Another Tale of Two
Cities
Or
Why One English Colony Failed and Why Another
Colony Excelled
By: D. A. Sharpe
Aurora, Texas
Presented to the Prudence Alexander Chapter of the
Daughters of the American Revolution, March
22, 1997
Subsequently awarded Best Program of the Year in all of the
Texas Chapters of the Texas Society of the DAR
Another
Tale of Two Cities
[1]
OR
Why One English Colony Failed and Why Another Colony Excelled
By D. A. Sharpe - Dallas, Texas
The
two earliest colonies of significance settled by the English in the New World were Jamestown (Virginia) in 1607 and the
Plymouth Colony (Massachusetts) in 1620. Jamestown floundered into
dissipation shortly after 1700, and Plymouth flourishes today. Why?
The answer, I believe, is that these
two colonies were products of strong forces drawn into confluence in the 1600's
... forces which had roots tracing back through centuries of European
experience. These forces were shaped
definitely by what had become the response of human beings to the presence and
movement of the hand of God across history and embodied in the movement of the
Christian Church. These forces
epitomized the differences between the seeking of benefit for self by material
accumulation, versus benefit for self by serving God's purposes in our
lives.
The conclusion of the Holy Roman Empire in the 400's brought on
the Middle Ages ... or the Medieval Times.
Hordes of Scandinavian tribes plunged into central Europe, forming what become known
as the Germanic peoples. In contrast to
the Roman
Empire,
which had a somewhat short-sighted idea of “the Church,” these Germanic peoples
were barbarians who devastated much of the structure and trade patterns which
had been sustained in those parts of the world by the Roman Empire. These Germanic people's customs were cruel,
barbaric and certainly undemocratic.
The Christian
Church, centered in Rome, was really the only
stabilizing structure giving leadership for civilization in those centuries,
though it was plagued with abuses and failings which gave generation to the
Protestant Reformation of the 1500's.
Northern European explorations had
already been made circa 1000 A.D., but those Viking efforts had few records
preserved, and they did not sustain connections with the New World.
Spain was a nation with strong
Roman Catholic influence. King Ferdinand
and Queen Isabella of Spain commissioned an Italian
sailor in 1492, Christopher Columbus, to represent their nation in the earliest
Southern European attempts at finding the Orient and new trade routes. He had solicited them for such privilege, as
his requests of other European monarchs for help in showing that the earth was
round had not developed. Remember that
church leaders of that day considered the round earth idea one of heresy
against God's word!
The Spaniards, at least on the
surface, had Christian missionary interests in their efforts, besides the
obvious material goals. The Spaniards
actually sent hordes of “missionaries” to the New World over the next few
hundred years.
Secular historians largely ignore
the Christian aspect of Christopher. He
is popularly discounted, because of the perceived damage to the Americas that Spain and other nations
brought to the New World as exploiters.
However one quotation from Christopher Columbus's personal diary reveals
another perspective.
“It
was the Lord who put into my mind (I could feel his hand upon me) the fact that
it would be possible to sail from here to the Indies. All who heard of my project rejected it with
laughter, ridiculing me. There is no
question that the inspiration was from the Holy Spirit, because He comforted me
with rays of marvelous inspiration from the Holy Scriptures...
“I
am a most unworthy sinner, but I have cried out to the Lord for grace and
mercy, and they have covered me completely.
I have found the sweetest consolation since I made it my whole purpose
to enjoy His marvelous presence. For the
execution of the journey to the Indies, I did not make use of intelligence,
mathematics or maps. It is simply the
fulfillment of what Isaiah had prophesied...
“No
one should fear to undertake any task in the name of our Savior, if it is just
and if the intention is purely for His holy service. The working out of all things has been
assigned to each person by our Lord, but it all happens according to His
sovereign will, even though He gives advice.
He lacks nothing that it is in the power of men to give Him. Oh, what a gracious Lord, who desires that
people should perform for Him those things for which He holds himself
responsible! Day and night, moment by
moment, everyone should express their most devoted gratitude to Him.”[2]
That Christopher Columbus had
Christian purposes in mind is reflected in his twelve-point report to the King
and Queen of Spain, written about 1494, after his first voyage to the New
World. Two of the twelve points cite
provisions and acknowledge the need for establishing churches in each colony
and advocating the financing for those provisions through a percentage taken
from the gold mined to the benefit of Spain. Then, English power grew and lessened the
influence of Spain.
