Early Quaker Uses of History: ‘The Spirit of the Martyrs Revived’

Given the centrality of immediate revelation to early Quaker theology, modern historians have often assumed that the first Quakers disregarded tradition. However, this article demonstrates that the early Friends frequently made historical arguments, both to launch and rebut polemical assaults. The Quakers did not, therefore, turn to history as the movement became increasingly conservative or respectable. Instead, they consistently claimed to be the true heirs of John Foxe’s Protestant martyrs. By maintaining that their movement represented the culmination of the tradition celebrated in the Acts and monuments , they were deeply engaged in the historiographical contests which constituted ‘England’s second Reformation’.