William Hacket
Encyclopedia
William Hacket, also known as Hackett (died 1591), was an English puritan
and religious fanatic, who claimed to be a messiah
and called for the removal of Queen Elizabeth I. He was executed in London after being found guilty of treason
.
, Northamptonshire
; he had no formal education and was illiterate, finding work as a serving-man
in the households of a Mr. Hussey, Sir Thomas Tresham
, and Sir Charles Morrison, all Northamptonshire gentry. He married the widow of a well-to-do farmer named Moreton, and became a maltster. He had a reputation for riotous living, and something of his violent nature can be ascertained by a story that during a quarrel in an alehouse with a schoolmaster called Freckingham, he bit off and ate his opponent's nose.
, became his disciple. Travelling to York
, Hacket announced that he was sent there by God to prepare the way for the Messiah
, only to be "well whipped
" and banished from the city; he got a similar reception in Leicester
. Subsequently, he preached around the villages of Northamptonshire against Queen Elizabeth and her chief councillors, for which he was arrested and thrown in Northampton
gaol. He was released after many weeks' imprisonment, on giving a bond
to come up for judgment when called upon.
at Wigginton's suggestion, staying at a lodging house outside Smithfield
. Wigginton introduced him to Edmund Coppinger, who held a minor post in the royal household
, and had declared that he had been moved by God to warn the queen to reform herself, her family, the commonwealth, and church. Coppinger soon convinced himself and a friend, Henry Arthington
, a Yorkshire gentleman, that Hacket had an "extraordinary calling", and had in fact come from heaven, after anointment by the Holy Ghost, to inaugurate a new era on earth. Hacket also claimed some kind of invulnerability. People came to his lodgings to hear his prayers, prophecies and "ohes, loud sighes and groninges"; member of Parliament Job Throckmorton
compared his utterings to a "wildgoose chase" with "neither head nor foote, rime nor reason".
Coppinger, his "prophet of mercy" and Arthington, "prophet of judgement", proved credulous disciples. They talked of dethroning the Queen and putting Hacket in her place, of abolishing the episcopacy, and of establishing in every congregation an 'eldership' or consistory
of doctor, pastor, and lay elders. Christopher Hatton
, the Lord-chancellor, and other ministers of state were to be removed from office, and replaced by associates of the conspirators, among whom were mentioned William Davison and other persons of note, reputed to be of puritan predilections. They scattered letters about London foretelling the coming changes. Hacket defaced the queen's arms which were set up in his lodgings in Knightrider Street, and mutilated a picture of her with a bodkin.
On 19 July 1591, Coppinger and Arthington went from Hacket's lodgings near "Broken wharf" to Cheapside
, and from the top of an empty cart preached that William Hacket was the Christ returned to judge the earth and establish the gospel
in Europe, and that repentance would ensure mercy from heaven; they were his two prophets, sent by God as witnesses. Terrible judgement and eternal punishment was promised against those who would not believe and repent. They also spoke out against the Queen and her ministers. Crowds gathered, and a riot ensued, forcing the fanatics to take refuge in the Mermaid Tavern
. The privy council
, on hearing of their conduct, had them and Hacket arrested, and they were imprisoned in Clerkenwell Bridewell
.
on 26th July at the Sessions House
near Newgate
. He pleaded guilty to a charge of declaring that Queen Elizabeth was not queen of England, but pleaded not guilty to a second charge that he had defaced the queen's picture. His behaviour at and after the trial suggests that, by this time, he was not of sound mind. He was condemned to death, and executed near the Cross in Cheapside on 28th July 1591 by being hung, drawn and quartered
. On the way to the scaffold he is said to have insulted the clergyman accompanying him and uttered "execrable blasphemy" to the last. Of his fellow conspirators, Coppinger starved himself to death in Bridewell, though Arthington, claiming that he had been the victim of witchcraft, and after a penitent apology, was released in the following year.
