Plymouth Colony

Plymouth Colony, founded in 1620 in what is now Massachusetts, was an early English colony in the New World. Many of the so-called Pilgrims to Plymouth were members of a religious group known as the Separatists, who believed the Anglican Church of England to be too heirarchical. They drew much of their influence from John Calvin, such as the notion of predestination, and the right of the individual to interpret the Bible for himself. The Mayflower Compact, signed aboard their ship, the Mayflower, guaranteed all citizens of the colony self-government. William Bradford, author of Pilgrim's Progress, was one of the early leaders of the colony. Despite good relations with local Native Americans, half of the colonists died in the first two years. Plymouth Colony later merged with the Massachusetts Bay Colony to form the colony of Massachusetts.