Speedwell (ship)
The Speedwell was a 60 -ton sailing ship, which should according to plan put together with the Mayflower Pilgrims to North America in an area of the London Company, in about in today's Virginia, but the journey broke off twice because of technical problems near England, and ultimately to the Atlantic crossing of the Mayflower did not participate.
History
The ship was built in 1577 under the name Swiftsure. Its construction was part of the British preparations for war against Spain. The ship took part in the fight against the Spanish Armada. During the Azores expedition of Robert Devereux, 2nd Earl of Essex in 1596, it served as a ship of his deputy Gilly Merick. After hostilities ended in Spain, it was put out of service in 1605, converted for civilian purposes and renamed Speedwell.
The ship came to Holland, where it was acquired by a group of English Puritans who had fled religious oppression in England after suffering. After a few years in Holland they wanted to leave the country. The reasons were the economic hardship of part of the group that fears of a small group of their assimilation into Dutch society and the desire to be active in mission to promote the spread of the Puritan view of the Gospel.
On July 21, 1620 left under the command of Captain John Thomas Chappell Delfs Haven, now part of Rotterdam to meet up in Southampton on the Mayflower. These had been acquired by some investors. Their crew consisted of other separatists and additional colonists, who were hired by the investors. They teamed up to put together in the "New World " break.
The two ships took off on August 5, 1620. After a short time, however, a leak was detected in the Speedwell, so both ships first sailed to Dartmouth, where repairs were carried out. In the second experiment, the two ships sailed about 100 nautical miles to Land's End in Cornwall, but the Speedwell struck again leak, so both ships Plymouth anliefen. There it was decided that it should go without the Speedwell and only on the Mayflower to America. Eleven passengers of the Speedwell changed over to the Mayflower, some went to London, others returned to Holland.
With 103 passengers the Mayflower then continued their journey alone. At the third attempt, she left Plymouth on September 6, 1620 and arrived in Cape Cod on November 11, 1620. A replacement ship for the Speedwell, the Fortune, the new Plymouth Colony reached a year later, on November 9, 1621st
It was claimed later, the failures of the Speedwell would have come into existence by sabotage, which team members had committed in order to escape the obligations of their long-term contracts, but there is no concrete evidence for this claim.
The fate of Speedwell is not known. Presumably, she returned to Holland or sold in England. In 1656 came eight Quakers including Christopher Holder and John Copeland, with a sailing ship called the Speedwell to Boston ( see Martyrs of Boston); whether it is acted by the same ship, or whether there is only one intended or unintended same name, is not assured.