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Early Colonies

the only one that accepted all religious faiths, not just Christian faiths.Pennsylvania, as said before, started out exclusively as a religious refuge. However, to ensure the economic survival of the colony, all faiths were accepted in Pennsylvania. The Quakers were open minded pacifists and almost immediately Quakers came from all over (not just from England). Due to the immigration of Quakers from other countries, cultural diversity and differences in ethnicity were present. The main cultures that inhabited Pennsylvania were French, English, Dutch, and German. Government was also important in the founding of English colonies in the New World. With each colony, the government and idea of democracy progressed. With a weak and unpredictable government first established in Virginia, the American colonists gradually advanced to a more democratic government. However, even the most democratic government was a far cry from the pure democracy we enjoy today. Their gradual learning experience and progression led to many more instances of attempted improvement, thus leading to more voice from the common people. The government in Massachusetts began with the Mayflower Compact, an agreement signed by the Pilgrims pledging that they would set up a theocracy, a political system headed by the clergy. In the compact, they also pledged loyalty to support and follow England. Seven years later, the Massachusetts Bay Company, under John Winthrope, coming for economic and religious reasons, set up a general court. This type of government started with 18 elected freemen, or white, male, wealthy, land-owning puritans. This government had many problems. The fact that only 18 people were representing the mass of colonists in Massachusetts caused misrepresentation of the majority of the colony. The elected freemen made decisions that looked to their own interests rather than to the good of the colony. Also, this general court only met four times a year, which ...

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