England Nonconformist History Late Seventeenth Century - International Institute

Restoration (1660-1730s)
When the monarchy was restored in 1660 the Anglican church came back into favour as the Established Church, and Shorney refers to this time as a disastrous defeat for Nonconformity. Before his restoration to the throne, Charles II made a promise, the Declaration of Breda 1660 in which he guaranteed, among other things, freedom of conscience in religious matters. However his word has passed down in lore as ‘something no man could rely on’, and his parliaments passed five pieces of legislation between 1661 and 1665 penalizing Nonconformists and restricting their activities; these Acts are together called the Clarendon Code and were:


 * Corporation Act 1661 This forbade municipal office to those not taking the sacrament at the parish church, which effectively excluded Roman Catholics and the more extreme Nonconformists.


 * Quaker Act 1662 This required Quakers to take the Oath of Supremacy and Allegiance; they insisted that oaths were against the word of God by the simple logic that He expected everyone to tell the truth all the time, and many were fined or transported.


 * Act of Uniformity 1662 The 1662Act of Uniformity required Anglican ministers to be ordained by a bishop and to accept the Book of Common Prayer Book. They were also required to renounce the Solemn League and Covenant which had imposed Presbyterianism in 1643. Naturally the Puritan ministers would not be restricted in this way and almost 2,000 left the parish churches, taking committed members of their congregations with them. They were persecuted until 1689, and the emergence of further groups were discouraged by the next two Acts.


 * Conventicle Act 1664 It made ‘assemblies, conventicles or meetings’ for Non-Anglican worship illegal, even in private houses, if more than five visitors over age 16 were present. Attendees were fined or put in gaol, and hosts could be transported for a third offence, and this statute remained in force until March 1669 when a new Act was considered. The Diary of Samuel Pepys for 7th August 1664 refers to 70 Quakers who were jailed at Newgate.


 * Five-Mile Act 1665  This Act disallowed Nonconformist ministers living or visiting within five miles of any place where they had ministered.

These five laws were unevenly enforced across the country, especially as there was considerable public support for Nonconformists. However, thousands of Nonconformists did spend time in gaol, including the noted preacher and author John Bunyan and 200 other ministers. In addition 2,000 ejected Presbyterian ministers, listed by Calamy, were forbidden to set up as teachers, (this included preachers, school teachers, university fellows and private tutors), so had no way of supporting themselves unless they turned to a manual occupation.


 * Pipe Office Records Nonconformists who were fined for non-attendance at the parish church can be found in the Pipe Office Declared Accounts from 1500-1817, but they are of particular value for the period 1662-1684. The Pipe Office Miscellaneous Rolls (series E 370) include fines for those who preached illegally during Charles II’s reign.


 * Excommunication Bishops kept records of those excommunicated and details were sent to Chancery so they appear at the PRO in series C 85 (to about 1700) and C 207 (up to the 19th century) as well as in diocesan records. Arrests of particularly obstinate individuals are detailed in writs in King’s Bench series KB 27 (to 1701), KB 28 (1702 onwards) and KB 29, with Appeals at the High Court of Delegates.


 * Return of Nonconformist Conventicles 1669  Nonconformist and their meeting houses gradually became tolerated. In June 1669 the first comprehensive survey of Nonconformist meetings was ordered by Archbishop Sheldon. An English transcript of what survives from about ¾ of the dioceses is available (Turner) and some local sections have been published separately. The returns contain details of the number, size and distribution of the meetings and in most cases the preacher, the denomination and the host responsible for each assembly. Information was also given about those licensing their own houses, generally yeoman, tradesmen and some gentry, and the attendees, mainly craftsmen and husbandmen with a few yeomen and tradesmen. Analysis suggests that there was some bias towards stressing the meanness and low condition of individuals involved thus they should not be taken at face value. Nevertheless they provide a means of comparing the denominations and the situation in different parts of the country (Wykes 1972).

The surveys were not all taken at the same time and they show great differences in organization of different groups and the regularity of their meetings. Where numbers were small it was common for certain groups to combine, for example Presbyterians and Independents in a common meeting. There was great fluidity with many small meetings of short duration. The Anglican authorities were not overly concerned with identifying the denominations, but Quakers and Baptists were probably correctly named because of their record of mutual hostility.


 * Declaration of Indulgence 1672  After the repressive legislation of the 1660s failed to crush religious dissent Charles II issued his Declaration of Indulgence in 1672. This ameliorated conditions for all dissenters and permitted licensing of Nonconformist (but not Catholic) meeting houses and teachers with a resulting increase in dissenter numbers. There were 1,609 ministers’ licences granted, three-quarters of these being to men ejected in 1662. Sadly, it was withdrawn in 1673 as Parliament considered that the king had acted beyond his powers. However it had given Nonconformists a chance to exercise some freedom and regroup; nearly 500 Nonconformists were released from prison, and a number of meeting houses were built. There were so many Nonconformists and a large enough number of influential ones that the laws could only be enforced in some places. Shorney’s Protestant Nonconformity and Roman Catholicism.A Guide to Sources in the Public Record Office (1996) presents details of resources in State Papers and elsewhere for these troubled times.


 * Test Act 1672  The Test Act 1672 insisted that civil and military officials of the crown receive Anglican communion at least once a year, take the oath of 'supremacy and allegiance to the crown, and make a declaration against transubstantiation, (a Catholic tenet). They had to submit a sacrament certificate within six months of taking office to show that they had done so. This is negative evidence, as anyone doing so was not a Nonconformist at the time. If previous evidence of Nonconformity exists then this may date a change to conformity, perhaps as part of a career pattern and upward mobility.

A second Test Act of 1678 removed Catholic peers from the House of Lords, but Test Acts were abolished in 1828 and a declaration substituted. Civil and military office holders also had to take the oaths of allegiance and supremacy. From 1689-1702 other groups included in these requirements were university members, lawyers, schoolteachers and preachers which made life extremely difficult for all Non-Anglicans.

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