Many of the original English colonists (including the Pilgrims in Plymouth and the Puritans in Massachusetts Bay Colony) were religious people who disagreed with some practices of the Church of England. Why did these groups want to settle colonies in the New World?

• bats39502: to escape religious persecution they had at home....though it's ironic if you think about it
• sofiaandrea0906:

  The answer is 'to pursue religious freedom and financial opportunities', because The Pilgrims and the Puritans saw moving to the New World as an opportunity to pursue religious freedom. They also saw the financial opportunities offered by settlement in the new land. America offered them a chance to farm their own land and to produce goods they could trade.