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On November 15, 1620, Myles Standish leads 16 men in a foot exploration of the northern portion of Cape Cod. From the article:
"Myles Standish (c. 1584 – October 3, 1656) was an English military officer hired by the Pilgrims as military adviser for Plymouth Colony. He accompanied them on the Mayflower journey and played a leading role in the administration and defense of Plymouth Colony from its inception.[2] On February 17, 1621, the Plymouth Colony militia elected him as its first commander and continued to re-elect him to that position for the remainder of his life.[3] He served as an agent of Plymouth Colony in England, as assistant governor, and as treasurer of the Colony.[4] He was also one of the first settlers and founders of the town of Duxbury, Massachusetts.[5]
A defining characteristic of Standish's military leadership was his proclivity for preemptive action which resulted in at least two attacks (or small skirmishes) on different groups of Native Americans—the Nemasket raid and the conflict at Wessagusset Colony. During these actions, Standish exhibited considerable courage and skill as a soldier, but also demonstrated a brutality that angered Native Americans and disturbed more moderate members of the Colony.[6]
One of Standish's last military actions on behalf of Plymouth Colony was the botched Penobscot expedition in 1635. By the 1640s, he relinquished his role as an active soldier and settled into a quieter life on his Duxbury farm. He was still nominally the commander of the Pilgrim military forces in the growing Colony, although he seems to have preferred to act in an advisory capacity.[7] He died in his home in Duxbury in 1656 at age 72.[8] He supported and defended the Pilgrims' colony for much of his life, though there is no evidence to suggest that he ever joined their church.[9]
Several towns and military installations have been named for Standish, and monuments have been built in his memory. One of the best known depictions of him in popular culture was the 1858 poem The Courtship of Miles Standish by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. The highly fictionalized story presents him as a timid romantic.[10] It was extremely popular in the 19th century and played a significant role in cementing the Pilgrim story in US culture.[11]
Little is definitively known of Myles Standish's origin and early life. His place of birth has been subject to debate among historians for more than 150 years.[12] At the center of the debate is language in his will, drafted in Plymouth Colony in 1656, regarding his rights of inheritance. Standish wrote:
I give unto my son & heire apparent Alexander Standish all my lands as heire apparent by lawfull decent in Ormskirke [Ormskirk] Borscouge [Burscough] Wrightington Maudsley [Mawdesley] Newburrow [Newburgh] Crowston [Croston] and in the Isle of man [sic] and given to mee as Right heire by lawfull decent but Surruptuously detained from mee My great Grandfather being a 2cond or younger brother from the house of Standish of Standish.[12]
The places named by Standish are all in Lancashire, England, with the exception of the Isle of Man, leading some to conclude that he was born in Lancashire—possibly in the vicinity of Chorley, where a branch of the Standish family owned a manor known as Duxbury Hall.[13] However, efforts have been inconclusive in linking him to the Standishes of Duxbury Hall. A competing theory focuses on his mention of the Isle of Man and argues that he belonged to a Manx branch of the Standish family. No definitive documentation exists in either location to provide clear evidence of his birthplace.[12]
Possibly the best source, however brief, on Standish's origin and early life is a short passage recorded by Nathaniel Morton, secretary of Plymouth Colony, who wrote in his New England's Memorial, published in 1669, that Standish:
...was a gentleman, born in Lancashire, and was heir apparent unto a great estate of lands and livings, surreptitiously detained from him; his great grandfather being a second or younger brother from the house of Standish. In his younger time he went over into the low countries, and was a soldier there, and came acquainted with the church at Leyden, and came over into New England, with such of them as at the first set out for the planting of the plantation of New Plymouth, and bare a deep share of their first difficulties, and was always very faithful to their interest.[14]
The circumstances are vague at best concerning Standish's early military career in Holland (the "low countries" to which Morton referred). At the time, the Dutch Republic was embroiled in the Eighty Years' War with Spain. Queen Elizabeth I of England chose to support the Protestant Dutch Republic and sent troops to fight the Spanish in Holland. Historians are divided on his role in the English military. Nathaniel Philbrick refers to Standish as a "mercenary", suggesting that he was a hired soldier of fortune seeking opportunity in Holland,[15] but Justin Winsor claims that Standish received a lieutenant's commission in the English army and was subsequently promoted to captain in Holland.[13] Jeremy Bangs, a leading scholar of Pilgrim history, noted that Standish likely served under Sir Horatio Vere, an English general who had recruited soldiers in both Lancashire and the Isle of Man, among other places, and who led the English troops in Holland at the time when Standish was there.[12]
