6C. QUAKER WRITINGS THAT APPEAR TO SUPPORT VIOLENT CONFLICT
Had you been faithful and thundered down the deceit, the Hollander had been your
subject and tributers; and Germany had given up to have done your will; and the
Spaniard had quivered like a dry leaf, wanting the virtue of God; the king of France
should have bowed under you his neck; the Pope should have withered as in winter;
the Turk in all his fatness should have smoked. You should not have a-stood trifling
about small things but minded the work of the Lord as he began with you at first… Arise
and come out, for had you been faithful you should have crumbled Nations to dust…
Oh! Oliver – George Fox (In Burrough’s Good Counsel and Advice, 1659)
Had you been faithful to the power of… God …(and) gone into the midst of Spain … to
require the blood of the innocent that there had been shed and commanded them to
have offered up their inquisition to you … and knocked at Rome’s gates … and set up a
standard… then you should have sent for the Turk’s idol, the Mahomet, and plucked up
idolatry.’
To the Council of Officers and the Army – George Fox, 1658/9
…and the God of heaven is setting up his Kingdom over the kingdoms of the world,
degeneration is entered amongst all, and all must be purged of all orders of men, and
the evil cast out, the work of the Lord is great and mighty, and he requires no help from
thee, nor any man whatsoever, for his own arm will bring it to pass, yet he would not
have thee to gain-say his work, and strive against it, and seek to quench what the Lord
is bringing forth, if thou do it, then thou be condemned, and the Lord will speedily
execute his judgement, and remove thee, and overthrow thy power and authority into
destruction; wherefore be passive in this matter and look thou at the Lord, and protect
and defend men’s persons and (?) from wrong, but meddle not with their opinions and
professions in religions, to exalt any of them nor yet to persecute them; and as
concerns armies abroad, act faithfully and just men that will not seek themselves be
put in turst, for the Army is of great concernment to thee, to stand or fall through them
as to man’s account, and the war against Spain be faithful to God in it, and let trusty
men have authority, the Lord may accomplish something by it to his honour and to
thine, if thou be meek and humble and walk with the Lord; and to say no more about it,
there is something in it known to the Lord, and he may bring it to pass in his reason.
Good Counsel and Advice Rejected – Edward Burrough to Oliver Cromwell 1658
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And this I do know, that the Lord hath owned and honoured our English Army, and
done good things for them and by them in these Nations in our age, and the Lord once
armed them with the spirit of courage and zeal against many abominations and
tyrannies, and he was with them in many things which he called them to, and gave
them victory and Dominion over much injustice and oppression, and over Tyrants and
cruel Laws and he was with them till that a spirit of vain glory and Ambition and selfseeking, and the honour of this world entered into some and defiled the whole body, &
made it deformed & void of its former beauty, and of its valour and nobleness also, at
which the anger of the Lord was kindled, and against you also was his hand turned,
with the losse of his presence, because the sincerity & the faithful principle was almost
choaked & the good eaten out from amongst you, by the false spirit of self-seeking and
vain glory, which was entered into the hearts of many but this is to the army in general,
and to say no more of it to you, only that you might search your own hearts, and may
be purged, and may again return to the old spirit of righteousness, which will reach
after the liberty of the people and the freedom of the Nations, and that all oppression
and tyranny and unjust powers may be broken down to the dust before you, and be
subdued by you as your prey, and that there be no more a looking back by you for rest
and ease in the flesh, in great houses of residence, till you have visited Rome and
inquired after, and sought out the innocent blood that is buried therein, and avenge
the blood of the guiltless through all the Dominions of the Pope, the blood of the just it
cryes through Italy and Spain, and the time is come that the Lord will search it and seek
it out and repay it, and it would be your honor to be made use of by the Lord in any
degree in order to this matter, whether the Lord will revenge the grievous bloodguiltiness that lies upon them, 30 by himself without an instrument, or whether by you
or others as an instrument, whether this way or another; that God will do it, this I
determine not, but this I do know, the time is not long, that he will one way or another
avenge and revenge the blood of the just upon the murderous head; and this I also
believe that the Lord will do it, or make way hereunto even by you, the men of our
English Nation, if you be faithful to him, and do what he requires of you, for what are
these few poor Islands that you have run through, and laid many mountains low, and
wounded the remainder of the Romish Idolatry that was standing in the beginning of
your Wars, and the remaining part thereof, which stood between the dayes of
Queen Mary, and the last years of Charles hath received a mortal blow, both by you,
and partly as preparers of the way, but what are these little Islands of England,
& Scotland· Ireland, they are but little in comparison of the great part of Christendom
in which Idolatry, tyranie and grievous oppressions do abound, which the hand of the
Lord is against, and which he will take vengeance upon.
A Visitation and Warning Proclaimed - Edward Burrough & Samuel Fisher, 1659
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