This week in Christian history: William Penn arrested, Bartolomé de Las Casas stands for Native Americans

By Michael Gryboski, Mainline Church Editor Sunday, August 13, 2023

William Penn arrested – Aug. 14, 1670

William Penn (1644-1718), a notable Quaker and founder of Pennsylvania. | Public Domain

This week marks the anniversary of when William Penn, a Quaker leader and founder of the state of Pennsylvania, was arrested in London, England, for his religiously dissenting views.

Penn, along with fellow Quaker William Mead, were arrested while preaching outside a closed Quaker church and were falsely accused by English authorities of inciting a riot.

Penn would be held at Newgate Prison for two weeks until the trial began, in which a jury would find him not guilty, though the jury themselves faced punishment from the judge for their decision.

“Penn tells the jury, ‘You are Englishmen; mind your privileges, give not away your right.’ To which juror Edward Bushell replies, ‘Nor will we ever do it!’” recounted the website U.S. History.

“The jury is imprisoned for their verdict and successfully sues the judges for false imprisonment, as the King's Bench decides that no jury can be punished for their verdict, a principle of law established by this trial. It took a year for this resolution of the case.”