission. But John just wasn’t sure yet about abandoning England. Somehow in some tricky form of fashion, the Massachusetts Bay Company transferred themselves and their charter to New England. Once there, the colony appointed Winthrop as the Governor of New England as well as Governor of the company. With this position John plans the trip to the new world and makes it clear on the eve of their departure, the “group will not be separating from England or its churches” (historicalbookreview.com). Once arriving for the first time and during the first harsh winter of starvation, the letters that John would write back home remained positive.
Then when spring rolled around he started governing by setting maximum wages for laborers. His governing was described as a pragmatic compromise and he had problems negotiating the issues presented by the separatists. In 1603 Winthrop and other members of the Bay Company met to decide on the future of the Massachusetts government. The charter instructed the “members, known as the “”freeman,” were to meet fourtimes a year in a “”Great and General Court,” to make laws for both company and colony,” (Morgan 78). And “once a year at one of those courts, they would elect a governor, a deputy governor, and eighteen “”assistants””. (Morgan 78)
In 1632 at a meeting, Winthrop was attacked by a man of the name Thomas Dudley who was dissatisfied with the leniency that John had, which was dissatsifing to others as well. The reason for the attack was Dudley was trying to force acknowledgement into John that” charter was the basis of government.” (historicalbookreview.com) then two years later in may 1634. “Winthrop was rebuked by being reduced to the rank of assistant. In his place as governor they chose Thomas Dudley.”( Morgan
104-105) The theology and crises resulting from Roger Williams and Anne Hutchinson is covered throughout chapters 9 and 10 by Morgan. The rejection of the king’s patent eventually led to the departure od Williams from Massachusetts, while still remaining “a supporter of Winthrop, who he greatly admired.” (historicalbookreview.com) Then with Anne Hutchinson, Morgan states that the dealings between Winthrop and Ms. Hutchinson were “unattractive” thus was a response to John keeping the Company unified. Then in 1637, once again John Winthrop was elected Governor of Massachusetts, but he faced a new problem of the deputies.
An anti-"city on a hill" with a maypole compensating for something? A pleasurable refuge for indentured servants freed from service and respected natives? A place where a man just wanted to annoy his uptight, religious neighbors? Those are the obvious conclusions, but with like most anything in history, there's meaning and significance that we don't catch at first glance. Thomas Morton had an agenda, puritan leader John Winthrop may have had a secret, and there are so many fictions surrounding their whole story, it's hard to tell what's reality and what's not. It's time to sift through the parts, and piece together a bigger picture, asking one, main question: Why were Morton and the Puritans engaged in a seemingly never-ending conflict with each other?
In the provocative article, Were the Puritans Puritanical?, Carl Degler seeks to clarify the many misconceptions surrounding the Puritan lifestyle. He reveals his opinions on this seventeenth century living style, arguing that the Puritans were not dull and ultra-conservative, but rather enjoyed things in moderation. They had pleasures, but not in excess. The Puritans could engage in many pleasurable and leisurely activities so long as they did not lead to sin. According to the article, the Puritans believed that too much of anything is a sin. Degler writes about the misconceptions of Puritan dress, saying that it was the “opposite of severe”, and describing it as rather the English Renaissance style. Not all members of Puritan society
First of all, each of the different colonies’ founders all expressed sentiments to establish a solid and uncorrupt government. One that would honor God. This government would be made up of a Governor, and a general Assembly and/or provincial Council where most political and judicial decisions would be made and agreed on together. In the Mayflower Compact, Fundamental Orders of Connecticut, and the Frame of Government of Pennsylvania, men were given the right to vote and choose the officials and representatives who would have a place in the government. These first colonies also promised the people that justice would be restored, it would not be sold, or withheld.
The seventeenth century was marked with a wide revolution for exploration, to a new world filled with land and opportunity. In William Bradford’s Of Plymouth Plantation, we are given a window into the exclusive lives of the pilgrims and their experiences along their journey to and through Massachusetts. We are able to read the account that “epitomizes the spirit of determination and self-sacrifice that seems to us characteristic of our first ‘Pilgrims.’” Bradford’s narrative plainly, yet elegantly describes the success, failures, triumph and unity in the early beginnings of the new founded puritan community.
The Sons of Liberty answered the call. In an act of defiance, “a few dozen of the Sons of Liberty, opposing new British laws in the colonies, systematically dumped three shiploads of tea into Boston harbor. They acted to prevent the royal authorities from collecting taxes on that import” (Bell). This left Parliament infuriated. They did what they only knew how to do and put a tighter squeeze on the colonists.
William Bradford was a well educated man and was a son of a preacher and was governor of Plymouth. William Bradford came to the New England in 1620. He felt that the Puritans were God chosen people. They believed God gave them signs and things happened to people that went against Gods will.
