'He is the vagabond that hath no habitation in the Lord' the representation of Quakers as vagrants in interregnum England, 1650-1660

This article examines the printed representation, and prosecutorial characterisation, of the movements, actions and motivations of early Quakers as vagrant. It argues that the prevalence and power of representing (and subsequently treating) early Quakers as vagrants is an understudied aspect of the social and cultural history of the Society of Friends, particularly in Interregnum England. As evidence, it interrogates a furious pamphlet debate between mid-century religious writers and preachers, who devoted much time and ink to painting Quakers as mendacious vagabonds, and Quaker ‘First Publishers’, who responded at length and in a striking way to these accusations.

The article concludes that these images of Quakerism as a form of ‘spiritual vagrancy’ created historically significant echoes in English and Atlantic culture.