Description

In First Among Friends , the first scholarly biography of George Fox (1624-91), H. Larry Ingle examines the fascinating life of the Reformation leader and founding organizer of the Religious Society of Friends, more popularly known today as the Quakers.

Ingle places Fox within the upheavals of the English Civil War, Revolution, and Restoration, showing him and his band of "rude" disciples challenging the status quo, particularly during the Cromwellian Interregnum. Unlike leaders of similar groups, Fox responded to the conservatism of the Stuart restoration by facing down challenges from internal dissidents, and leading his followers to persevere until the 1689 Act of Toleration. It was this same sense of perseverance that helped the Quakers to survive and remain the only religious sect of the era still existing today.

This insightful study uses broad research in contemporary manuscripts and pamphlets, many never examined systematically before. Firmly grounded in primary sources and enriched with gripping detail, this well-written and original study reveals unknown sides of one who was clearly "First Among Friends."

Reviews

"The last three decades have seen a remarkable development in Quaker historiography...Larry Ingle's extraordinary biography of George Fox is not only a fitting contribution to this corpus, but the essential starting place for the next generation of scholars."--Albion

"Ingle tells his story sensibly and responsibly, making careful use of Fox's Journal and the other (happily plentiful) Quaker sources...Valuable in reminding us of the most important dimension of the history of the seventeenth century, which was the searing intensity of its religious beliefs."--New Republic

"A valuable book that fills a long-felt need...A biography of Fox that is respectful and thorough but not overly reverential or hagiographical."--Sixteenth Century Journal

"Larry Ingle's First Among Friends is a landmark work of Quaker history. Anyone who seeks to understand the origins and essence of the Society of Friends could do no better than to read it. Certainly every Friends' meeting should own it, and every Friend should read it. The book's scholarship is pioneering, its style solicitous, and its insights into the tumultuous, history-making life of George Fox are numerous and eye-opening. This benchmark work secures Larry Ingle's stature as the leading American historian of Quakerism."--Charles Fager, Quaker author and editor of "A Friendly Letter

"This book is, quite rightly, far from being hostile. But in it a historian who seems to be a Quaker himself takes a fresh look at all surviving evidence, provides a comprehensive assembly of scholarly research and discussion, and offers conclusions which are objective."--Church Times

Product Details

424 pages; 1 halftone, 1 map; 6-1/8 x 9-1/4; ISBN13: 978-0-19-510117-1ISBN10: 0-19-510117-0

About the Author(s)