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Line 1: − + + + + + − Quakerism is a traditionally a pacifist religion. William Penn asked George Fox, the founder of Quakerism, whether that meant that he should stop carrying his sword. Fox answered, "carry it as long as you can". He meant that Penn should '''not''' become a pacifist just because it is expected of Quakers. Fox told Penn to wait until he became personally convinced ''for himself'' that war was wrong, rather than doing it in response to what we would today call "peer pressure".+ + + + + + + Line 15:
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[[Image:Wp1.jpg|right|thumb|William Penn]]
[[Image:Wp1.jpg|right|thumb|William Penn]]
'''William Penn''' founded the colony (later state) of [[Pennsylvania]] in the late 1600's after being persecuted in England for his [[Religious Society of Friends|Quaker]] faith.
'''William Penn''' (1644-1718) was a Quaker leader in England and a friend of the king; he founded the colony of [[Pennsylvania]] and his family kept ownership until the American Revolution. He had been persecuted in England for his [[Religious Society of Friends|Quaker]] faith, and welcomed Quakers to his colony.
==Career==
Penn was the son of the powerful and rich Admiral Sir William Penn. He became a Quaker at the age of 24 and was expelled from Oxford University for that reason in 1662. He then traveled in France and Italy; served briefly in the Royal navy and then studied law in Lincoln's Inn, London. In 1666 his father sent him to Ireland to manage his estates. He was imprisoned in Ireland as the result of participation in a disturbance at a Quaker meeting in Cork, but was released and returned to London an avowed Quaker. A vigorous promotedr of the new religion, he spoke widely and wrote influential pamphlets, such as ''The Sandy Foundation Shaken'' (1668) and ''No Cross, No Crown."" He was imprisoned in 1669 for failure to remove his hat in court, but was released on the death of his father in 1670. He was arrested again the same year and wrote ''The Great Case of Liberty of Conscience'' while serving a six-month prison term. Released in 1671, he made a continental missionary tour and married Gulielma Springett in 1672. From 1675 to 1680 he was deeply engaged in oral and written religious and political agitation.
==Coloniszer==
Penn became interested in a refuge for Quakers to freely practice their religion in the New World. Quakers were uunwelcome in New England (several were hung in Boston for proselytizing), so he sought a new colony. He promoted successful Quaker colonization in New Jersey, for which he designed the famous "Concession and Agreements," his earliest governmental program.
In 1681 King Charles II, who owed his father money, gave Penn a grant or charter of vast lands that comprised a new colony, which his friends called Pennsylvania. In 1682 another royal grant included what later became the state of Delaware.
==Pennsylvania==
Penn called Pennsylvania a "Holy Experiment." His four "Frames of Government" of 1682, 1683, 1696, and 1701, and his Indian policy, charted the course of Pennsylvania's colonial history. He spent two years in Pennsylvania, 1682-1684, during which he founded and planned the city of Philadelphia; he visited the colony again from 1699 to 1701. Meanwhile, he continued his writings, travels, and missionary work in the interests of Quakerism.
A friend of [[King James II]], Penn was on the losing side of the "Glorious Revolution" of 1688 and lost control of his province in 1692; it was restored to him in 1694. His wife died in 1694 and he remarried in 1696. His fourth "Frame of Government" of 1701 was notable for its liberalism, being the constitution of colonial Pennsylvania. His last years were filled with financial misfortune and included a term in debtors' prison in England.
==Pacifism==
Quakerism is a traditionally a pacifist religion. William Penn asked [[George Fox]], the founder of Quakerism, whether that meant that he should stop carrying his sword. Fox answered, "carry it as long as you can". He meant that Penn should '''not''' become a pacifist just because it is expected of Quakers. Fox told Penn to wait until he became personally convinced ''for himself'' that war was wrong, rather than doing it in response to what we would today call "peer pressure".
==Indians==
Penn was respectful of and dealt fairly with the [[Native Americans|Indians]]. His successors, unfortunately, did not. Penn is supposed to have signed a treaty with the Indians in 1682 (although historians are not sure whether or not this really happened). The famous painting, "The Peaceable Kingdom," by primitive artist [[Edward Hicks]], incorporates many religious and Quaker symbols. In the foreground are the lion and the lamb; in the background, Penn is negotiating his treaty with the Indians.
Penn was respectful of and dealt fairly with the [[Native Americans|Indians]]. His successors, unfortunately, did not. Penn is supposed to have signed a treaty with the Indians in 1682 (although historians are not sure whether or not this really happened). The famous painting, "The Peaceable Kingdom," by primitive artist [[Edward Hicks]], incorporates many religious and Quaker symbols. In the foreground are the lion and the lamb; in the background, Penn is negotiating his treaty with the Indians.
[[Category:Colonial America]]
[[Category:Colonial America]]
[[Category:Quakers]]
[[Category:Quakers]]
[[Category:Pennsylvania]]