Whether commissioned officer, mercenary, or both, Standish apparently came to Holland around 1603 and, according to historian Tudor Jenks, may have seen service during the siege of Sluis in 1604, in which Vere's English troops were involved. The subsequent Twelve Years' Truce (1609–1621) between Spain and the Dutch Republic might have ended Standish's service.[16]
Standish was certainly still in Holland in 1620 and living in Leiden when he was hired by a group of refugee Puritan dissenters from England to act as their adviser on military matters.[17] At that time, he was using the title of "Captain." When considering candidates for this important position, the Puritans had at first hoped to engage Captain John Smith, one of the founders of the English colony at Jamestown, Virginia who had also explored and mapped the North American coast. They approached him to return to the New World and he expressed interest. His experience made him an attractive candidate, but the Pilgrims ultimately decided against him; his price was too high and they feared that his fame and bold character might lead him to become a dictator.[18] Standish lived in Leiden with his wife Rose and was apparently already known to them.[12]
On July 22, 1620 (Old Style date), the initial group of English Dissenters living in Leiden boarded the Speedwell, which was meant to accompany another ship to be hired in England. This initial group included the mostly Brownist congregation. Myles and Rose Standish were aboard, along with the Bradfords, Winslows, Carvers, and others. The small, 60-ton pinnace sailed to Southampton with about 30 passengers, to be provisioned there and join a much larger vessel for the voyage to the New World. Another 90 passengers would board the 180-ton Mayflower. The Speedwell had some significant leaks while in port that caused delays, but both vessels departed Southampton August 5.[19]
The leaders of the colony decided to leave the smaller Speedwell behind after numerous delays caused by leaking, which had caused them to return to port twice. The Standishes and most of the Speedwell passengers crowded into the Mayflower, and the Speedwell went on to London to be resold, now with only a few passengers.[19] (She subsequently made numerous successful journeys as a cargo vessel for her new owners, but never sailed to the New World.) The Mayflower passengers, meanwhile, sold some valuable supplies such as butter to pay the mounting port fees, and finally departed Plymouth, England on September 6, 1620, bound for the northern part of the Virginia Colony.
The passage of the Mayflower across the North Atlantic lasted more than two months, with 102 passengers crowded onto the cargo ship's gun deck and about 30 crew members. The seas were not severe during the first month of the voyage but, by the second month, the ship was being hit by strong autumn gales, causing it to be badly shaken with water leaks from structural damage. One passenger died at sea, and four others while the ship was anchored at Cape Cod.[20]
On November 9, 1620, lookouts spotted land, but it was quickly appreciated that their location was about 200 miles east-northeast of their planned destination of northern Virginia, near what is now called Cape Cod. They tried briefly to sail south, but strong seas forced them to retreat to Cape Cod to harbor near the "hook" of present-day Provincetown Harbor.[21] It became apparent that the weather would not permit the passage south, so they decided to settle near Cape Cod. Shortage of supplies (including wood and beer) and the roaring Atlantic made it too dangerous to press on for a Virginia landing. They anchored at the hook on November 11, but not before signing a significant document.[19] The leaders of the colony wrote the Mayflower Compact to ensure a degree of law and order in this place where they had not been granted a patent to settle. Myles Standish was one of the 41 men who signed the document.[22]
When the Mayflower was anchored off Cape Cod, Standish urged the colony's leaders to allow him to take a party ashore to find a suitable place for settlement.[23] On November 15, 1620, he led 16 men in a foot exploration of the northern portion of the Cape.[24] On December 11, a group of 18 settlers, including Standish, made an extended exploration of the shore of Cape Cod by boat,[25] spending their nights ashore surrounded by makeshift barricades of tree branches. The settlers were attacked one night by a group of about 30 Native Americans. At first, the Englishmen panicked, but Standish calmed them, urging the settlers not to fire their matchlock muskets unnecessarily.[26] The incident took place in present-day Eastham, Massachusetts and came to be known as the First Encounter.
