Plymouth Colony

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Plymouth Colony was an English colony in North America. It existed from 1620 to 1691. At its height, Plymouth Colony occupied most of the southeastern part of the modern state of Massachusetts.

History

The first settlement of the Plymouth Colony was at New Plymouth. This settlement served as the capital of the colony. It is today the modern town of Plymouth, Massachusetts.

Separatists and Anglicans (together, the "Pilgrims") founded the colony. With Jamestown and other settlements in Virginia Colony, it was one of the earliest successful English colonies in North America. It was the first sizable permanent English settlement in the New England region.

The colony made a treaty with Chief Massasoit. This helped to make the colony a success. The colonists played a role in King Philip's War. The colony merged with the Massachusetts Bay Colony and other territories in 1691. Together they formed the Province of Massachusetts Bay.

Plymouth holds a special role in American history. Many of the Plymouth colonists left England for a place to worship in their own way. The social and legal systems of the colony became tied to their religious beliefs, as well as English custom. Many of the people and events surrounding Plymouth Colony have become part of American folklore. These include Thanksgiving and Plymouth Rock.

Related pages

• European colonization of the Americas
• British Empire

References

• Addison, Albert Christopher (1911). The Romantic Story of the Mayflower Pilgrims. The Plymouth Colony Archive Project. http://etext.virginia.edu/users/deetz/Plymouth/addisontxt.html. Retrieved 2007-04-30. 

Other websites

• Timeline of Plymouth Colony
• Colonial America:Plymouth Colony 1620 A short history of Plymouth Colony hosted at U-S-History.com, includes a map of all of the New England colonies.
• The Plymouth Colony Archive Project a collection of primary sources documents and secondary source analysis related to Plymouth Colony.
• Pilgrim ships from 1602 to 1638 Pilgrim ships searchable by ship name, sailing date and passengers.