The original document was lost,[8] but there are three 17th-century versions: printed in Mourt`s relationship (1622), [9][10], which was reproduced in Purchas his Pilgrimes (1625); [11] handwritten by William Bradford in his Journal of Plimoth Plantation (1646); [12] and printed by Bradford`s nephew, Nathaniel Morton, at the New England Memorial (1669). [8] The three versions are slightly different in formulation and spelling, majesty and punctuation. [10] William Bradford wrote the first part of Mourt`s relationship, including his version of the Compact, so he wrote two of the three versions. The text of these two versions is quite similar, unlike Morton`s. Bradford`s manuscript is in a safe in the State Library of Massachusetts. [13] The mayflower Society`s goal is to „bring together those who share this heritage and to perpetuate the memory of our pilgrim ancestors.“ The company`s website contains information on history, bibliographies, museum and membership opportunities (www.mayflower.org). To end the conflict and maintain unity, the pilgrimage guides (including William Bradford and William Brewster) designed the Mayflower Compact before disembarking. The short document (approximately 200 words) linked its signatories to a political body to form a government and promised to comply with all laws and regulations that would later be fixed „to the general of the colony.“ The pact was signed by almost all adult male passengers of the Mayflower (41 passengers out of a total of 102), while the ship was molded into provincetown Harbour. His authority was exercised immediately when John Carver, who had co-organized the expedition, was elected governor of the new colony. The pact is the first known European agreement with which a government was created by the will and approval of the governed. Previous documents, such as the Magna Carta, were imposed on a monarch by the nobility, but the Mayflower Compact was designed and signed by Commoners, all on the same social status, recognizing that collaboration was more beneficial to the common good than insisting on pursuing his own at the expense of others. This equalizing aspect of the pact then influenced the philosophy and vision of the founders of the United States. According to one list, Bradford`s nephew, Nathaniel Morton, in his 1669; New England Memorial printed, 41 of the adult male passengers on the Mayflower signed the agreement, including two of the servants on board.

Shortly after the signing, they elected John Carver as the first governor of the new colony they called Plymouth Plantation. After the establishment of the colony in Plymouth and the beginning of friendly relations between the Indians of the Wampanoag Confederacy, the pact served as a model for the peace treaty between the settlers and the leader of Wampanoag Ousamequin (better known as Massasoit, .c 1581-1661 A.D.), which maintained a close and mutually beneficial relationship between newcomers and Indians until Massasoit`s death and the influx of other Massachusetts Bay Colony settlers, who increasingly needed the natives. The „Mayflower Compact“ was the agreement between the 41 male passengers of the mayflower, which founded the government form of Plymouth Colony (1620-1691 CE), signed on 11 November 1620 off the coast of Massachusetts, United States.