Government+and+Politics

=Mayflower Compact= The Mayflower Compact was an agreement made and signed by all settlers who came to Cape Cod on the Mayflower. This was the first laws in the new land. The new settlers knew that the reason why other colonies didn’t succeed was because they didn’t have a government. They decided to write their own rules for the new land. They took the compact very seriously. “When creating the Mayflower Compact, the signers believed that covenants were not only to be honored between God and man, but also between each other (All About History).” In this compact, they said that they would be free of English law and that everyone would have equal rights. Whatever the majority said went. Some people say that this was the foundation of the United States Constitution. This compact was the base of the laws in Cape Cod and Plymouth until 1691."Mayflower Compact."  Sources

//All About History//. AllAboutHistory.org, 8 Feb 2012. Web. 8 Feb 2012. []

=New England Confederation= The New England Confederation was a defensive plan to help protect northern colonies. This was group that helped each other protect themselves from the Dutch, French, and Native Americans. In this group were Massachusetts Bay, Connecticut, New Haven and Plymouth. This united defense played an important part in King Philip’s War in 1675. In this group, they decided to still remain independent colonies but still help each other as one. In the government of the New England Confederation, there were two representatives from each colony. I think this is the first form of the Senate from 1643-1684 when it finally fell apart. Even though it only worked for a little while, it was significant because it was the first attempt to unify the colonies.

Sources

"New England Confederation." //American History//. About.com, unknown. Web. 9 Feb 2012. []

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