The
death of Queen Elizabeth in 1603 dashed hopes for Protestant Reform in England at that time, with the
rising to power of James I as King.
James I, born 1566, reined in England 1603-1625 as the first
Stuart king. He believed in the Divine Right of Kings, placing him
"above" civil law ... a circumstance putting him in opposition to
Parliament's ideas of government. This
conflict even continued through the rein of his son, Charles I.
James politically supported the
Anglican Church, and sponsored a translation of the Bible in 1611. He persecuted Protestant groups, especially
the Puritans. This certainly motivated
the increased migration to the New World. [3]
A Church of England, broken away
from Rome, but headed by the likes of James I,
was not what many Christians wanted, and there arose two particular groups of them
known as Puritans and as Separatists.
Puritans sought to “purify” the Church of England, so they were not
openly “rebellious” to the Church. On
the other hand, the Separatists thought the Church of England beyond reform,
and thus advocated a “separate” church.
King James, it may be said to his
credit, was one of the most learned and well read of English Kings. He was multi-lingual and comfortable among
the fine arts and the refined cultures of Europe. King James’ critiques cite as a defect in his
character his public friendship with George Villiers, the Duke of Buckingham,
who was considered an active homosexual, even though he married and gave issue
to children. The King’s reliance upon
Villiers’ influence in the matters of court was just too chummy for some
people.
The Rev. John Robinson at a village
called Scrooby in Nottinghamshire led a Separatist congregation. The congregation was formed in 1602. They met in the manor home of Postmaster
William Brewster. They sought only to
worship in their own way. They were
peaceful and not confrontational to the Church of England authorities.
The believers in Scrooby were called
Brownists, a derisive term in the minds of Church of England leaders, named
after Robert Brown, a graduate of Cambridge University who was a catalyst for
Protestant dissent in England in the late 1500's. Robinson was likened to Brown in his views.
The Puritans were viewed as less threatening, as they had church buildings and
could be found if authorities wished to arrest them. The Separatists or Brownists met in homes and
therefore had no church buildings.[4]
A Scrooby resident, though not a
Brownist congregation member, was William Bradford.[5] He, being destined to become the governor of
Plymouth Colony, wrote of the Brownist's oppressive situation...
“They were both scoffed and scorned
by the profane multitude ... and the poor people were so vexed with apparitors,
and pusurants and commissarie counts, as truly their affliction was not
small.”
He also wrote some opposition to the
positions taken by the Brownists. Bradford was not only a gifted
writer, publishing his famous and moving diary, A History of Plymouth Plantation, he would also become one of the
heroic pioneers of Western history, laying the cornerstones that made possible
the building of the American Republic. He is also the eight times great grand father
of this writer.
However, in Scrooby, William
Bradford was just another Christian Citizen.[6] His writings are credited with coining the term
of “Pilgrims” to apply to these Christians who fared the Atlantic winter waters
to seek freedom of worship and of pursuing life unfettered by the shackles seen
in the structures prevailing in England. [7]
The group set sail August
5, 1620,
from Delfshaven, England on the Speedwell, but that ship's inadequacy
forced a return, putting in at nearby Plymouth. They reloaded onto the Mayflower for their effective launch to the New World. [8] On November 22, they sighted land, what
we later know as Cape Cod.[9] “They had begun their long journey on the
dock at Delfshaven to ask God's blessing; they ended it on the sands of Cape Cod, kneeling to thank Him
for that blessing.”[10]
The Mayflower Compact, was written November
22, 1620
[This was November 11, old style calendar[11]]
off the Coast of What Was To Become Massachusetts. This is the first written agreement for self‑government
in America. The need for it arose when some of the crew
observed that their charter provided for governance in Virginia. The contention was that, since they were not
landing in Virginia, they therefore were
without constraints of government and could live as individuals as they liked,
doing whatever seemed fit to any man.
The wise Christian leadership among the passengers realized that would
not work constructively, and so a written agreement was composed. It was signed on the Mayflower, before
landing at what became Plymouth Colony.
There were 41 adult males who signed the document. Of the 102 passengers, 37 were members of
the "Separatists" who were fleeing religious persecution in Europe. Half the colony failed to survive the first
winter, but the remainder lived on and prospered. One of the signers was William Bradford, whom
some historians have called the Father of American History. He basically was self-educated.
