The Precise History of New England

[El Pip]

I am not sure about the historical realibily ob this one. Howevr, you do seem have a idea on what you are writing so get with the game and start up.

Yeah because who needs any information on the intervening three centuries? Clearly lifeless should just race ahead and jump straight into a alt-history game with no backstory and no explanation of how things changed and why.

Onto the AAR itself, so far so historic. In the abscence of clues (well except it will be New England ) I would guess The Dominion of New England 1680s. Properly handled with a bit more tact and a bit less authoritarian it could of lasted. As a large loyalist grouping it might have the critical mass to negotiate and better deal with the British government and end up becoming a Canada style dominion.

My other guess, is the divergence is later on, War of 1812. New England was never happy about the war and so given suitable inducements and a few minor changes of circumstances they could have seced and ended up totally independent.

My 'luck' at such guess' has been improving of late, so I hope to at least be close with one of those two.

[blysas]

As I understand it, during those times, there were many changes in history, so therefore this could mean that one small change can affect the whole universe. Welcome to the butterfly effect!

[BigBadWolf]

Mayflower compact...every day you learn something new...
Excellent work, lifeless...

[Mettermrck]

Ah, a New England AAR. I'm fascinated already as I grew up in Massachusetts. Reading the history so far makes me homesick. Nice work, sir!

[coz1]

Very well done so far with the pre-story and history of the area. If the rest is as intriguing as the beginning, then you have me hooked. Nice graphics display as well, and you've certainly done your research. Keep it up!

[lifeless]

Singleton Mosby: why thank you! no the alternate history wont happen yet. thats pretty cool

Oranje Verzet: thank you!

blysas: well im currently working on the mod which is plagued with errors which i cant find....indeed the butterfly effect is high and mighty

El Pip: you're getting good at guessing indeed, the independence will occur during the war of 1812 but we will see strains in the union well before that

BigBadWolf:indeed, everyday presents you with new occurances which you learn from. thanks!

Mettermrck: why thank you! not sure that was the effect i was going for but eh *shrugs*

coz1: thank you and might i say you are one fine aar writer.

All: a mini update should be up by tonight(at least tonight in est) thanks for all the comments!

[kenneththegreat]

Looking good, Sir. I'd say you continue at top speed, ignoring all else

[GeneralHannibal]

looking good, I can't wait to see what the world looks like in 1936.

[lifeless]

kenneththegreat: as much as i would like that, there will be times where an update might not be available as much as a week

GeneralHannible:why thank you and indeed the world will be pretty different by 1936. might not be alot of differences but you never know...who knows what i might think up

[lifeless]

The Mayflower was anchored in safe harbor at the tip of Cape Cod and after signing the Mayflower Compact, fifteen or sixteen of the colonists went ashore in the long-boat partially because the Mayflower was out of wood for cooking and that the Pilgrim were enthusiastic to gaze upon what would be their new home. Their arrival to what would be their new home was met by sandy beaches with wild grasses running to the waterline in some places. By nightfall, the scouting party reported they had seen neither person nor living conditions such as houses except for an abundance of birds.



Since the water was shallow, the colonists were able to wade up to the shore, which came as a relief to everyone after being cooped up in the Mayflower for 68 days of the crossing. However the water was icy cold and this contributed to the colds during the “Great Sickness” which dwindled their numbers in weeks and months to come. Women found ponds of fresh water to do laundry while the carpenters went to work on the shallop, which would need to be reassembled and repaired.



Some of the men explored the surrounding area discovering that they landed on a narrow neck of land with a bay on one side, and the ocean on the other. The ground was sandy but about a foot deep, the earth was black soil, excellent for farming. The next day, they were marching through the woods when they discovered a fresh water spring, which is now called Pilgrim Spring. Marching south along the western shore of Cape Cod, the scouting parties discovered heaps of sand that when uncovered, revealed baskets of corn which they took back to the Mayflower where the shallop was ready and repaired. The colonists decided to make a third expedition and it was on this one that they saw 10 or 12 Indians on the beach. When they saw the shallop approaching, they disappeared into the woods while the colonists camped on the beach. The next morning, the Indians attacked the colonists with bows but were repulsed by gunfire. After that encounter, the colonists sailed further along the coast toward the mainland. They explored around the harbor, which is now known as Plymouth Harbor, and spent some time on an island, which is now known as Clark's Island. The colonists finally determined that the mainland was a good place to put their families. The Mayflower soon sailed into Plymouth harbor and landed there on December 21st. They finally decided to settle at Plymouth because it had a decent brook that ran under a high hill on which they could build a gun platform to protect them. “The Great Sickness” was beginning to take its toll on the families but when the weather permitted, they were ashore to cut timber and began to build their houses and the common-house where their supplies would be stored. By mid-January the common-house was completed, and the village began to take shape. However, half of the colonists would soon be dead because of “The Great Sickness”. By mid March the weather began to subside and “The Great Sickness" began to settle, and the colonists busied themselves about the tasks of digging up the ground in their garden plots, where they planted some of the seeds that they had brought with them from England. On April 5th, Master Jones of the Mayflower decided to return back to England because he had lost several members of his crew and that spring provided a fine opportunity to return.

