The journal of George Fox, vol. 2 of 2

In Short

The second volume of George Fox’s journal records the mature, relentless ministry of the founder of the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers). Spanning the latter half of the seventeenth century, this autobiographical narrative moves from the damp, freezing dungeons of Restoration England to the dense wilderness and early settlements of the American colonies, Germany, and Holland. Fox chronicles his tireless travels, his repeated imprisonments under harsh legal statutes, his extensive correspondence with monarchs and magistrates, and his efforts to organize Quaker church structure. He routinely confronts hostile clergymen, unruly Ranters, and political authorities, offering a steady witness to an inward, spiritual Christ. The work has endured as a foundational text of Quaker history and a vivid, unvarnished window into the religious upheavals, persecution, and spiritual zeal of the early modern Atlantic world.

The Story

The narrative opens in the aftermath of the English Restoration, a period marked by severe legal crackdowns on nonconformist religious groups. Having spent years preaching that the Light of Christ resides within every individual, George Fox continues his extensive travels across England. Local magistrates, suspicious of Quaker refusal to swear oaths, remove hats before social superiors, or pay tithes, frequently arrest him. Fox details his imprisonment in Scarborough Castle, where he is kept in cold, ruined rooms exposed to the elements, his body growing stiff and benumbed from hard confinement. Despite these severe physical impairments, he defends his faith against visiting detractors, including Papists and contentious priests, refusing to compromise his spiritual principles.

Upon his release from Scarborough, Fox immediately resumes his labors, riding through English counties such as Yorkshire, Nottinghamshire, Leicestershire, and London. He works to gather meetings, settle disputes among believers, and establish orderly church discipline, including formal records for marriages, births, and burials. In London, he walks among the ruins left by the Great Fire, viewing the destruction as the fulfillment of divine warnings.

Seeking to strengthen the growing movement abroad, Fox embarks on a dangerous transatlantic voyage to the West Indies and mainland North America. In Barbados, though hampered by physical weakness that limits his movement, he meets with local Friends to establish men’s and women’s meetings for church affairs, urging them to maintain clean conduct, keep meticulous records, and prevent childish or hasty marriages. Moving on to the American mainland, he travels through Maryland, Virginia, New England, and Rhode Island. Fox describes crossing treacherous, swollen rivers, sleeping on raw straw or in the wilderness, and holding massive, crowded meetings in barns and open fields. He notes the hospitality of Native Americans, contrasting their kindness with the harsh persecution Quaker ministers faced from Puritan authorities in Boston.

Returning to England, Fox is quickly targeted again by hostile authorities. In Worcester, he is arrested and brought before the courts for refusing the oath of allegiance. During these legal proceedings, he learns of the death of his elderly mother, a blow he records with solemn grief. Despite attempts by persecuting justices like Justice Parker to frame him as a dangerous ringleader, Fox maintains his defense in court, asserting his loyalty to the king while standing firm against taking oaths for conscience’s sake.

In his later years, Fox’s physical health declines significantly, preventing him from enduring swift or long-distance travel. Nevertheless, his ministry shifts toward extensive writing and international outreach. He journeys to Holland and Germany, passing through ruined cities like Oldenburg and preaching in market towns and inns. From London and quiet retreats in the English countryside, he maintains a vast correspondence, addressing letters to European monarchs—including Johannes III of Poland, the King of Denmark, and the Duke of Holstein—appealing for the relief of persecuted Friends in Dantzic and Frederickstadt. He continuously drafts epistles to Quaker meetings worldwide, warning against internal apostasy, spiritual pride, and schism, while encouraging believers to remain steadfast amid severe harassment from government informers.

The journal concludes with testimonies from Fox’s family and close associates following his death. They reflect on his unwearied diligence, his deep spiritual insight despite his lack of formal worldly scholarship, and his enduring legacy as a pioneer who gathered thousands to wait upon God in silence and inward truth.

