To What Extent Did The Puritans Escape

Escape of the Puritans The Puritans were a religious group during the late 16th and 17th century who didn’t agree with how the Church of England was changing. The Puritans thought that the Church of England had begun to change drastically. When they left the Church of England they became known as dissenters. The Puritans left England and moved to America in search of a place to practice their religion freely. In America they settled colonies like Plymouth and the Massachusetts Bay Colony. They began developing a government that would allow them to stay closely together and practice their religion, this became known as the Mayflower Compact. In America the Puritans began to persecute others that didn’t practice Puritanism. The Puritans left

During that time if you were not a part of the newly founded Church of England then you were considered a separatist. Puritans became known as separatists because they did not want to be a part of the Church of England’s practices. Being separated from the Church of England left them vulnerable to attacks from others who did attend the Church. People like John Whitgift were hired by Queen Elizabeth I to stop Puritanism in its tracks. Whitgift tried to stop all the resistance from the Puritans. He did this by putting limitations on the Puritans “religious exercises” (Sommerville, n.d.). Many people did not agree with Whitgift’s actions and thought they were extreme. Many Puritans started to protest even more against the English authority. Along with this and other attacks against the Puritans they decided to set off and establish their own

It was founded by a large group of Puritans led by John Winthrop. “Puritans dominated the politics, religion, and culture of New England” (Chapter 2, pg.14). They established many different towns within the Colony including: Boston, Salem, and Charlestown. The Massachusetts Bay Colony differed from Plymouth in many ways. The Puritans in the Massachusetts Bay Colony had a better education then the Puritans in Plymouth did. Also, In Massachusetts Bay they created a theocratic government. A theocratic government is a government ruled “by officials who are regarded as divinely guided” (www.britannica.com, n.d.). Being a part of the church was a huge part of how you perceived in the community. These Puritans had a vast devotion to religion they believed “all mankind merited eternal damnation, but a merciful God had graciously granted salvation to few, the elect” (www.u-s-history.com, n.d.). In 1691 Plymouth and Maine entered into the Massachusetts Bay Colony expanding it’s