The First Thanksgiving: What Really Happened

The

first

Thanksgiving. American schools usually teach a conventional story about the meeting of pilgrims and Indians that ended with an incredible dinner. The end. But there is more to the story. This video will explain the events surrounding the

first

Thanksgiving and how the image is not rooted in tradition. In the early 17th century, southern New England was home to a variety of occupied communities within various confederations. These were the People of the First Light and they called their home the Land of Dawn. The political leaders were known as sachems and had traded with Europeans for over 100 years before the Pilgrims.

Relations deteriorated only after deceitful Europeans kidnapped locals to sell them into slavery. Permanent European settlement was impossible due to the already high population of native occupants. But in 1616 traders introduced a disease to the Land of Dawn, whose inhabitants died en masse due to lack of immunity. Within three years, up to 90% were eliminated in various confederations, including the Wampanoag. Their chief sachem, Massasoit, was aware of how close they were to being subjugated by their unbroken enemy, the Narraganset. He was determined to save his people from such a fate. This was the political world the pilgrims were about to enter.

The pilgrims were not called pilgrims by their contemporaries. They were known as Separatists, a branch of the English Puritans. King James hated the Puritans and began persecuting them in 1604, so the separatists fled to Holland, where they were free to practice their worship. But because they feared losing their national and community identity, the congregation wanted a new place to plant their church. They decided on America and asked King James for a patent that would give them rights to build a colony. They planned to make a profit by fishing to pay off debts to their investors. The Mayflower sailed on September 6.

Two months later, Cape Cod was sighted and sixteen men were sent ashore to survey the area. Unfortunately the settlers did not know how to fish and food was running out. They resorted to robbing graves, houses, and storage pits to keep everyone alive. Then came their first hostile encounter with the natives, but no one died. On December 12 they arrive in New Plymouth. They didn't land on any specific rock, but folklore insists they did. Construction began in January. By the end of the winter, 44 settlers would have died because of the poor conditions. In March they were surprised when a man called Samoset entered New Plymouth and greeted them in English.

He told them that they were building on top of a town called Patuxet, whose residents had all died from the recent epidemic. He belonged to the Wampanoag and their chief, Massasoit, was watching them. The settlers were eager to trade, so five days later Samoset returned with furs and companions, including Tisquantum. Known as Squanto, he had come to tell them in perfect English that Massasoit had arrived. After years of dealing with the English, the sachems did not trust the newcomers. Edward Winslow was sent as a hostage and declared the settlers' peaceful intentions. Satisfied, Massasoit entered New Plymouth and was majestically received by the governor.

A peace treaty was created that guaranteed mutual protection in case of attack by enemies. With Squanto's help, the New Plymouth settlers began to do better. He taught them how to farm and was absolutely vital as a performer. For the separatists, it was a gift from God. But in reality, Squanto had been kidnapped in Patuxet in 1614 and sent to Spain to be sold as a slave. He ended up in London, in the home of a merchant who taught him English and arranged Squanto's return to Dawn Land in 1619. But Patuxet was gone; wiped out by the epidemic. Massasoit received him with suspicion due to his years abroad, but he needed a translator to parley with the newcomers.

He eventually sent his warrior Hobamok to live among the settlers and keep an eye on Squanto. In the fall, the settlers reaped a bountiful harvest and a festival was held to celebrate. Massasoit came with 90 warriors and five deer for food. For three days the English and the Wampanoag ate and entertained each other. This was the first famous Thanksgiving that children learn about in school. However, these settlers would not have used the word "

thanksgiving

" to denote a harvest festival. For the Puritans, a day of

thanksgiving

was a day of fasting while giving thanks to God in prayer.

But the story of the pilgrims and the Indians does not end here. During New Plymouth's first year, Squanto had been up to something. Realizing his substantial power as the sole English speaker of his people, he devised a plan to overthrow Massasoit. He convinced the locals that he could order the English to make war or peace at his will. Hobamok was suspicious of Squanto and warned Governor Bradford. They soon discovered Squanto's plot and informed Massasoit, who was furious. He demanded that Squanto be handed over for quick execution. Bradford refused; the performer was too valuable to give up.

But according to the treaty, Squanto's life was in the hands of his sachem. Bradford finally agreed. He was about to deliver Squanto when an unidentified ship appeared. The alarm it caused delayed Bradford and worried Massasoit's envoys. Angry and impatient, they left. The ship was carrying 60 Englishmen who planned to build a colony near Boston. They abused the people of Massachusett and began a conspiracy to kill the settlers. Warned of the plot, New Plymouth's leaders launched a preemptive strike to save their insolent countrymen. He bought peace, for a time. At this time more Puritan settlers arrived, soon outnumbering the natives.

And although the Pilgrims' treaty with Massasoit lasted until the sachem's death, other Puritans were unconcerned with such alliances. Their fanatical religious principles ensured that peace between the two cultures could not last. To the Puritans, Native Americans were the “other”: savage, savage, godless. With such an ideology, the result was inevitable. If they did not convert to Christianity and renounce their cultural identity, they had to be eliminated. The first Thanksgiving was a brief moment of harmony between two worlds, but sadly it was short-lived. The capitalist opportunities that Dawn Land presented, combined with zealous Puritan beliefs, were incentives enough to wipe out the native inhabitants.

There's nothing wrong with sharing a holiday of thanksgiving with your loved ones, but remember the real events that started the holiday and not the fairy tale.