A Life, Arraignment, Judgement, and Execution of William Hacket was licensed for publication to Robert Bourne on 28 July 1591. No copy seems to have survived. John Strype
gave a summary of a Conspiracy for pretended Reformation, (1592), which details Hacket, Coppinger, and Arthington's activities.
and imprisoned; enemies attempted to use the Puritan affiliation of the Hacket rebels as the basis for a link with Thomas Cartwright and the wider Puritan faction, and undermine its influence. However there was never any evidence to suggest foreknowledge, and in fact, Cartwright had considered the insurrectionists to be deluded and disordered in mind, to be treated as such, and had suggested imprisonment as the correct course of action. In 1596, Cartwright, having already incurred the Government's displeasure, and been imprisoned for another matter, issued a written defence of his actions in answer to scurrilous accusations concerning the Hacket rebellion.
Puritan
The Puritans were a significant grouping of English Protestants in the 16th and 17th centuries. Puritanism in this sense was founded by some Marian exiles from the clergy shortly after the accession of Elizabeth I of England in 1558, as an activist movement within the Church of England...
and religious fanatic, who claimed to be a messiah
Messiah
A messiah is a redeemer figure expected or foretold in one form or another by a religion. Slightly more widely, a messiah is any redeemer figure. Messianic beliefs or theories generally relate to eschatological improvement of the state of humanity or the world, in other words the World to...
and called for the removal of Queen Elizabeth I. He was executed in London after being found guilty of treason
Treason
In law, treason is the crime that covers some of the more extreme acts against one's sovereign or nation. Historically, treason also covered the murder of specific social superiors, such as the murder of a husband by his wife. Treason against the king was known as high treason and treason against a...
.
Early life
Hacket was born at OundleOundle
Oundle is an ancient market town on the River Nene in Northamptonshire, England, with a population of 5,345 or 5,674 . It lies some north of London and south-west of Peterborough...
, Northamptonshire
Northamptonshire
Northamptonshire is a landlocked county in the English East Midlands, with a population of 629,676 as at the 2001 census. It has boundaries with the ceremonial counties of Warwickshire to the west, Leicestershire and Rutland to the north, Cambridgeshire to the east, Bedfordshire to the south-east,...
; he had no formal education and was illiterate, finding work as a serving-man
Domestic worker
A domestic worker is a man, woman or child who works within the employer's household. Domestic workers perform a variety of household services for an individual or a family, from providing care for children and elderly dependents to cleaning and household maintenance, known as housekeeping...
in the households of a Mr. Hussey, Sir Thomas Tresham
Thomas Tresham I
Sir Thomas Tresham was a leading Catholic politician during the middle of the Tudor dynasty in England.The eldest son of John Tresham of Rushton, Northamptonshire, and Elizabeth, daughter of Sir James Harrington, of Hornby, Lancashire, he married Mary Parr, youngest daughter and co-heir of William...
, and Sir Charles Morrison, all Northamptonshire gentry. He married the widow of a well-to-do farmer named Moreton, and became a maltster. He had a reputation for riotous living, and something of his violent nature can be ascertained by a story that during a quarrel in an alehouse with a schoolmaster called Freckingham, he bit off and ate his opponent's nose.
Conversion and preaching
At some stage Hacket seemed to abandon his former dissolute ways and underwent some kind of religious conversion; an acquaintance in Oundle, Giles WiggintonGiles Wigginton
Giles Wigginton was an English clergyman who became a fringe religious activist towards the end of the sixteenth century.-Life:...
, became his disciple. Travelling to York
York
York is a walled city, situated at the confluence of the Rivers Ouse and Foss in North Yorkshire, England. The city has a rich heritage and has provided the backdrop to major political events throughout much of its two millennia of existence...
, Hacket announced that he was sent there by God to prepare the way for the Messiah
Messiah
A messiah is a redeemer figure expected or foretold in one form or another by a religion. Slightly more widely, a messiah is any redeemer figure. Messianic beliefs or theories generally relate to eschatological improvement of the state of humanity or the world, in other words the World to...
, only to be "well whipped
Flagellation
Flagellation or flogging is the act of methodically beating or whipping the human body. Specialised implements for it include rods, switches, the cat o' nine tails and the sjambok...
" and banished from the city; he got a similar reception in Leicester
Leicester
Leicester is a city and unitary authority in the East Midlands of England, and the county town of Leicestershire. The city lies on the River Soar and at the edge of the National Forest...