How It Unfolds

Prison and defense at Scarborough Fox endures a long, debilitating imprisonment in Scarborough Castle, where guards restrict his friends from visiting while bringing in contentious visitors to debate him. He defends Quaker principles against Papists and foreign priests, using historical arguments and biblical precedent to reject religious violence and spiritual infallibility.

Travels through the English counties Following his release, Fox travels through Nottinghamshire, Leicestershire, Warwickshire, and Yorkshire despite severe physical stiffness in his joints. He visits imprisoned Friends, meets with sympathetic justices, and helps establish fourteen monthly meetings in Yorkshire to accommodate the rapid spread of the movement.

Persecution and disturbance in London Arriving in London, Fox walks among the burned ruins of the city and attends public meetings where Quakers are routinely dragged away by authorities. He notes how new speakers step up immediately to replace those arrested, frustrating informers and astonishing onlookers from rival religious sects.

Organizing the church in Barbados Arriving in the West Indies, Fox suffers from physical exhaustion but gathers Friends at his lodging to establish formal men’s and women’s meetings. He issues strict guidelines on marriage practices, the registration of births and deaths, and the proper administration of charitable legacies.

Wilderness ministry in North America Fox travels through deep waters and rugged landscapes in Rhode Island, Providence, and neighboring regions, holding large meetings in barns that draw local governors and curious crowds. He records instances of Native American hospitality, contrasting their mercy with the harsh legal exile imposed by colonial puritans.

Imprisonment at Worcester and family grief Upon returning to England, Fox is arrested again at Worcester and brought before Judge Turner, where he refuses to take the oath. While held in jail, he receives news that his ancient mother has died from the shock of his re-arrest, yet he continues to defend his conscientious objections in open court.

Missions to Germany and Holland Fox travels through Bremen, Oldenburg, and Embden, declaring his message in public inns and market towns amid war-torn landscapes. He observes the spiritual state of the people, warning them against vanity and drunkenness while encouraging local groups of Friends who face banishment.

Appeals to European monarchs From England, Fox writes formal letters to continental rulers, including King Johannes III of Poland and the Duke of Holstein. He pleads for the freedom of imprisoned Quakers in Dantzic and reminds rulers of the historical failure of religious persecution.

Final epistles and legacy Weakened in body, Fox spends his final years writing extensive doctrinal papers and encouraging epistles from Essex and London. He urges Friends to maintain unity in the spiritual light, leaving behind a movement secured by established meetings and recorded testimonies from his family.

The People

• George Fox wants to proclaim the immediate, living presence of Christ and gather people out of dead religious forms into inward truth. What stands in his way is a relentless combination of state persecution, physical infirmity, hostile clergymen, and internal dissent within the movement. Through decades of imprisonment, harsh travel, and physical decline, he remains an unbending spiritual leader who grounds his authority in direct revelation rather than academic learning.
• Margaret Fell (later Margaret Fox) wants to support the growing Quaker movement, maintain communication among scattered groups of believers, and secure legal relief for persecuted Friends. She faces imprisonment, property confiscation, and constant interference from hostile local magistrates like Justice Daniel Fleming. Through her leadership, organizational efforts, and personal alliance with Fox, she develops into a central pillar of the Society of Friends.
• Justice Parker wants to suppress the rising Quaker movement in Worcestershire by treating its leader as a dangerous political threat. Standing in his way is Fox’s unwavering refusal to compromise on oaths, alongside the reluctance of higher court judges to convict without clear legal grounds. Parker acts as a persistent antagonist, using administrative delays to keep Fox imprisoned despite the lack of criminal charges.
• Judge Turner wants to manage his courtroom efficiently and settle Fox’s legal status without causing unnecessary public outcry or prolonged court delays. He is constrained by strict statutory requirements regarding the oath of allegiance and the political pressure applied by local anti-Quaker justices. Though familiar with Fox from earlier trials, he remains bound to the judicial system, ultimately remanding Fox back to the local sessions.
• Johannes III, King of Poland, wants to maintain order and authority over his realm, including troubled territories like Dantzic. What stands in his way are complex sectarian conflicts between local magistrates, Lutherans, and Catholics. Through Fox's direct letters, the king is confronted with an appeal to protect innocent, imprisoned Quakers, forcing an encounter between royal authority and Quaker appeals for freedom of conscience.