Listen to the stirring words of this
compact:
The Mayflower Compact
In the name of
God, Amen. We, whose names are underwritten, the Loyal Subjects of our dread
Sovereign Lord, King James, by the Grace of God, of England, France and
Ireland, King, Defender of the Faith, e&.
Undertaken for the Glory of God, and
Advancement of the Christian Faith, and the Honour of our King and Country, a
voyage to plant the first colony in the northern parts of Virginia; do by these
presents, solemnly and mutually in the Presence of God and one of another,
covenant and combine ourselves together into a civil Body Politick, for our
better Ordering and Preservation, and Furtherance of the Ends aforesaid; And by
Virtue hereof to enact, constitute, and frame, such just and equal Laws,
Ordinances, Acts, Constitutions and Offices, from time to time, as shall be
thought most meet and convenient for the General good of the Colony; unto which
we promise all due submission and obedience.
In Witness whereof we have hereunto
subscribed our names at Cape Cod the eleventh[12]
of November, in the Reign of our Sovereign Lord, King James of England, France
and Ireland, the eighteenth, and of Scotland the fifty‑fourth. Anno
Domini, 1620. [13]
Are not these words more
compelling as to Christian purpose than the one sentence about Christian
propagation that King James put in the 4,200 word Virginia Charter?
There were only 23
family units to survive that cold winter after arriving November 21,
1620 in what is now Provincetown Harbor. It was not until December 26 that they selected
Plymouth on Cape
Cod to establish their
living quarters. However, today it can
be estimated that some 25+ million of our country's 280 million in population
probably are descended from that original group of 102 Englanders. Most of them were members of the Separatists
religious movement in England, which objected to the Roman Catholic likeness of
the Church of England.
These Pilgrims had a serious and purposeful
dedication to following the ways of God... it is even viewed by some writers[14]
that the Pilgrims actually believed they were establishing the closest thing to
God's Kingdom on earth as may be possible.
After such was their thirst for advancement and establishment.
These Pilgrims were a mere handful of
Light-bearers, on the edge of a vast and Dark Continent. But the Light of Jesus Christ was penetrating
further into the heart of America. William Bradford would write with remarkable
discernment. "As one small candle
may light a thousand, so the light kindled here has shown unto many, yea in
some sort to our whole nation . . . We have noted these things so that you
might see their worth and not negligently lose what your fathers have obtained
with so much hardship."[15]
A study of Bradford's writings and other
research into the operation of the Plymouth Colony emphasizes that community's
commitment to Christian ideals in service and in work ethic. They not only propagated with many children
per household, but they propagated their religious and work ethic in ways,
which resulted in Plymouth's prosperity and
vigor. And even though today's Plymouth is mostly a thriving
tourist town, it does anchor the culture and the being of the New World by those who would
choose to come as God's children and for His honor and Glory.
But, what about the Protestant spirit of
capitalism? Benjamin Hart in his book
said that the Puritan's contribution to America's political institutions
(included): written constitutions, separation of powers, regular elections, the
secret ballot, the federalist principle, religious toleration and separation of
church and state. But there is also a
strong connection between the rise of Puritanism and the emergence of
capitalism.
To appreciate fully that fact, it is worth
reflecting briefly on conditions in Europe prior to the economic
revolution, which began to take place following the Protestant
Reformation. Living standards for most
people in medieval Europe were poor.
About 90% of the people spent their waking hours working in agriculture,
trying to acquire food. Whether or not
one could eat on a particular day was a major source in insecurity. Poor weather often meant going to bed hungry
... and extended poor weather could mean starvation.
The Protestant Work Ethic
created reliable patterns of behavior, which were so important for the
development of a market system.... Capitalism and Puritanism fed off each
other. Both developments placed
responsibility on individual initiative; and both involved a clean break from
the paternalistic and static feudal order of England. Both were highly destructive of hierarchy and
empowered the individual to determine his own fate.[16]
WHAT
OF JAMESTOWN?
Virginia was the other major
early British attempt to colonize North America, after the 1585 failure
and disappearance of Sir Walter Raleigh’s Roanoke Colony. The expedition was generally promoted verbally
as an opportunity to share in the work of God.
