British Anabaptism

Under the rule of Henry VIII, Anabaptists were persecuted as dissidents of the state. Since certain Anabaptists had been involved with Munster uprising, the word Anabaptist had become associated with violence and public disturbances. This combined with the Anabaptist beliefs on baptism (a radical belief at the time) caused Henry, under Cranmer's guidance chose to persecute them.[8] To Henry, it appeared to be in his best interest because he believed that such extremists were in a threat to the state. In response he enacted a few laws concerning anabaptists and "Between 1535-1546 large numbers of foreign Anabaptists were executed or burned at the stake for heresy. In 1535, some 25 Dutch Anabaptists who had fled the Amsterdam Uprisings were quickly rounded up. They were arrested, condemned for heresy and burned at the stake within the month."[9] In 1590 Anabaptists were ordered to leave England or join the Anglican Church (or the Strangers Church). The exile increased contact with Continental Anabaptists.

With Henry's death, Edward VI took charge of the English crown and religious policy. Having a more Protestant king did not quite ease the situation at all. Under Cranmer's guidance, Joan Bocher was executed for her Anabaptists beliefs. Even so, some of these concerns of preserving religious order were not unfounded. Thomas Putto, an Anabaptist, would disrupt religious services, causing concern for those above. Edward VI did grant a concession to the Anabaptists: he had the Stranger's church formed in 1550. Because the Stranger's Church was not placed directly under the Church of England, this move placed the Anabaptists outside the eye of the bishops. This not only reduced the executions but also helped support the English economy as there were anabaptists who were artisans.[10]

However, with Mary I in power, Anabaptists, along with other nonconformists were persecuted for their faith. Like their Protestant brethren, Anabaptists were judged for what people deemed as radical beliefs.[11] Given that Anabaptism had been used by people to describe Church radicals, it was not uncommon for mainstream Protestant victims to be tagged as Anabaptists as well. As a result, it is hard to distinguish during this time period who actually held Anabaptist convictions.

Upon Elizabeth's ascension to the throne, her primary concern was the preservation of order and the restoration of Protestantism within the state. The Anabaptists, who chose to object to her compromises and institutions were a threat to this. While the Anabaptists did return with the end of the Catholic regime, their hopes for better life were quickly dashed: the exile of anabaptists was put into effect in 1590. With the two other options being to submit to the Church of England or join the reestablished Stranger's church, most of the Anabaptists chose to leave.[12] When placing the Anabaptists under judgement of the law, such trials were done with the intent to challenge the anabaptist conscience.[13] Interrogation on the Anabaptist beliefs such as those on infant baptism and the divinity of Christ (in conjunction with Mary) were not out of question.

Following the death of Elizabeth, James I became the new ruler of England. He continued the policies of his predecessor that valued conformity under the state.[14] As Holland and England continued to maintain trade relations, it was of no surprise that Anabaptist ideas still made their way into England. Under his rule, the last public burning of heretics took place. Edward Wightman was the last to be burned publicly for heresy in England, and he was an Anabaptist. Although James I valued conformity for political reasons, this still shows the value he placed on making a public statement about religious minorities as well.

The first Anabaptist preacher in England was Christopher Vitell. He was an immigrant from the Netherlands who proclaimed Anabaptist teachings until he recanted under Queen Elizabeth.[20] He was known for sowing "religious revolt all over southern England".[21] He was also associated with the Family of Love, another radical religious minority that was often closely associated with Anabaptism. Many of his works were published between 1570 and 1575 and were widely circulated.[22] Elizabeth took care of the Familist sect quickly and burned their books and wanted people to recant. Even though he recanted his beliefs to avoid persecution, he was still a vital figure in proclaiming doctrine and teaching to the masses his beliefs.

