Why did religious dissent and non-conformity increase in the years 1625-88?
Growth of religious dissent during civil wars and republic (1642-60)
● Freedom of press
● Religious persecution
● Charles I’s belief in divine right
● Spread of radical ideas
● Dismantling of church - Toleration Act 1650
● Spread of radical ideas
Political + economic instability
● Civil wars
● Lack of trust in government
The persecution of dissenters under CII and JII
Clampdown on non-conformity, 1660-69
● Clarendon code - Large scale effects on people
● Bitterness + desire for revenge reinforced
● Directed primarily at those who wanted to remain within the church and didn’t want a
separate congregation - pointless
● Corporation Act (1661)
● Act of Uniformity (1662) - 1800 Puritan ministers ejected
● Conventicle Act (1664)
● Five Mile Act (1665)
● Quaker Act (1662) - Quakers were arrested and forced to swear an oath- most
refused to so were imprisoned indefinitely, without a trial
● Between 1661-4, men who led the Quakers were removed
● Fox was imprisoned in 1664
● When he was released in 1666, the Quakers had nearly collapsed
● Archbishop Sheldon campaigned for a renewal of the Conventicle Act - wanted to
clamp down on dissent
● There was a renewed act in 1670 but it had limited impact
● Dissent survived and managed to organise more effectively
● Non dissenters were more tolerant
● New academy to train ministers was set up by 1689
● George Fox released in 1666
● 1667 Conventicle Act had expired
CII and sympathy with dissenters
● 1669, two judges (Sir Orlando Bridgeman and Sir Matthew Hale) wanted to revise the
Act of Uniformity
Growth of religious dissent during civil wars and republic (1642-60)
● Freedom of press
● Religious persecution
● Charles I’s belief in divine right
● Spread of radical ideas
● Dismantling of church - Toleration Act 1650
● Spread of radical ideas
Political + economic instability
● Civil wars
● Lack of trust in government
The persecution of dissenters under CII and JII
Clampdown on non-conformity, 1660-69
● Clarendon code - Large scale effects on people
● Bitterness + desire for revenge reinforced
● Directed primarily at those who wanted to remain within the church and didn’t want a
separate congregation - pointless
● Corporation Act (1661)
● Act of Uniformity (1662) - 1800 Puritan ministers ejected
● Conventicle Act (1664)
● Five Mile Act (1665)
● Quaker Act (1662) - Quakers were arrested and forced to swear an oath- most
refused to so were imprisoned indefinitely, without a trial
● Between 1661-4, men who led the Quakers were removed
● Fox was imprisoned in 1664
● When he was released in 1666, the Quakers had nearly collapsed
● Archbishop Sheldon campaigned for a renewal of the Conventicle Act - wanted to
clamp down on dissent
● There was a renewed act in 1670 but it had limited impact
● Dissent survived and managed to organise more effectively
● Non dissenters were more tolerant
● New academy to train ministers was set up by 1689
● George Fox released in 1666
● 1667 Conventicle Act had expired
CII and sympathy with dissenters
● 1669, two judges (Sir Orlando Bridgeman and Sir Matthew Hale) wanted to revise the
Act of Uniformity
