USA HISTORY

Detailed explanation-1: -At the time of the Mayflower Compact, the phrase “body politic” was routinely used in the law to refer to corporations of all sorts. The category of corporation was both more broadly conceived in the 17th century than the modern word corporation and more transitional.

Detailed explanation-2: -Before disembarking, forty-one men signed the Mayflower Compact by which all agreed to establish a-Civil Body Politic“ (temporary government) and be bound by its law. This was the first such self-government in the New World.

Detailed explanation-3: -The Mayflower Compact was drafted and signed aboard the Mayflower on November 21, 1620. The “plantation covenant” modeled after a Separatist church covenant, was a document that established a “Civil Body Politic” (a temporary government) until one could be more permanently established (ibid.).

Detailed explanation-4: -A “civil body politic” is a group of citizens acting together as a law making body.

Detailed explanation-5: -The Mayflower Compact was important because it was the first document to establish self-government in the New World. It remained active until 1691 when Plymouth Colony became part of Massachusetts Bay Colony.