Edward Burrough (1633 - 1663)

Born 1 Mar 1633 in Underbarrow, Westmorland, England

Died 13 Feb 1663 at age 29 in Newgate Prison, London, England

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Biography

Edward was a Friend (Quaker)

Birth and Parents

Edward Burrough was born at Underbarrow near Kendal, Westmorland on 1 March 1633.^[1][2] His father was James^[1][2], a farmer of Underbarrow.^[1] His mother is unknown.^[1] Edward was baptised at Kendal on 3 March 1633.^[1]

Quakerism

In 1652 George Fox came to Underbarrow and en route had "reasonings" with Edward.^[3][4] He converted to Quakerism and as a result his parents turned him out of the family home.^[5] He was very active in the Quaker movement, one of a group of Quaker missionaries known as the Valiant Sixty.^[6][7][8]

In 1654 Edward went to London with Francis Howgill.^[8] There they spread the Quaker message and helped establish the first Quaker gatherings in London.^[1][6][8] Later that year, Edward went to Bristol^[8][9] and the following year he went on a missionary journey to Ireland, where he was imprisoned for a period.^[1][8][10]

In 1656 Edward was heavily involved in the difficulties in London created by some supporters of James Nayler, who disrupted Quaker gatherings in their attempt to get Nayler recognised as the leader of the Quaker movement. He was one of those whom some of Nayler's supporters sought to denigrate, and he sought to contain their actions.^[1][11]

In 1658 Edward was imprisoned for seven months at Kingston-upon-Thames, Surrey for refusing to swear an oath because tis would go against his Quaker principles.^[1]

In 1660 Edward made representations to Charles II about the plight of Quakers in New England, who were under threat of death, some of them having already been hanged. This led to a ship being quickly sent with a royal command for executions to cease.^[12][13]

Edward's Quakerism led to a final period of imprisonment in Newgate, London from 1661 to his death.^[1]

Death

Edward died, unmarried, in February 1663^[1] of a fever, in Newgate Prison^[14] in Newgate Prison, London^[14] was buried at the Quaker burial ground, Bunhill Fields, islington, Middlesex.^[15][14]

Writings

Edward was a prolific Quaker pamphleteer. In 1659 he wrote one of the more substantial early expositions of Quaker beliefs, A Declaration of All the World of our Faith.^[1] Some of his writing were known for their confrontational style, and when his works were brought together for publication after his death, the title page called him a "son of Thunder and Consolation".^[1][16] Among those he attacked strongly in print was John Bunyan.^[1] In other writings, particularly a work of 1659, he sought to reassure the authorities that Quakers were peaceable:

"We are not for names, nor men, nor titles of Government; but we are for justice and mercy and truth and peace and true freedom, that these may be exalted in our nation; and that goodness, righteousness, meekness, temperance, peace, and unity with God and with one another, that these things may abound."^[17]

Research Notes

Death Date

The Oxford Dictionary of National Biography gives Edward's date of death as 14 February 1663.^[1] His Quaker burial record has 13 February.^[14]

Sources

1. ↑ ^{1.00 1.01 1.02 1.03 1.04 1.05 1.06 1.07 1.08 1.09 1.10 1.11 1.12 1.13 1.14} Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, entry for 'Burrough, Edward (1633–1663)', 2004, revised online 2008, available online via some libraries
2. ↑ ^{2.0 2.1} England & Wales, Society Of Friends (Quaker) Births 1578-1841, WESTMORELAND: Monthly Meeting of Kendal: Register book for Kendal, ref. RG6/1543, FindMyPast and accompanying image. Note that this gives the birth date as 1 March 1632: it was 1632/3, which makes it 1633 in modern reckoning.
3. ↑ George Fox (ed. Norman Penney). The Journal of George Fox, J M Dent and Sons, 1924, p. 64
4. ↑ William C Braithwaite. The Beginnings of Quakerism, 2nd edition, William Sessions Ltd, 1981, p. 86
5. ↑ William C Braithwaite, The Beginnings of Quakerism, p. 91
6. ↑ ^{6.0 6.1} William C Braithwaite, The Beginnings of Quakerism, passim
7. ↑ Ernest E Taylor. The Valiant Sixty, William Sessions, revised edition, 1951, p.27
8. ↑ ^{8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 8.4} Ernest E Taylor, The Valiant Sixty, pp. 75-84
9. ↑ William C Braithwaite, The Beginnings of Quakerism, pp. 168-169
10. ↑ William C Braithwaite, The Beginnings of Quakerism, pp. 212-217
11. ↑ Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, entry for 'Nayler, James', print and online 2004, available online via some libraries
12. ↑ George Fox, Journal, pp. 196-197
13. ↑ William C Braithwaite, The Beginnings of Quakerism, p. 405
14. ↑ ^{14.0 14.1 14.2 14.3} England & Wales, Society Of Friends (Quaker) Burials 1578-1841, LONDON AND MIDDLESEX: Quarterly Meeting of London and Middlesex: Burials, ref. RG 6/499, FindMyPast and accompanying image. Note that this gives the death year as 1662: the date of death was in February 1662/3, or 1663 in modern reckoning.
15. ↑ Wikipedia: Quaker Gardens
16. ↑ William C Braithwaite. The Second Period of Quakerism, 2nd edition, Cambridge University Press, 1955, subsequently distributed by William Sessions Ltd, p. 17
17. ↑ William C Braithwaite, The Second Period of Quakerism, p. 132

• Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, entry for 'Burrough, Edward (1633–1663)', 2004, revised online 2008, available online via some libraries
• Dictionary of National Biography, 1885-1900, entry for 'Burrough, Edward', Wikisource
• Braithwaite, William C. The Beginnings of Quakerism, 2nd edition, William Sessions Ltd, 1981
• Braithwaite, William C. The Second Period of Quakerism, 2nd edition, Cambridge University Press, 1955, subsequently distributed by William Sessions Ltd
• Ingle, H Larry. First among Friends. George Fox & the Creation of Quakerism, Oxford University Press, 1994
• Taylor, Ernest E. The Valiant Sixty, William Sessions, revised edition, 1951
• Vipont, Eliza. George Fox and the Valiant Sixty, Hamish Hamilton, 1975
• Ross, Isabel. Margaret Fell, Mother of Quakerism, 3rd edition, William Sessions, 1996
• Moore, Rosemary. The Light in their Consciences. The Early Quakers in Britain 1646-1666, Pennsylvania State University Press, 2000
• Wikipedia:Edward_Burrough

See also:

• Wikidata: Item Q5342093, en:Wikipedia