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2024.11.11
カテゴリ：カテゴリ未分類
Mayflower Ship - The Facts You May Be Interested In Mayflower was the name of one of the most famous ships in history. It is especially important for the history of the USA and closely related to the second most popular holiday in the USA - Thanksgiving. As you probably already know, the Mayflower carried 102 passengers from Europe to the East Coast of North America, the location of today's Massachusetts. Here are a few interesting facts about the Mayflower and its voyage: The passengers of the Mayflower are today known as Pilgrims. They were not satisfied with the Church of England. They wanted reforms and didn't get them. Puritans, who were also dissatisfied, believed the Church of England could be changed, while Separatists chose to rather move to religiously more liberal Holland. About four hundred of them lived in Leiden. When Holland connected with England due to the dangers of war with Spain, several Seprataists decided to find new homes in the New World. They were called Pilgrims.  Pilgrims and Mayflower The travel to the New World was planned with two ships. The smaller, called Speedwell, first carried about 65 passengers to London, whereas the larger, called Mayflower, was waiting to carry them with supplies across the Atlantic. Originally, both ships were planned to carry the Pilgrims. The departure from London was delayed because there was a leakage in Speedwell. When this was repaired, they started on August 5, but another leakage in Speedwell forced them to return to Dartmouth. This caused another delay. When they started the voyage again, about two hundred miles from the southwestern point of England, a third leakage in Speedwell occurred. It was already September, and winter was coming. The passengers had to decide what to do next. Speedwell was obviously not suitable for the long journey. There is even a theory that the owner ordered the sabotages because he didn't believe in a successful trip across the Atlantic Ocean. Both ships returned to the Plymouth, where 20 passengers from Speedwell moved to Mayflower. The rest of them returned to Holland. Mayflower was overcrowded, had low amounts of supplies, and used most of the funds for repairs. need another week to pick the right wind before they start for the third time. The winds in September and especially in October were far from being favorable for Mayflower, which caused a trip longer for a full month than originally planned.  Mayflower - painting by NC Wyeth We don't know when exactly the Mayflower was built. It was designed around 1609, and it was one of 26 (!) ships with the same name during the era of James I (1603-1625). Mayflower was a cargo ship originally built for trading between London and Trondheim, but some records show it made at least a few trips to Portugal or Spain, and very likely France. The records of the ship's voyages between 1616 and 1624 (this includes the voyage of the Pilgrims) are missing There is a record about the value estimation of Mayflower in 1624 when the owner's estate was settled, but no reliable record of its fate. Some historians believe it was broken up, and the timbers were used for a barn in Buckinghamshire, which still exists . The living area of Mayflower was about 150 square meters with approximately a meter and a half high ceiling. The main deck measured 23 times 6 meters, and it was the main place to stay apart from the thin-walled cabins. There were 102 passengers on the ship and about 40 crew members. During the voyage, a baby was born. It was named Oceanus Hopkins. William Buitten, a young man who was supposed to assist the ship doctor, died, and John Howland was washed overboard, but a crew member managed to rescue him by throwing a rope. Mayflower was approximately 30 meters long and 8 meters wide at the widest point. Its cargo capacity was around 180 tons. Mayflower had three masts and a spritsail. It also had two 6-meter-long boats with sails and oars. There were four larger cannons on the Mayflower, with more than 500 kg heavy minion cannon, able to shoot a kilogram and a half weight ball about 1500 m long, and about ten smaller cannons. One of the storms caused a crack in the main beam, threatening to make the ship useless. Fortunately, one of the settlers purchased a jackscrew before departure to have assistance in building houses in the New World. They used it to stabilize the main beam and prevent further damage.  Illustration from Young Pilgrims Apart from essential food (biscuit, cider, salt, cod fish, salted meat, wheat, etc.) and water supply (mostly beer, actually, because it was safer to drink), the cargo of Mayflower consisted of live animals (poultry, dogs, sheep, goats, etc.) and weapons (matchlock muskets, flint arms, pistols, bandoliers, gunpowder, swords, etc.). The Pilgrims didn't know what to expect, and they were afraid of Native Americans and other European settlers. Mayflower reached North America on November 19 but could not sail to the Colony of Virginia, a planned destination for which the passengers had permission to land. Strong winds forced them to sail to a harbor today called Provincetown Harbor, where they set an anchor. It was November 20. They found a suitable shelter only in December when the weather was cold and the earth frozen. Snowstorms made it impossible to walk around without snowshoes, which they didn't have. Starvation and weather condition took their toll. Contagious disease spread among the Pilgrims and the crew members who were not fit to return to England. Only 53 passengers of the original 102 survived the winter. Not all of them were Separatists. Some were farmers and physical workers who were trying to reach the Colony of Virginia.  Young Pilgrim There was another ship called Mayflower, which reached Plymouth in 1629. It brought 35 additional settlers, many of them from Leiden, the original congregation of Pilgrims. This Mayflower made an additional four trips to America but was lost (together with 140 passengers) in 1641. Thanksgiving originated from the first Thanksgiving feast held by the Pilgrims in 1621. It was held by Pilgrims and Native Americans from the Wampanoag tribe, who helped the settlers survive the winter and learn to grow crops in new conditions. Today, Thanksgiving is the second most popular holiday in the USA.
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2024.11.11 22:35:09
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