They believed they had the right to worship and govern themselves in whatever manner they pleased. Puritan freedom did not include religious tolerance or individualism. John Winthrop 's speech highlighted the concept of what Puritan freedom was. He believed in a civil society where through God 's path stability would be found. Socially, it can be summarized to two ideas, natural liberty vs. moral liberty. Natural liberty was said to be corrupt because it meant doing what you pleased, whereas moral liberty meant only doing what was right. One actions were reflected based upon their position in society. The higher up one was ranked social the more "moral" their actions were and vice versa for actions defined as
A religious man, he previously had traveled to England with a large contingent of puritans that wished to establish both a religious and economic colony in the New World. Right before the Massachusetts Bay Company departed in 1829, Winthrop became the governor. He landed in Salem in the year 1830 with over a thousand settlers. He then served as governor until his death. Like William Bradford, John Winthrop’s journal is a chief source for many studying the American Colonial period.
The founder and governor John Winthrop gave the famous sermon of “City on a Hill” and led the persecuted Puritans from England to this land and established the Massachusetts Bay. He hoped to build safe place as a Christina commonwealth as an example to show the world. He was a capable governor and a faithful follower of God. When Roger Williams and Anne Hutchinson challenged his authority, they were both banished and went south to establish their own colonies. It might be that his exclusion of people with different believes made him a model of intolerant religious ruler, but at the same time his actions showed another form of democracy. He led the colonists who were Puritans and who shared the same belief of him onto a life of prosper and stability in their land, and he never prevented anyone who disagreed with him from leaving and establishing their ideal place somewhere else. However, living in Massachusetts meant that people should follow the local law. This shows another similarity in the situations today where people in a certain legal area could choose what they want separately from other parts of the country like only four states in te States now legalize marijuana for recreational use. In this way, John Winthrop made a colony bear a democratic spirit as opposed to people yelling for their individual
Compare and Contrast A Description of New England and A Model of Christian Charity Mankind can be conceived in interesting ways by analyzing the writings of John Smith and John Winthrop. As I read through John Smith‘s “A Description of New England” and John Winthrop’s “A Model of Christian Charity,” it became evident to me that the two readings had similar and different viewpoints of the essential nature of man. Throughout my paper, I will compare their similar beliefs of community and diversity of people and completely contrast their ideas of emphasis on religion and relationships with enemies. Both authors stress a sense of community and diversity in order to survive in America.
According to both Winthrop and Rowlandson, if one has true faith in God, he will be able to witness God's mercy in his own life. Winthrop clearly underscores this point in his sermon, where he stresses that the Puritans must uphold their covenant with God in order to have a harmonious and successful colony. If one is faithful and obedient to God, he will be the recipient of God's providence: "Now if the Lord shall please to hear us, and bring us in peace to the place we desire, then hath He ratified this covenant and sealed our commission, [and] will expect a strict pe...
While I'm sitting here at my computer, in my air conditioned home, with the radio blaring and the t.v. on downstairs, I try to imagine how life was as a young Puritan. To be honest, I don't think I could live a week the way they do. I could try but it would be excruciatingly difficult.
Religion was the foundation of the early Colonial American Puritan writings. Many of the early settlements were comprised of men and women who fled Europe in the face of persecution to come to a new land and worship according to their own will. Their beliefs were stalwartly rooted in the fact that God should be involved with all facets of their lives and constantly worshiped. These Puritans writings focused on their religious foundations related to their exodus from Europe and religions role in their life on the new continent. Their literature helped to proselytize the message of God and focused on hard work and strict adherence to religious principles, thus avoiding eternal damnation. These main themes are evident in the writings of Jonathan Edwards, Cotton Mathers, and John Winthrop. This paper will explore the writings of these three men and how their religious views shaped their literary works, styles, and their historical and political views.
When tobacco failed in the late 1750’s, Virginia was faced with a decreased tax revenues from the commodity. So the Virginia Assembly cut the Anglican ministers salaries, which were funded by the tobacco tax. It became an emotional issue in 1762, when the Reverend James Maury, an Anglican parson from Fredericksburg, sued the colony for back pay. The case called “The Parson’s Cause,” was tried in Hanover Courthouse before Justice John Henry. Patrick’s father was the leading Justice of Hanover County, and the justices found for the plaintiff. They said that James Maury had a right to collect back pay wages. It was a long, complicated trial, lasting 19 months. Patrick Henry had nothing to do with it until the very end, and the only remaining question was how much the parson should be paid? In a moment of great irony, Henry rose before his father’s court and spoke for the defense, the legislative body of Virginia, and against his father, who had ruled for the Church of England. When he began to talk, he was shy, and his head was
Whitmore, William Henry. A bibliographical sketch of the laws of the Massachusetts colony from 1630