One suspects the name of William Bradford is either not known at all or, if known, not well known by Americans.
As someone who grew up in Massachusetts, Bradford’s story was taught to kids in public schools like mine. As time progresses, a more adult understanding of Bradford is had and appreciated.
For those who came in late, Bradford was, of course, an Englishman. In his case, from Yorkshire, located in northern England. Bradford’s story begins in earnest with the religious persecution of his countrymen by the establishment church — the Church of England — and King James I. As with his friends and colleagues, Bradford’s first step in seeking religious freedom was to flee England for Leiden, Holland.
From there he was aboard the good ship Mayflower, the ship that famously took him and his fellow Pilgrims (as they came to be called), to the New World, specifically Plymouth, Massachusetts. He signed the Mayflower Compact, which set out the very first governing laws for the new Plymouth Colony. The Compact was handwritten by Bradford and, unbelievably, is still around. The original Bradford-written document is locked safely in a vault at the State Library of Massachusetts.
As America prepares to celebrate Thanksgiving, the Compact is worth reading in its brief entirety. It states:
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 Great Britain, France, and Ireland, King, Defender of the Faith, &c. Having 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 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 do 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 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.
Three hundred years later, in November 1920, Massachusetts Gov. Calvin Coolidge, himself newly elected as vice president of the United States, called attention to the Compact, saying:
The compact which they signed was an event of the greatest importance. It was the foundation of liberty based on law and order, and that tradition has been steadily upheld. They drew up a form of government which has been designated as the first real constitution of modern times. It was democratic, an
acknowledgment of liberty under law and order and the giving to each person the right to participate in the government, while they promised to be obedient to the laws.
But the really wonderful thing was that they had the power and strength of character to abide by it and live by it from that day to this. Some governments are better than others. But any form of government is better than anarchy, and any attempt to tear down government is an attempt to wreck civilization.
Few realized this more than William Bradford himself. So highly was Bradford thought of by his fellow Plymouth Colony settlers that he was, astonishingly, elected governor for thirty — say again — thirty years. In fact, he served as governor for the rest of his life.
Among other works, he wrote Of Plymouth Plantation, which told the tale of the founding of Plymouth Colony and the lives and exploits of his fellow colonists during the period from 1620-1646. It is decidedly worth reading if Americans have any quiet downtime amidst their family Thanksgiving traditions.
Bradford’s writings are a reminder as Americans celebrate Thanksgiving of what exactly the first colonists of the New World endured for good and ill as they went about, to borrow a familiar current phrase, Making America Great.
Happy Thanksgiving!
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