Mayflower encyclopedia topics

mayflower, in botany, name for several spring-blooming plants. In England the hawthorn is called mayflower, or may; in North America the name is used for the trailing arbutus, the hepatica, and an herb (Maianthemum canadense) of the family Liliaceae (lily family). The latter, a common wildflower of northern forests, bears a cluster of small white blossoms and has many local names, e.g., Canada mayflower and false lily-of-the-valley. It is classified in the division Magnoliophyta, class Liliopsida, order Liliales, family Liliaceae.

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Mayflower Compact

Mayflower Compact, in U.S. colonial history, an agreement providing for the temporary government of Plymouth Colony. The compact was signed (1620) on board the Mayflower by the adult male passengers; it created the first American settlement that was based upon a social contract. In it, the colonists combined together in a "civil Body Politick" whose purpose was to frame just and equal laws for the general good of the colony. The compact remained the basis of government in Plymouth for ten years, and all later governments in the colony developed out of the compact.

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Licensed from Columbia University Press

Mayflower

Mayflower, ship that in 1620 brought the Pilgrims from England to New England. She set out from Southampton in company with the Speedwell, the vessel that had borne some of the English separatists from the Netherlands back to England for the momentous voyage. However, the Speedwell proved unseaworthy, and the ships put back to Plymouth, where the Mayflower took on some of the smaller ship's passengers and supplies. The Mayflower, under the captaincy of Christopher Jones, then set sail alone on Sept. 16. After a two-month voyage the ship sighted land (Cape Cod) on Nov. 19. Some time was spent in selecting a suitable place for the colony, and on Dec. 26 the Pilgrims landed at Plymouth. Before landing, an agreement for the temporary government of the colony by the will of the majority was drawn up in the famous Mayflower Compact. Much effort has been spent on the identification of the Mayflower. It is known that she was a wineship, of 180 tons burden, and presumed that she was of a type commonly used in that period. In 1957 a British group sponsored the voyage of a replica of the original Mayflower from Plymouth, England, to Plymouth, Mass. The vessel was given to the United States as an expression of international goodwill and remains on exhibit at Plymouth, Mass.

See studies by W. Charlton (1957), C. Gill (1970), and N. Philbrick (2006).

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Licensed from Columbia University Press

trailing arbutus

or mayflower

Trailing evergreen plant (Epigaea repens) of the heath family, native to sandy or boggy, acidic woodlands of eastern North America. Its leaves are oblong and hairy, and its white, pink, or rosy flowers grow in dense clusters. It is grown in shady wildflower gardens and as ground cover in terraria.

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Encyclopedia Britannica, 2008. Encyclopedia Britannica Online.

Mayflower Compact

(1620) Document signed by 41 male passengers on the Mayflower before landing at Plymouth (Massachusetts). Concerned that some members might leave to form their own colonies, William Bradford and others drafted the compact to bind the group into a political body and pledge members to abide by any laws that would be established. The document adapted a church covenant to a civil situation and was the basis of the colony's government.

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Encyclopedia Britannica, 2008. Encyclopedia Britannica Online.