How did New England come into being?

All attempts to colonize Roanoke Island and the surrounding territory of Virginia in the sixteenth century had proved unsuccessful. It seemed as if no one from England would ever enjoy the fine climate and rich soil of this huge, unspoiled area. But although Queen Elizabeth I died in 1603 the adventurous spirit of the Elizabethans lived on and a number of ‘gentlemen and traders’ formed two separate companies – the London Virginia and the Plymouth Virginia Companies – obtaining a Charter from James I which allowed them to make further attempts at colonization. In 1607, when the former company settled on a site on the North Atlantic coast, one of the members, Captain John Smith, went exploring in an area then known as North Virginia. He renamed it New England and later described it in a pamphlet called A Description of New England. At this time there was hardly one Englishman in the whole area which, in fact, seemed likely to be taken over by French and Dutch settlers. The arrival of the Pilgrim Fathers a few years later, however, resulted in the territory being soundly established under the English flag.