Editing Myles Standish (section)

==Establishment of Plymouth Colony==
The Mayflower was anchored off Cape Cod when Standish urged the colony's leaders to allow him to take a party ashore to find a suitable place for settlement.<ref>Philbrick, p. 61.</ref> On November 15, 1620, he led 16&nbsp;men on foot in exploration of the northern portion of the Cape.<ref>Schmidt, p. 69.</ref> On December 11, he led a group of 18 and made an extended exploration of the shore of Cape Cod by boat,<ref>Stratton, p. 75.</ref> spending their nights ashore surrounded by makeshift barricades of tree branches. They were attacked one night by a group of about 30 Indians. They panicked, but Standish calmed them, urging them not to fire their [[matchlock]] muskets unnecessarily.<ref>Philbrick, p. 71.</ref> The incident took place in [[Eastham, Massachusetts]], and came to be known as the ''First Encounter''.

After further exploration, the Pilgrims chose a location in Plymouth Bay in late December 1620 as the site for their settlement. Standish provided important counsel on the placement of a small fort in which cannon were mounted, and on the layout of the first houses for maximum defensibility.<ref name=Philbrick84/> They had built only one single-room house when illness struck. Only 50 survived the first winter out of the 100 or so who arrived on the ''Mayflower''.<ref>Schmidt, p. 88.</ref> Standish's wife Rose died in January.<ref>Jenks, p. 94.</ref>

Standish was one of the very few who did not fall ill, and [[William Bradford (Plymouth Colony governor)|William Bradford]] credited him with comforting many and being a source of strength to those who suffered.<ref>Schmidt, p. 86.</ref> Standish tended to Bradford during his illness, and this was the beginning of a decades-long friendship.<ref name="Haxtun">Haxtun, p. 17.</ref> Bradford held the position of governor for most of his life and, by necessity, worked closely with Standish. The two men were opposites in terms of character; Bradford was patient and slow to judgment, while Standish was well known for his fiery temper.<ref name="Jenks170">Jenks, p. 170.</ref> Despite their differences, the two worked well together in managing the colony and responding to dangers as they arose.<ref name="Philbrick114">Philbrick, p. 114.</ref>