After further exploration, the Pilgrims chose a location in present-day Plymouth Bay in late December 1620 as the site for their settlement. Standish provided important counsel on the placement of a small fort in which cannon were mounted, and on the layout of the first houses for maximum defensibility.[2] Only one house (consisting of a single room) had been built when illness struck the settlers. Of the roughly 100 who first arrived, only 50 survived the first winter.[27] Standish's wife Rose died in January.[28]
Standish was one of the very few who did not fall ill and William Bradford (soon to be governor of Plymouth Colony) credited him with comforting many and being a source of strength to those who suffered.[29] Standish tended to Bradford during his illness, and this was the beginning of a decades-long friendship.[30] Bradford held the position of governor for most of his life and, by necessity, worked closely with Standish. The two men were opposites in terms of character; Bradford was patient and slow to judgment, while Standish was well known for his fiery temper.[31] Despite their differences, the two worked well together in managing the colony and responding to dangers as they arose.[32]
By February 1621, the colonists had sighted Native Americans several times, but there had been no communication. The men of the colony were anxious to prepare themselves in case of hostilities, so they formed a militia on February 17, 1621 consisting of all able-bodied men, electing Standish as their commander. The leaders of Plymouth Colony had already hired him for that role, but this vote ratified the decision by democratic process.[3] The men of Plymouth Colony continued to re-elect him to that position for the remainder of his life. As captain of the militia, Standish regularly drilled his men in the use of pikes and muskets.[33]
Contact with the Native Americans came in March 1621 through Samoset, an English-speaking Abenaki who arranged for the Pilgrims to meet with Massasoit, the sachem of the nearby Pokanoket tribe. On March 22, the first governor of Plymouth Colony John Carver signed a treaty with Massasoit, declaring an alliance between the Pokanoket and the Englishmen and requiring the two parties to defend each other in times of need.[34] Governor Carver died the same year and the responsibility of upholding the treaty fell to his successor William Bradford. Bradford and Standish were frequently preoccupied with the complex task of reacting to threats against both the Pilgrims and the Pokanokets from tribes such as the Massachusetts and the Narragansetts.[32] As threats arose, Standish typically advocated intimidation to deter their rivals. Such behavior at times made Bradford uncomfortable, but he found it an expedient means of maintaining the treaty with the Pokanokets.[35]
The first challenge to the treaty came in August 1621 when a sachem named Corbitant began to undermine Massasoit's leadership. Corbitant worked to turn the people of Nemasket against Massasoit in the Pokanoket village of Nemasket, now the site of Middleborough, Massachusetts, about 14 miles (23 km) west of Plymouth.[32] Bradford sent two trusted interpreters to determine what was happening in Nemasket: Tisquantum (known to the English as Squanto) and Hobbamock. Tisquantum had been pivotal in providing counsel and aid to the Pilgrims, ensuring the survival of the colony. Hobbamock, another influential ally, was a pniese—a high-ranking advisor to Massasoit—and a warrior who commanded particular respect and fear among Native Americans. When Tisquantum and Hobbamock arrived in Nemasket, Corbitant took Tisquantum captive and threatened to kill him. Hobbamock escaped to warn Plymouth.[36]
Bradford and Standish agreed that this represented a dangerous threat to the English-Pokanoket alliance and decided to act quickly. On August 14, 1621, Standish led a group of 10 men to Nemasket, determined to kill Corbitant.[32] They were guided by Hobbamock who quickly befriended Standish, and the two men were close for the remainder of their lives. In his old age, Hobbamock became part of Standish's household in Duxbury.[37]
Reaching Nemasket, Standish planned a night attack on the wigwam in which Corbitant was believed to be sleeping. That night, he and Hobbamock burst into the shelter, shouting for Corbitant. As frightened Pokanokets attempted to escape, Englishmen outside the wigwam fired their muskets, wounding a Pokanoket man and woman who were later taken to Plymouth to be treated. Standish soon learned that Corbitant had already fled the village and Tisquantum was unharmed.[38]
Standish had failed to capture Corbitant, but the raid had the desired effect. On September 13, 1621, nine sachems came to Plymouth, including Corbitant, to sign a treaty of loyalty to King James.[39]
