They Knew They Were Pilgrims: Plymouth Colony and the Contest for American Liberty

An ambitious new history of the Pilgrims and Plymouth Colony, published for the 400th anniversary of the Mayflower's landing

In 1620, separatists from the Church of England set sail across the Atlantic aboard the Mayflower. Understanding themselves as spiritual pilgrims, they left to preserve their liberty to worship God in accordance with their understanding of the Bible.

There exists, however, an alternative, more dispiriting version of their story. In it, the Pilgrims are religious zea...