[stnylan]

From small acorns mighty oaks do grow.

[coz1]

Indeed, and that was no easy journey to begin with. But from these small steps, we should see great things.

[lifeless]

stnylan & coz1: indeed they do.

Sorry for the lack of updates but I've been really busy...

[lifeless]

On March 16, some three months after the Pilgrims arrived, that a tall Indian walked boldly into the plantation crying out, "Welcome! Welcome, Englishmen!" The Pilgrims were startled when the Indian named Samoset introduced himself to the Pilgrims in English. He told them that he was from a tribe from Maine and had learned broken English from the fishermen and traders that visited the island each year. Since he was the first Indian with whom the Pilgrims had spoken since they arrived in New England, they questioned him for some time, learning from him that the Patuxets, who formerly owned the land on which they had built their settlement, had all died four years before from the plague introduced by visiting Europeans.



After tossing a coat over his shoulders to ward off the chill winds, the Pilgrims fed him, then continued to question him whence he told them of the seizure of 20 Indians to be sold into slavery but were saved by the persistence of Spanish monks. When it became evident that Samoset did not intend to leave, the Pilgrim leaders decided to let him sleep on the Mayflower since it would be almost impossible for him to commit any treachery out in the harbor but instead he was to sleep in a house of a Pilgrim since the waters were too choppy for the shallop to launch. Samoset left after breakfast the next morning, but came back on the following Sunday with five more Indians who not only returned some of the Pilgrims' tools they had found in the woods, but brought some furs to trade but the Pilgrims refused to do business because of the Sabbath and told them to return later with more furs but Samoset didn’t go with them, instead remaining at the colony until Wednesday. He returned again the next day, this time with Squanto who surprised the Pilgrims with his near flawless English.



He told them that the Massasoit, the Great Leader of the Wampanoag Nation, was waiting in the nearby woods and intended to come to Plymouth later in the day, and a short time later the he did appear at the top of a nearby hill, attended by 60 of his men. Squanto would teach the Pilgrims how to find herring, a kind of fish, and to use it as a fertilizer when planting corn, pumpkins and beans. This was important to the Pilgrims because the seeds they had brought with them from England did not do well in the New England soil. He would also show them how to find clams and eels in the rivers and how to hunt for deer, bears and turkeys. On April 1, 1621, Samoset and Squanto appeared in the little colony with three other Indians. They brought with them a few skins and some red herrings newly taken and dried to trade and brought with them an offer to have a peace treaty between the Pilgrims and the Wampanoags. The treaty was signed by the Massasoit and John Carver, the first governor of Plymouth Colony.



During the next few months, the Native Americans and the colonists worked together to till and plant the first successful crops. The first feast of Thanksgiving, in October of 1621, was a harvest festival filled with fellowship, good food and games. The Indians and the colonists shared the fruits of their labor: venison, duck, turkey, corn and pumpkin. The Pilgrims had a deep friendship with the natives that endured for over fifty years. Rugged cutting steel blades, farming tools, trim clothing, warm blankets, glass and metal containers and ornaments that no stone or shell work could duplicate were now available for trade for pelts and land. The peace born of mutual support and trust eventually eroded. Another plague swept away thousands of Algonquins and made more land available. Soon, only between 15000-18000 Indians were alive in all of New England. Meanwhile, the expanding colonial towns were bulging with the new arrivals, eager to start claiming and clearing their own piece of America squeezing the Indians between the colonists along the coast and inland and hostile tribes like the Iroquois to the West. Soon, full-scale war erupted between the colonists and the Indians, which was called King Phillip’s War.

[stnylan]

Can't trust those colonists. They'll kill you in the end.

[GeneralHannibal]

go Indians, claim what is rightfully yours !!!

[coz1]

Paradise turns ugly. Shame after all that good feeling early on. But as has been suggested, you can't trust the colonists. And I had an ancestor that was part of that very same Mayflower group too (interestingly enough - I share this ancestor with one Winston Churchill. )

[Oranje Verzet]

Why cant we all just get along heh, clash of cultures -> same old same old

coz1 - that is pretty far back you got a family treeline or sth?

[JackoftheNight]

So should I expect to see victory by the Indians in King Philips war....driving the colonoists into the sea? Or the removal of colonists and only small outposts in a "new world" while various indain tribes (such as the ?5? nations)?


hmmmmm...........

[coz1]

Why cant we all just get along heh, clash of cultures -> same old same old

coz1 - that is pretty far back you got a family treeline or sth?

Well my uncle had already done the research for our family, and I was just reading along one day in a book on Churchill and looked at his family tree. His mother had the same relative on the Mayflower. I went back and compared thinking maybe the name was just similar, and low and behold - boom - same guy. Talk about a small world.