Show Notes

The topic of education is a HUGE deal, and it has massive implications. What does it mean to be educated? What value does education bring to a society? Does literacy matter? How focused should society be around the education of its young? Many....

Puritan missions in New England were slow to start. Once they did, it became difficult to know where sincere evangelism ended and politics began. John Eliot received a lot of help to launch his missionary work, but there was a lot of controversy surrounding....

If there is a sincere desire to succeed, one will often look to those who have already succeeded for guidance. Thomas Mayhew had been successful in missions. John Eliot and Massachusetts Bay did not look to Thomas Mayhew's example. His had been....

In the wake of so many controversies, there arose one more for the Puritan Oligarchy. This was in their wheelhouse and presumably should have been a slam dunk. It wasn't. The missionary efforts of The United Colonies, led by John Eliot, was marred with....

Massachusetts Bay had been eyeing Narragansett Bay for a long time. They had been positioning themselves to absorb it. They were invited to come. Then they overreached. They scared the people that had invited them. They created a political firestorm....

In a post-Pequot world, in a post-Miantonomo world, Narragansett Bay and all of Rhode Island was a coveted piece of property. The Puritans wanted it. All the Puritan groups. Even though they had formed the United Colonies, a formidable power block, they....

Using the same playbook as with Sassacus, the English destroyed Miantonomo. Nobody is perfect, but he appears to have tried to accommodate and appease his English counterparts repeatedly. Even at the expense of his own culture and reputation....

In part three of our Trilogy on the Philosophy that drives the podcast "History Comes Alive", we will distill down the two questions: "What is the role of government?" and "What do you really know about American History?" into application. How do you....

Last week we asked the question, "What's the Purpose of Government?" This week, we'll expand some of the principles we discussed and move the conversation forward. What do you really know about American History? Like last week, the idea behind the....

As we move past the pivotal Pequot War and more toward the development of the New England Colonies, we are going to take a few weeks and begin to develop an outline of the philosophical approach to government, from my perspective, under our current....

It would seem reasonable that after the massacre at Mystic the remaining Pequots would have been able to simply escape into the landscape and slowly be absorbed into other native groups. They weren't. The English goal had shifted. They wanted to...

In the aftermath of a very lopsided English victory over the Pequots at Mystic, the English were forced to make a hasty retreat. Most of their native support abandoned them. The Pequots rallied, and the English fled. Sassacus, the main sachem of the Pequots....

The Conference at Saybrook had failed. As far as the English were concerned, the time for diplomacy was passed. The Pequots were the designated enemy, but the Easter Niantics would also have to be put in their place. John Endicott was dispatched...

After the failure of the Saybrook Conference, the Pequots were even more isolated. Their options were limited. They were victims of paranoia and covetousness. It seems nothing they did helped to advance their cause, or the cause of peace....

After the murder of John Stone, the Puritans of Massachusetts Bay came to terms with the Pequot Nation through an agreement known as The Treaty of 1634. The terms definitively favored the English. They took full advantage of the provisions....

In 1633 the seemingly invincible Pequot Nation suddenly found themselves dealing with multiple crises. Their stable leadership was gone. Their commanding population was eroding. The world was changing and they had real enemies....

Who were the Pequots, and what happened to them? In this episode, we will be introduced to the Pequot nation. They enjoyed a meteoric rise to the top. Where did they come from? What were the dynamics that drove their world?

John Underhill had really done it all. After his arrival in 1630, he was very active for whomever he was working for at any given time. In his later years, living under Dutch rule, he maintained an unusual flair for public service and controversy....

 John Underhill lived enough for two men while serving the New England colonies. It was not enough. In the 1640s he left his English responsibilities behind and began an aggressive military campaign against many of the native groups located in....

We have been developing the advent of Puritan society in New England. We have met several characters and worked through several events that helped to establish Puritan dominance. In today's episode, we are going to take a detour and introduce....

John Underhill had an interesting life. There always seems to be a bigger than life aspect to his experiences. He was a part of some of the biggest controversies in Puritan New England. His service in New Netherland would be just as controversial....

There were many men who helped shape the Colonial landscape of New England. Many dynamic and energetic men. One of the most prolific, and active men of the 1630s had to be John Underhill. When we last met, we developed a little of his family background....

We often consider the English Colonization of North America in the 17th century along the lines of national identity and pride. The English against the French. The English against the Spanish. Or, to a lesser extent, the English against the Dutch....