Final answer:
Larger Puritan settlements in New England following the Plymouth settlement were sponsored by joint-stock companies. These companies were formed by merchants and the elite with the aim of establishing colonies that would promote Protestantism and generate profits.
Step-by-step explanation:
Following the settlement at Plymouth, larger Puritan settlements in New England were sponsored by joint-stock companies. The early 1600s saw wealthy English merchants and the landed elite begin to form these companies to invest in overseas colonization, with the approval of the English crown. They envisioned establishing colonies that would promote Protestantism and bring significant returns on their investments.
The Puritans, including both the Pilgrims of Plymouth and the subsequent wave that settled Massachusetts Bay, were motivated by a desire to practice their Calvinist-based Protestantism without persecution by the English Church or Parliament. The Puritans sought to 'purify' the Church of England of its Catholic elements, while the Pilgrims, or Separatists, desired a complete separation from it. This culminated in the establishment of the Massachusetts Bay Colony in the 1630s, following the model of Plymouth.