There was a widespread worry in English ruling circles that the natives
in the New
World
risked conversion to the Catholic Church by the Spanish and the French, since
they had such an early and aggressive commissioning of Catholic
missionaries. Thus, a founding principle
of the colony was stated in the company charter, which was the ... propagating
of the Christian religion to such a people as yet live in darkness and
miserable ignorance of the true knowledge and worship of God....[17]
However, that one sentence is the only reference given to Christian purposes in
the entire 4,200 word Charter for Virginia issued by this tainted King
James. Quite different from the
Mayflower Compact!
The Jamestown colony, established in
1607, was a disaster ... decimated during its first six months by disease,
starvation, desertion and internal strife.
The governing council could not get along with each other or the
settlers. Many suspected that council
President Edward Maria Wingfield was a secret papist (Roman Catholic) or an
atheist, since he carried no Bible and prohibited preaching.[18]
Captain Smith, an early
leader in Jamestown, is one of the most
colorful characters encountered. His previous
soldering tasks had him fighting against the fearsome Turks in Eastern Europe. After almost being killed in that theater,
he was sold into slavery to Crimean Tartars[19]. He escaped by bludgeoning his master to
death, and returned through Spain to North Africa, where he joined French
pirates. Smith actually was less
interested in plunder than in knight-errant, quests for glory, and encounters
with enchanting brown-skinned women.
The Reverend Richard Hunt was the only clergyman
in the Jamestown settlement. He strove to bring order and strict
discipline to the members of the colony.
However, contrary to the Plymouth Pilgrims, his constituents did not
share his zeal to follow God.
His efforts were too
little avail. Driven by the illusive hope
of material gain, most of the settlers panned for never-discovered gold, and
relied on resources of the Native Americans to sustain themselves. Their lack of interest in a work ethic caused
such laxness in efforts that it was 20 years before the first agricultural crop
was harvested with enough food to feed the colony that year.
Reverend Hunt soon died
amidst the diseases and hardships ... some 90% of the early people died from
such. Without the elevating sermons of
Hunt, conditions in Jamestown grew even more desperate
… death and starvation ran rampant. [20]
Jamestown had ups and downs. ....
Tobacco as a cash crop made some successes, but overall, the colony was
situated badly. Its low lying position
near the water.... close to danger from Atlantic storms,.... its proximity to
swamps between it and the main land harbored sources of plagues ...... all of
these elements led to repeated failure.
It was the lack of ideological and theological
rigor in Virginia, however, that permitted
the perpetuation of the abominable institution of slavery. The Tobacco Aristocracy was more attached to
their habits and the expediencies of plantation farming than to the sacred word
of Scripture. It is ironic, in a way,
that Virginia was saved economically in the early years by the very weed that
would later seduce them away from the golden rule of their religious creed and
the principles of liberty for which they would later fight.
They were able to
tolerate slavery, because Virginians, unlike New Englanders, generally avoided
thinking things through to their logical conclusion. Virginians tended to accept life as it was,
rather than remake it into something it should be. This was Virginia's weakness as well as
its strength.[21]
Jamestown had too many strikes against
its location and its commitments. Those
who did not die from bad conditions migrated to more hospitable parts of Virginia... most immediately to Williamsburg. Ill luck culminated at Jamestown in the late 1600's. In 1676, during Bacon's Rebellion, the town
was burned to the ground. This was a
rebellion led by a planter named Nathaniel Bacon against the British Royal
governor. Fire again destroyed the
settlement in 1698. These disasters
caused the people in Virginia to transfer their
capital to Williamsburg in 1699. Jamestown cratered into obscurity
shortly after that.[22]
WHAT
IS THE CONCLUSION ABOUT OUR TWO CITIES?
Jamestown had no on-going
spiritual roots to sustain its drive for survival. Plymouth had an abundance of
spiritual roots and Christian leadership to sustain itself through many
hardships similar in severity to Jamestown's, but Plymouth survived in excellent
shape. The cradle of capitalism needed
nurture from spirituality in order to flourish.
And that, my friends, is another tale of two
cities ...... a colony which failed and a colony which excelled to the greater
honor and glory of God.
D. A. Sharpe
805 Derting Road East
Aurora, TX 76078-3712
(817)-638-5560 Home
(214) 418-6230 Cell
Phone
dasharpe@aol.com Internet
Addresses
da@dasharpe.com
www.dasharpe.com Personal Web Site
This
paper was judged "Best Program of the Year" given in Daughters of the
American Revolution in its Texas Society during 1997[23]