|
William Bradford (15901657) was an English Separatist leader who grew up in Yorkshire, and later moved to Leiden, Holland, and helped found the Plymouth Colony. He was a signatory to the Mayflower Compact while aboard the ''Mayflower'' in 1620. He served as Plymouth Colony Governor five times covering about thirty years between 1621 and 1657. His journal, ''Of Plymouth Plantation'', covered the period from 1620 to 1657 in Plymouth Colony.〔(''The fast and thanksgiving days of New England'' ) by William Deloss Love, Houghton, Mifflin and Co., Cambridge, 1895.〕 ==English origins== William Bradford was born to Alice and William Bradford in Austerfield, Yorkshire, England, being baptized on March 19, 1589/90.〔Schmidt, 6.〕 In a time when most of their countrymen were farmers of modest means,〔Schmidt, 17.〕 the Bradford family owned a large farm and were considered wealthy and influential.〔Schmidt, 4.〕 According to surgeon and historical researcher George J. Hill, Bradford's grandfather was William Bradfurthe who had at least four children, including Bradford's father, and was likely of noble ancestry.〔Mayflower Quarterly v. 79, No. 4, p.p. 328-341〕 Bradford's childhood was marked by numerous deaths in the family. He was just over a year old when his father died. When he was four years old, his mother remarried and Bradford was sent to live with his grandfather.〔 Two years later, his grandfather died and he returned to live with his mother and stepfather. A year later, in 1597, his mother died. Bradford thus became an orphan at age seven and was sent to live with two uncles.〔 His uncles wanted young Bradford to help on the farm, and he later noted in his journal that he suffered at that time from a "long sickness" and was unable to work. He instead turned to reading. He became familiar with the Bible and classic works of literature. This, too, is seen by some as a key factor in his intellectual curiosity and his eventual attraction to the Separatist Church.〔Schmidt, 7.〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「William Bradford (Plymouth Colony governor)」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
|