"Freeborn" John Lilburne
John Lilburne was a one of the key figures in the English Civil War, which occurred from 1642 to 1650. Born in 1614 (the exact date is unknown) Lilburne, who was also known by the name Freeborn John came to be known as an Agitator in the said war. He was a Puritan from a very early age and remained so throughout most of his life, however towards the end he became a Quaker. The United States Supreme Court has used many of his written works as reference and continues to do so to this day.
Lilburne was born in quite a humble setting, in the servant's quarters of the old palace at Greenwich to be exact, although his family was actually fairly well off being mid level members of the court. There is some dispute as to his actual date of birth, with some historians claiming he was born in the year 1613 although there is more evidence to support his birth year of 1614.
John Lilburne's immediate family was originally from Sunderland, in the North-eastern part of England and an uncle of his, Richard Lilburne holds the distinction of being one of the first members of the Parliament of England. Richard Lilburne was the representative of the county of Durham.
Before John turned 20 years old, he was already apprenticed to John Hewson and through him met John Bastwick a physician who was a devoted Puritan. Bastwick actively campaigned against Episcopacy for many years during his lifetime and this earned him the ire of Archbishop William Laud.
Lilburne was involved in some controversy in 1638 when he was a mere 22 years of age for bringing into England several religious materials from Holland. During that period, all printing presses in the country had to operate under license from The Stationers' Company and there were restrictions on the type of publications that were to be produced. The Stationers' Company later became known as the Worshipful Company of Stationers and Newspaper Makers.
The case against Lilburne stemmed from an informer who was in the payroll of the Stationers' Company and tipped them off on Lilburne's activities. He was brought before the Court of Star Chamber to stand trial, however he was not informed of the charges that were being brought against him so he refused to render a plea. Instead he demanded that the court present him the charges in English instead of the customary Latin that was the official court language in those days.
The court refused to grant this to Lilburne and locked him in prison. When Lilburne was again brought before the court, he was still adamant about his refusal to present a plea without being informed of the charges in English. The court then ordered that he be whipped while being dragged from an ox-drawn wagon from Fleet Prison to Westminster. At Westminster he was forced into a pillory, a device that forces the offender into a stooped position. Throughout this harrowing ordeal, Lilburne managed to cry out to the crowd against the injustice wrought to him and even handed out his publications, until he was finally gagged.
Afterwards he was thrown into prison again and for many years of his life, court trials and prison sentences were to become a regular occurrence for him. John Lilburne later called his legal struggles a fight for his "freeborn rights" and many people were gradually drawn to his cause giving him the name "Freeborn John". His campaign against injustice actually sowed the seed for the Fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution that is still implemented to this day.
John Lilburne served as a captain in the Parliament army during the First English Civil War under the command of the Earl of Essex and saw action in the Battle of Edgehill. He became friends with the future Lord Protector of England, Oliver Cromwell and went on to further victories in the battlefield. The two men had a falling out after the war however because of Lilburne's denouncement of certain members of the Parliament. His increasing political influence also threatened Cromwell, and the Lord Protector had him imprisoned.
It was during his stay in prison that Lilburne turned Quaker. The many years of prison life and harsh physical punishment took its toll on him and he died on August 29, 1657.
Original Authors: Doods Pangburn
Edit Update Authors: RPN
Updated On: 11/04/2007
