The Mayflower Compact
"The "Mayflower Compact" was signed on 11 November 1620 onboard the Mayflower
shortly after she came to anchor off Provincetown Harbor. The Pilgrims
had obtained permission from English authorities to settle in Virginia,
whose northern border at the time extended up to what is now New York.
The Pilgrims had originally intended to settle near the mouth of the
Hudson River, but due to dangerous shoals and a near shipwreck on their
attempt to head south, they decided instead to plant themselves outside
the bounds of the Virginia Company patent--which caused some "mutinous
speeches" amongst some of the passengers. The Mayflower Compact was an
attempt to establish a temporary, legally-binding form of
self-government until such time as the Company could get formal
permission from the Council of New England. This formal permission came
in the form of the Pierce Patent of 1621..."
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