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Why Did The Puritans Influence The Development Of The New England Colonies

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In the mid-1600s, the New England Puritans had a vision: they were to create the perfect Christian church and settlement, one that was made according to their interpretation of the original church Jesus had visualized. They were a very religious group and wanted to build a place of refuge for themselves. Unlike the colonist of the Chesapeake Bay colonies, they did not immigrate to make a fortune. The main reason the Puritans traveled to America was because they wanted to build a “City Upon a Hill”, since they were persecuted in England for their beliefs. From the 1630s to the 1660s, the Puritan’s beliefs greatly influenced the political, economical, and social development of the New England colonies. The Puritan community was built on many …show more content…

This map shows the individual houses built closely together with the church erected in the middle of the village shows how the Puritans’ ideas greatly influenced the settlements near New England. The Puritans had many strict moral codes regarding the behavior of the people, such as no dancing, card playing, or skipping church services. Severe punishments awaited the culprit, including flogging, sitting in the stocks, or even banishment. Roger Williams was a well-educated clergyman who was banished from the Massachusetts Bay Colony because of his religious beliefs. In “A Plea for Religious Liberty”, he explains how the Puritan’s uniformity would end in destruction (F). Nathanial Ward explains exactly how many Puritans thought in “The Simple Cobbler of Aggawam” (G). However, they did not have the best relationship with the neighboring Indians. William Bradford wrote a detailed account of the colonist’s attack on the Pequot’s Mystic River village, probably wanting to remember the sweet victory they had upon the Indians (D). A spiritual revival also occurred within the colony, focused mainly among the third- and fourth-generation Puritans. Their way of living greatly influenced the social development of New

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