"Myles Standish (c. 1584 – October 3, 1656) was an English military officer hired by the Pilgrims as military adviser for Plymouth Colony. He accompanied them on the Mayflower journey and played a leading role in the administration and defense of Plymouth Colony from its inception.[2] On February 17, 1621, the Plymouth Colony militia elected him as its first commander and continued to re-elect him to that position for the remainder of his life.[3] He served as an agent of Plymouth Colony in England, as assistant governor, and as treasurer of the Colony.[4] He was also one of the first settlers and founders of the town of Duxbury, Massachusetts.[5]
A defining characteristic of Standish's military leadership was his proclivity for preemptive action which resulted in at least two attacks (or small skirmishes) on different groups of Native Americans—the Nemasket raid and the conflict at Wessagusset Colony. During these actions, Standish exhibited considerable courage and skill as a soldier, but also demonstrated a brutality that angered Native Americans and disturbed more moderate members of the Colony.[6]
One of Standish's last military actions on behalf of Plymouth Colony was the botched Penobscot expedition in 1635. By the 1640s, he relinquished his role as an active soldier and settled into a quieter life on his Duxbury farm. He was still nominally the commander of the Pilgrim military forces in the growing Colony, although he seems to have preferred to act in an advisory capacity.[7] He died in his home in Duxbury in 1656 at age 72.[8] He supported and defended the Pilgrims' colony for much of his life, though there is no evidence to suggest that he ever joined their church.[9]
Several towns and military installations have been named for Standish, and monuments have been built in his memory. One of the best known depictions of him in popular culture was the 1858 poem The Courtship of Miles Standish by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. The highly fictionalized story presents him as a timid romantic.[10] It was extremely popular in the 19th century and played a significant role in cementing the Pilgrim story in US culture.[11]
Little is definitively known of Myles Standish's origin and early life. His place of birth has been subject to debate among historians for more than 150 years.[12] At the center of the debate is language in his will, drafted in Plymouth Colony in 1656, regarding his rights of inheritance. Standish wrote:
I give unto my son & heire apparent Alexander Standish all my lands as heire apparent by lawfull decent in Ormskirke [Ormskirk] Borscouge [Burscough] Wrightington Maudsley [Mawdesley] Newburrow [Newburgh] Crowston [Croston] and in the Isle of man [sic] and given to mee as Right heire by lawfull decent but Surruptuously detained from mee My great Grandfather being a 2cond or younger brother from the house of Standish of Standish.[12]
The places named by Standish are all in Lancashire, England, with the exception of the Isle of Man, leading some to conclude that he was born in Lancashire—possibly in the vicinity of Chorley, where a branch of the Standish family owned a manor known as Duxbury Hall.[13] However, efforts have been inconclusive in linking him to the Standishes of Duxbury Hall. A competing theory focuses on his mention of the Isle of Man and argues that he belonged to a Manx branch of the Standish family. No definitive documentation exists in either location to provide clear evidence of his birthplace.[12]
Possibly the best source, however brief, on Standish's origin and early life is a short passage recorded by Nathaniel Morton, secretary of Plymouth Colony, who wrote in his New England's Memorial, published in 1669, that Standish:
...was a gentleman, born in Lancashire, and was heir apparent unto a great estate of lands and livings, surreptitiously detained from him; his great grandfather being a second or younger brother from the house of Standish. In his younger time he went over into the low countries, and was a soldier there, and came acquainted with the church at Leyden, and came over into New England, with such of them as at the first set out for the planting of the plantation of New Plymouth, and bare a deep share of their first difficulties, and was always very faithful to their interest.[14]
The circumstances are vague at best concerning Standish's early military career in Holland (the "low countries" to which Morton referred). At the time, the Dutch Republic was embroiled in the Eighty Years' War with Spain. Queen Elizabeth I of England chose to support the Protestant Dutch Republic and sent troops to fight the Spanish in Holland. Historians are divided on his role in the English military. Nathaniel Philbrick refers to Standish as a "mercenary", suggesting that he was a hired soldier of fortune seeking opportunity in Holland,[15] but Justin Winsor claims that Standish received a lieutenant's commission in the English army and was subsequently promoted to captain in Holland.[13] Jeremy Bangs, a leading scholar of Pilgrim history, noted that Standish likely served under Sir Horatio Vere, an English general who had recruited soldiers in both Lancashire and the Isle of Man, among other places, and who led the English troops in Holland at the time when Standish was there.[12]
