USA HISTORY

Detailed explanation-1: -’Widespread’ enslavement. Though there are varying versions of Squanto’s story, historians seem to agree that prior to the pilgrims’ settling in 1620, Squanto was captured by English explorers in 1614 and sold into slavery in Europe. He spent a number of years in England where he learned English.

Detailed explanation-2: -Here the tale gets fuzzy: In one version, Spanish monks enabled Squanto’s escape from Spain to England. In others, a ship captain took him from Spain to London and later Newfoundland, where he lived among the English for several years and learned the language.

Detailed explanation-3: -Little is known about his early life. Some authorities believe that he was taken from home to England in 1605 by George Weymouth and returned with explorer John Smith in 1614–15.

Detailed explanation-4: -In 1614, he was kidnapped by English explorer Thomas Hunt, who brought him to Spain where he was sold into slavery. Squanto escaped, eventually returning to North America in 1619. He then returned to the Patuxet region, where he became an interpreter and guide for the Pilgrim settlers at Plymouth in the 1620s.