TITLE: The Second Great Migration: Religious Refugees and the Remaking of America, 1678-1690
SPEAKER: Owen Stanwood
EVENT DATE: 03/20/2008
FORMAT: Video + Captions
RUNNING TIME: 65 minutes
TRANSCRIPT: View Transcript (link will open in a new window)
DESCRIPTION:
During the latter part of the 17th century, thousands of Protestant radicals emigrated to England's American colonies. Though generally neglected by historians, these newcomers had an enormous impact on colonial life, contributing to a thorough transformation of American politics and religion. This lecture follows the migrants from Europe to the colonies, outlining the continent-wide crisis that encouraged many radicals to leave, and explaining their contributions in the New World. As survivors of persecution--often at the hands of Catholics--these refugees had a paradoxical impact. On one hand, they railed against the evils of "popery," helping to create an anti-Catholic ethos that dominated 18th century America. At the same time, they demanded toleration for all Protestants and a greater appreciation of religious and ethnic diversity. The result was an American society that combined a high degree of pluralism and tolerance with a shocking and virulent fear of religious outsiders.
Speaker Biography: Kluge Fellow Owen C. Stanwood, Catholic University of America, is researching "An Imperial Faith: The Catholic Threat and the Making of British America, 1678-1713."