Whether commissioned officer, mercenary, or both, Standish apparently came to Holland around 1603 and, according to historian Tudor Jenks, may have seen service during the siege of Sluis in 1604, in which Vere's English troops were involved. The subsequent Twelve Years' Truce (1609–1621) between Spain and the Dutch Republic might have ended Standish's service.[16]
Standish was certainly still in Holland in 1620 and living in Leiden when he was hired by a group of refugee Puritan dissenters from England to act as their adviser on military matters.[17] At that time, he was using the title of "Captain." When considering candidates for this important position, the Puritans had at first hoped to engage Captain John Smith, one of the founders of the English colony at Jamestown, Virginia who had also explored and mapped the North American coast. They approached him to return to the New World and he expressed interest. His experience made him an attractive candidate, but the Pilgrims ultimately decided against him; his price was too high and they feared that his fame and bold character might lead him to become a dictator.[18] Standish lived in Leiden with his wife Rose and was apparently already known to them.[12]
On July 22, 1620 (Old Style date), the initial group of English Dissenters living in Leiden boarded the Speedwell, which was meant to accompany another ship to be hired in England. This initial group included the mostly Brownist congregation. Myles and Rose Standish were aboard, along with the Bradfords, Winslows, Carvers, and others. The small, 60-ton pinnace sailed to Southampton with about 30 passengers, to be provisioned there and join a much larger vessel for the voyage to the New World. Another 90 passengers would board the 180-ton Mayflower. The Speedwell had some significant leaks while in port that caused delays, but both vessels departed Southampton August 5.[19]
The leaders of the colony decided to leave the smaller Speedwell behind after numerous delays caused by leaking, which had caused them to return to port twice. The Standishes and most of the Speedwell passengers crowded into the Mayflower, and the Speedwell went on to London to be resold, now with only a few passengers.[19] (She subsequently made numerous successful journeys as a cargo vessel for her new owners, but never sailed to the New World.) The Mayflower passengers, meanwhile, sold some valuable supplies such as butter to pay the mounting port fees, and finally departed Plymouth, England on September 6, 1620, bound for the northern part of the Virginia Colony.
The passage of the Mayflower across the North Atlantic lasted more than two months, with 102 passengers crowded onto the cargo ship's gun deck and about 30 crew members. The seas were not severe during the first month of the voyage but, by the second month, the ship was being hit by strong autumn gales, causing it to be badly shaken with water leaks from structural damage. One passenger died at sea, and four others while the ship was anchored at Cape Cod.[20]
On November 9, 1620, lookouts spotted land, but it was quickly appreciated that their location was about 200 miles east-northeast of their planned destination of northern Virginia, near what is now called Cape Cod. They tried briefly to sail south, but strong seas forced them to retreat to Cape Cod to harbor near the "hook" of present-day Provincetown Harbor.[21] It became apparent that the weather would not permit the passage south, so they decided to settle near Cape Cod. Shortage of supplies (including wood and beer) and the roaring Atlantic made it too dangerous to press on for a Virginia landing. They anchored at the hook on November 11, but not before signing a significant document.[19] The leaders of the colony wrote the Mayflower Compact to ensure a degree of law and order in this place where they had not been granted a patent to settle. Myles Standish was one of the 41 men who signed the document.[22]
When the Mayflower was anchored off Cape Cod, Standish urged the colony's leaders to allow him to take a party ashore to find a suitable place for settlement.[23] On November 15, 1620, he led 16 men in a foot exploration of the northern portion of the Cape.[24] On December 11, a group of 18 settlers, including Standish, made an extended exploration of the shore of Cape Cod by boat,[25] spending their nights ashore surrounded by makeshift barricades of tree branches. The settlers were attacked one night by a group of about 30 Native Americans. At first, the Englishmen panicked, but Standish calmed them, urging the settlers not to fire their matchlock muskets unnecessarily.[26] The incident took place in present-day Eastham, Massachusetts and came to be known as the First Encounter.
