Several nations contributed to the early American colonies.
people of varied backgrounds, habits and theological ideas. Immigrants came in .
from England, France, Spain, as well as other places and started to form their .
own settlements with each settlement having its own culture. Despite their .
biggest cultural difference, religion, the time came for them to come together and .
they did it without any major distress. The Puritans of New England, the Friends .
of Pennsylvania , the Roman Catholics of Maryland and the Churchmen of .
Virginia, though often narrow in their theological views, manifested a common .
love of liberty, and acted upon the common rule that the majority should govern.
.
Many of those who came to America did so to remove themselves from .
persecution in their homeland. For example, The Puritans came to America .
fleeing from the Church of England. They saw the flaws in the Church of .
England and came to a New land hoping to build a society on what they .
thought to be the proper religious standards. The ways and beliefs of the .
Puritans made them somewhat less tolerant than other colonial cultures, but they .
were making a slow progression from what they came from to the foundation of a .
new inclusive nation. Furthermore, The Quakers (Friends) of Pennsylvania, .
founded by William Penn, not only wanted to establish a place for their own .
people, but were also open to the idea of people with other belief systems living .
in and contributing to a larger society. The Society of Friends was one of the first .
early American cultures to really come close to what America is today. They .
realized that people of differing beliefs could come together and build a .
productive society if the people were willing to accept each other. Both the .
Puritans and Quakers had the similar goals which ultimately brought them .
together.
The people of Virginia and Maryland made fundamental steps toward .
democracy and personal freedom.
