Just a few short steps away from Southampton’s central shopping and leisure hubs lies a towering memorial (pictured above) to a remarkable, yet somewhat uncelebrated, moment in the city’s history. On 15 August 1620, it was from the port of Southampton that the Mayflower, the ship that famously transported the first Pilgrims to that area of land we now call the United States of America, set sail for the new world. Or at least, it attempted to. The Mayflower left Southampton accompanied by another, smaller ship known as the Speedwell, which carried Puritans who had been living in Holland. However, shortly after departing, the Speedwell began to leak, requiring the ships to pause their journey at Dartmouth in order for vital repairs to be made. The problem seemingly fixed, the vessels continued on their way. That is, until the Speedwell began leaking once again, forcing the ships to turn around and stop at Plymouth. Just under a month after leaving Southampton, the Speedwell was abandoned, its passengers either boarding the Mayflower or returning to Holland, and the Pilgrims finally departed the shores of England for a successful journey to, in the words of F. Scott Fitzgerald, ‘[the] fresh, green breast of the new world’.
Despite having lived in the area my entire life, it was only in the past year that I became aware of the city’s fascinating connection to this crucial moment in world history. In hindsight, I probably should have twigged a little earlier given the city’s most popular theatre is called The Mayflower, but it just goes to show how even the most notable stories of the past can be hidden right beneath our noses.
Please Remain Seated 