| AdminHistory | From the early days of Quakerism, Friends were subjected to persecution, which at times was violent and in some cases led to death in prison or on release from prison. In the 1660s, a series of acts aimed at quelling Quaker and other non-conformist dissent were passed, with failure to comply punishable by fines and six months imprisonment. The acts banned those not attending a parish church from holding a position of office in local government or the church (Corporation Act, 1661 and Act of Uniformity, 1662), required everyone to swear an oath of allegiance to the king (Quaker Act, 1662), prohibited meetings for worship of more than five people over the age of 16 except in the Church of England (Conventicle Act, 1664 and 1670), and made it unlawful for non-conformist ministers to live, visit, preach or teach within five miles of a town or parish where they had previously ministered (Five Mile Act 1665). In addition, under the earlier recusancy laws originally introduced against Roman Catholics by Elizabeth I and James I, anyone not attending church on Sundays or receiving holy communion at least once a year faced monthly fines and loss of land.
Quakers found themselves being prosecuted for: not attending church; holding meetings for worship; refusing to pay tithes and church rates; refusing to swear oaths, which they saw as unnecessary since being truthful at all times was an integral part of their beliefs; travelling and opening their shops on Sundays and religious holidays which they did because they saw all days as being equal; contempt of court because they refused to remove their hats, a practice which they perceived contradictory to their belief that all people are equal and should be treated equally; and teaching without a bishop's licence.
Although the 1689 Toleration Act permitted greater freedom to worship and removed some of the restrictions, Quakers continued to be prosecuted and distrained upon until the 19th century for their refusal to pay tithes and church rates. They were also fined from the 18th century for their refusal to take up military service. It was not until the 1779 Dissenters' Relief Act that teachers and school masters were permitted to teach without a bishop's licence, and the Conventicle and Five Mile Acts continued to be upheld until 1812. From 1835, non-conformists were granted the right to hold office in government and from the mid-1850s they were permitted to attend university as students but they were not allowed to take up posts as academics until 1871.
The Religious Society of Friends carefully recorded all cases of prosecution or distraint (seizure of a person's property for payment of money owing). In the early days, these were recorded in the monthly and quarterly meeting minute books (see SF/1/1/1/1-5 for sufferings pre-1790), and in financial records, but from 1790 they were recorded in books of sufferings which were kept until 1828 by quarterly and monthly meetings, and after this date, by monthly meetings only (see SF/2/1/1/7, SF/2/1/5/4, SF/2/1/6/5 for monthly meeting books of sufferings from 1828 onwards). The quarterly meeting compiled these into annual returns which were then sent to Yearly Meeting where they were copied into 'the great book of sufferings'.
From 1793, printed books and forms for returns were supplied to the monthly and quarterly meetings for completion. These recorded the date of seizure, the name and abode of the sufferer, the reason for the demand (non payment of tithes, warden's rate etc), the amount of the demand, the amount of the fine, the name of the claimant, the name of the constable, the signatory of the warrant, the articles taken from the sufferer and their value. |