In Its Own Voice

"Thus the priest’s people were offended, because they could not get them to the steeple-house: and when there, they were offended, because they could not get them out again."

Fox describes an encounter in Devonshire where local authorities and churchgoers were confounded by Friends who waited quietly upon the Lord on their own spiritual schedule.

"I told them, if they were in the infallible spirit, they need not have jails, swords, and staves, racks and tortures, fires and faggots, whips and gallows, to hold up their religion by, and to destroy men’s lives about it..."

During his imprisonment at Scarborough Castle, Fox challenges a group of visiting Papists on the true methods of spiritual defense and Christian practice.

"Christian, more savage thou than he, / Blush for thy cruel deeds of infamy: / The Indian’s unasked cup of charity / Is larger than as mixed by thee."

In a poetic passage reflecting on his North American travels, Fox contrasts the warmth and shelter offered by Native Americans with the harsh persecution inflicted by white colonial magistrates.

What It's Really About

At its core, the second volume of George Fox’s journal is an extended argument for the absolute sufficiency of the divine light within every human soul, operating independently of human institutions, ordained clergy, or formal liturgy. Fox asserts that true religion requires no physical "steeple-houses," outward sacraments, or state-enforced creeds. Instead, he presents a vision of direct communion with God, where Christ acts as an immediate teacher, mediator, and shepherd to all who yield to his spirit.

Underneath the relentless narrative of travel and preaching lies a deep preoccupation with the nature of Christian authority and freedom of conscience. Fox consistently contrasts spiritual weapons—such as patience, bold testimony, and ethical living—with the physical coercion employed by state and church authorities. He argues that reliance on jails, fines, and forced oaths is the hallmark of a fallen, apostate church that has lost the true power of the early apostles.

Furthermore, the book addresses the practical challenge of organizing a radical spiritual movement without succumbing to anarchy or fanaticism. As Fox confronts both external persecution and internal disruptions from Ranters and backsliders, the text traces the creation of a durable community structure. By establishing regular business meetings, rigorous marriage procedures, and detailed record-keeping, Fox seeks to ensure that individual spiritual liberty remains anchored in mutual accountability, ethical integrity, and collective order.

Why Read It Today

George Fox’s journal remains an indispensable firsthand document for anyone seeking to understand the radical religious movements of the seventeenth century. It offers an intimate look at the birth of Quakerism, capturing the fiery conviction that fueled its spread across the Atlantic world despite fierce legal and physical opposition. Readers interested in early modern history, religious liberty, and the development of nonviolent resistance will find in Fox’s account a powerful case study of an individual standing against the full weight of church and state power.

Reading the text, however, presents distinct challenges. The prose reflects the repetitive, unadorned, and often archaic style of seventeenth-century religious tracts. Long sections are devoted to detailed itineraries of minor English villages, repetitive accounts of local meetings, and extensive quotes from Fox's own doctrinal epistles. His language is thoroughly steeped in Biblical phrasing and period-specific controversies, requiring patience from modern readers unfamiliar with the theological debates of the English Civil War and Restoration eras. Additionally, Fox's absolute certainty in his own spiritual correctness leads to a sharp, unforgiving tone toward religious rivals, whom he routinely dismisses as hypocrites, hireling priests, or deceivers.

Yet, despite these hurdles, the journal leaves a lasting impression of extraordinary physical resilience and spiritual authority. What stays with the reader is the vivid reality of Fox’s lived experience: sleeping on raw straw in northern European ports, confronting hostile judges in crowded English courtrooms, and navigating deep American rivers in the dead of night. His narrative captures the unvarnished voice of a man completely consumed by his vision, offering a fascinating record of faith tested by dungeon walls and wilderness trails.