One famous Anabaptist was Thomas Putto who would loudly proclaim Anabaptist sermons and promoter their literature and interrupt other religious services to do so. He was arrested and killed since he was an example of religious radicalism and insurrection. He was a tanner from Colechester, who on 5 May 1549, was executed "at St. Paul's Cross for denying that Christ descended into Hell".[23] Even though he had only dissented non-violently but it still caused apprehension among the officials. So, even when he was not explicitly causing violent actions, the officials still feared the Anabaptists because of his religion and reported lewd preaching.

Edward VI. presenting the Warrant for the Execution of Joan Bocher to Archbishop Cranmer

A more well-known Anabaptist martyr is Joan Bocher of Kent. She was burnt at the stake in 1550 during the reign of King Edward VI Even though John Foxe tried to get the other famous Marian martyr John Rogers to save her from death, he agreed that burning was a crime "sufficiently mild for a crime as grave as heresy. For Joan, she lived in Steeple Bumpstead, which was known for its Lollard beliefs and had a long history of unorthodox belief and trouble with authorities resulting from those differences.[24] She had been accused of distributing the Tyndale New Testament and supposedly carried them under her skirts to sneak them into the royal court.[25] Even if this was a rumour, it shows the extent she was willing to get the Word of God out. Others perceptions of her were very negative, like Edumund Becke calling her, "the devil's eldest doughter" and "the wayward Virago," calling up negative stereotypes of womanhood to blacken her reputation.[26] She had interesting views about the incarnation and her Anabaptist beliefs were denied by both Protestants and Catholics.

While there were a number of Anabaptists executed after Joan Bocher, the next notable one is Bartholomew Legate. The Legate family were a well-known family in Essex. The Legate brothers were Walter, Thomas and Bartholomew and were known for their separatist opinions and Anabaptist beliefs, like arguing that Christ was not really God and rejecting the Church structure and doctrines such as the sacraments.[27] Bartholomew Legate is a famous martyr since he was one of the last heretics to be burned at the stake for religious heresy in England on 18 March 1611.[28] They were one of the last public executions since it scared commoners and they were ordered to death because of the problems they caused in the government. This execution was more of a casualty than merely being burned for their theological differences. The Anabaptists got in the way of the government more than getting in the way of the church, therefore James I dealt with people like Bartholomew Legate in this manner.

Image of a man burning: "The Burning of Edward Underhill on the Tower Green"

Edward Wightman was famously the last person to be burned publicly for heresy in England. He was not alone as a heretic, but was an Anabaptist who went against what James I wanted for his monarchy in terms of the religious vision he had. He wanted unity in religious belief and saw the Anabaptists as radical. The court pronounced a sentence against the "wicked heresies of the...Anabaptists".[29] When he was being burnt he recanted but then recanted his recantation and blasphemed audaciously. He was a central figure in his community and wanted to bring godly order and reformed orthodoxy to the countryside, he was not just a radical loner who wanted to stir up trouble with the government. Wightman shows a different side to the Anabaptists, so while they clearly had differing theological stances, they were not all just stirring up trouble.

Anabaptist woman holding severed child's head

The pamphlet "Bloody Newes from Dover," from 1647, shows an Anabaptist woman holding the severed head of a child. The text says, "For, this bloody woman watching her opportunity, murdered the Boy, but was afterward apprehended, and suffered death."[31] Anti-Anabaptist propaganda shows how extreme people felt against this religious minority, and how there were pamphlets being sent around to make others afraid of how seemingly dangerous the Anabaptists were in their time.

pamphlet from 1681 concerning the Lecherous Anabaptist

Most times, people described Anabaptists in negative terms. For instance, this pamphlet is describing the "Lecherous Anabaptist".[32] This describes an account of an Anabaptist making inappropriate advances on a young Maid and exchanging a Bible for sexual favors, repeating the line, "For Frank twelve Geneva good Bibles did proffer, to lie with his Maid, but she slighted his offer." Stories like this were common, people took to a negative view of Anabaptists and tarnished their reputation with scathing literature and art work to bring down their reputations.