"The cowards never started and the weak died along the way" This is very true pertaining to the Plymouth Pilgrims, who clearly had to possess courage, strength, and faith to make such a journey to America. .
The Pilgrims, or Separatists, of England wanted complete division from the Angelican Church. This Church of England was strict and was the one and only church that was tolerated in England. People who, like the Pilgrims, wanted freedom from the church, were faced with the decision to either inevitably face hard, often tortured death, or make the long, grueling journey to America. In 1607, the Pilgrims made their first attempt to leave England bound for Amsterdam. William Bradford spoke of "the hardness of the place and country." The only occupations available to English immigrants were those in low-paying jobs such as cloth-making, and other labor-intensive occupations. Some of the English who had fled to Holland expended their funds and "returned to the prisons of England rather than endure the hardships in Holland." After several more attempts to leave, the Pilgrims succeeded in getting a patent from the London Virginia Company. They started off to the New World on the Mayflower, where the conditions were just as harsh as they were in England and Holland, if not more. The Mayflower was a merchant ship, but it managed to hold 102 passengers and 30 crewmembers. There was little privacy, and being battered and bruised by the beams and walls of the ship was a common passenger injury during storms. After docking, the Pilgrims had to start their new settlement at Plymouth. The Pilgrims faced many hardships in America, and many died from the cold, hunger, and disease in the early years. Failure frequently splintered the hopes of the early settlers. Many knew a "starving time". Governor Bradford accredited distress to a combination of bad planning, the wilderness, and sheer bad luck.