After further exploration, the Pilgrims chose a location in present-day Plymouth Bay in late December 1620 as the site for their settlement. Standish provided important counsel on the placement of a small fort in which cannon were mounted, and on the layout of the first houses for maximum defensibility.[2] Only one house (consisting of a single room) had been built when illness struck the settlers. Of the roughly 100 who first arrived, only 50 survived the first winter.[27] Standish's wife Rose died in January.[28]
Standish was one of the very few who did not fall ill and William Bradford (soon to be governor of Plymouth Colony) credited him with comforting many and being a source of strength to those who suffered.[29] Standish tended to Bradford during his illness, and this was the beginning of a decades-long friendship.[30] Bradford held the position of governor for most of his life and, by necessity, worked closely with Standish. The two men were opposites in terms of character; Bradford was patient and slow to judgment, while Standish was well known for his fiery temper.[31] Despite their differences, the two worked well together in managing the colony and responding to dangers as they arose.[32]
By February 1621, the colonists had sighted Native Americans several times, but there had been no communication. The men of the colony were anxious to prepare themselves in case of hostilities, so they formed a militia on February 17, 1621 consisting of all able-bodied men, electing Standish as their commander. The leaders of Plymouth Colony had already hired him for that role, but this vote ratified the decision by democratic process.[3] The men of Plymouth Colony continued to re-elect him to that position for the remainder of his life. As captain of the militia, Standish regularly drilled his men in the use of pikes and muskets.[33]
Contact with the Native Americans came in March 1621 through Samoset, an English-speaking Abenaki who arranged for the Pilgrims to meet with Massasoit, the sachem of the nearby Pokanoket tribe. On March 22, the first governor of Plymouth Colony John Carver signed a treaty with Massasoit, declaring an alliance between the Pokanoket and the Englishmen and requiring the two parties to defend each other in times of need.[34] Governor Carver died the same year and the responsibility of upholding the treaty fell to his successor William Bradford. Bradford and Standish were frequently preoccupied with the complex task of reacting to threats against both the Pilgrims and the Pokanokets from tribes such as the Massachusetts and the Narragansetts.[32] As threats arose, Standish typically advocated intimidation to deter their rivals. Such behavior at times made Bradford uncomfortable, but he found it an expedient means of maintaining the treaty with the Pokanokets.[35]
The first challenge to the treaty came in August 1621 when a sachem named Corbitant began to undermine Massasoit's leadership. Corbitant worked to turn the people of Nemasket against Massasoit in the Pokanoket village of Nemasket, now the site of Middleborough, Massachusetts, about 14 miles (23 km) west of Plymouth.[32] Bradford sent two trusted interpreters to determine what was happening in Nemasket: Tisquantum (known to the English as Squanto) and Hobbamock. Tisquantum had been pivotal in providing counsel and aid to the Pilgrims, ensuring the survival of the colony. Hobbamock, another influential ally, was a pniese—a high-ranking advisor to Massasoit—and a warrior who commanded particular respect and fear among Native Americans. When Tisquantum and Hobbamock arrived in Nemasket, Corbitant took Tisquantum captive and threatened to kill him. Hobbamock escaped to warn Plymouth.[36]
Bradford and Standish agreed that this represented a dangerous threat to the English-Pokanoket alliance and decided to act quickly. On August 14, 1621, Standish led a group of 10 men to Nemasket, determined to kill Corbitant.[32] They were guided by Hobbamock who quickly befriended Standish, and the two men were close for the remainder of their lives. In his old age, Hobbamock became part of Standish's household in Duxbury.[37]
Reaching Nemasket, Standish planned a night attack on the wigwam in which Corbitant was believed to be sleeping. That night, he and Hobbamock burst into the shelter, shouting for Corbitant. As frightened Pokanokets attempted to escape, Englishmen outside the wigwam fired their muskets, wounding a Pokanoket man and woman who were later taken to Plymouth to be treated. Standish soon learned that Corbitant had already fled the village and Tisquantum was unharmed.[38]
Standish had failed to capture Corbitant, but the raid had the desired effect. On September 13, 1621, nine sachems came to Plymouth, including Corbitant, to sign a treaty of loyalty to King James.[39]
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