In 1662, the newly restored king of England, Charles II, demanded that the Massachusetts Bay colony alter their laws to align with imperial priorities. Two years later, four royal commissioners arrived to enforce these demands. What followed was a season of extraordinary political activism, as colonial men and women mobilized to protect their liberties and local institutions.Providence College cultural historian Adrian Weimer was introduced by Erica Lindamood of the Old South Meeting House in Boston for a talk she gave on the topic on July 20, 2018, drawing from petitions, sermons, and letters of the day, to share the largely untold story of 17th-century New Englanders who fasted, prayed, and spoke out against the threat of arbitrary rule. Richard Mather father to Increase Mather and grandfather to Cotton Mather, was the first of 112 signers of a petition to King Charles II of England as part of the Resistance. Click here for a 51-minute YouTube video of Dr. Weimer’s presentation and the discussion that followed.
In 1662, the newly restored king of England, Charles II, demanded that the Massachusetts Bay colony alter their laws to align with imperial priorities. Two years later, four royal commissioners arrived to enforce these demands. What followed was a season of extraordinary political activism, as colonial men and women mobilized to protect their liberties and local institutions.Providence College cultural historian Adrian Weimer was introduced by Erica Lindamood of the Old South Meeting House in Boston for a talk she gave on the topic on July 20, 2018, drawing from petitions, sermons, and letters of the day, to share the largely untold story of 17th-century New Englanders who fasted, prayed, and spoke out against the threat of arbitrary rule. Richard Mather father to Increase Mather and grandfather to Cotton Mather, was the first of 112 signers of a petition to King Charles II of England as part of the Resistance. Click here for a 51-minute YouTube video of Dr. Weimer’s presentation and the discussion that followed.