. Subsequently, he preached around the villages of Northamptonshire against Queen Elizabeth and her chief councillors, for which he was arrested and thrown in Northampton
Northampton
Northampton is a large market town and local government district in the East Midlands region of England. Situated about north-west of London and around south-east of Birmingham, Northampton lies on the River Nene and is the county town of Northamptonshire. The demonym of Northampton is...
gaol. He was released after many weeks' imprisonment, on giving a bond
Surety bond
A surety bond is a promise to pay one party a certain amount if a second party fails to meet some obligation, such as fulfilling the terms of a contract...
to come up for judgment when called upon.
London and treason
Around Easter 1591, Hacket travelled to LondonLondon
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
at Wigginton's suggestion, staying at a lodging house outside Smithfield
Smithfield
Smithfield is the name of several places:In Australia:* Smithfield, New South Wales* Smithfield, Queensland, near Cairns* Smithfield, South Australia, a northern suburb of Adelaide**Smithfield railway station, Adelaide...
. Wigginton introduced him to Edmund Coppinger, who held a minor post in the royal household
Royal Household
A Royal Household in ancient and medieval monarchies formed the basis for the general government of the country as well as providing for the needs of the sovereign and his relations....
, and had declared that he had been moved by God to warn the queen to reform herself, her family, the commonwealth, and church. Coppinger soon convinced himself and a friend, Henry Arthington
Henry Arthington
Henry Arthington was an English politician who sat in the House of Commons at various times between 1646 and 1660.Arthington was the eldest son of William Arthington of Arthington and his wife Anne Tancred, daughter of Thomas Tancred of Brampton Hall. He was baptised on 1 January 1616 and came...
, a Yorkshire gentleman, that Hacket had an "extraordinary calling", and had in fact come from heaven, after anointment by the Holy Ghost, to inaugurate a new era on earth. Hacket also claimed some kind of invulnerability. People came to his lodgings to hear his prayers, prophecies and "ohes, loud sighes and groninges"; member of Parliament Job Throckmorton
Job Throckmorton
Job Throckmorton was an English religious pamphleteer and Member of Parliament. Possibly with John Penry and John Udall, he authored the Martin Marprelate anonymous anti-clerical satires; scholarly consensus now makes him the main author.-Life:He was of the Warwickshire gentry, resident at...
compared his utterings to a "wildgoose chase" with "neither head nor foote, rime nor reason".
Coppinger, his "prophet of mercy" and Arthington, "prophet of judgement", proved credulous disciples. They talked of dethroning the Queen and putting Hacket in her place, of abolishing the episcopacy, and of establishing in every congregation an 'eldership' or consistory
Consistory
-Antiquity:Originally, the Latin word consistorium meant simply 'sitting together', just as the Greek synedrion ....
of doctor, pastor, and lay elders. Christopher Hatton
Christopher Hatton
Sir Christopher Hatton was an English politician, Lord Chancellor of England and a favourite of Elizabeth I of England.-Early days:...
, the Lord-chancellor, and other ministers of state were to be removed from office, and replaced by associates of the conspirators, among whom were mentioned William Davison and other persons of note, reputed to be of puritan predilections. They scattered letters about London foretelling the coming changes. Hacket defaced the queen's arms which were set up in his lodgings in Knightrider Street, and mutilated a picture of her with a bodkin.
On 19 July 1591, Coppinger and Arthington went from Hacket's lodgings near "Broken wharf" to Cheapside
Cheapside
Cheapside is a street in the City of London that links Newgate Street with the junction of Queen Victoria Street and Mansion House Street. To the east is Mansion House, the Bank of England, and the major road junction above Bank tube station. To the west is St. Paul's Cathedral, St...
, and from the top of an empty cart preached that William Hacket was the Christ returned to judge the earth and establish the gospel
Gospel
A gospel is an account, often written, that describes the life of Jesus of Nazareth. In a more general sense the term "gospel" may refer to the good news message of the New Testament. It is primarily used in reference to the four canonical gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John...
in Europe, and that repentance would ensure mercy from heaven; they were his two prophets, sent by God as witnesses. Terrible judgement and eternal punishment was promised against those who would not believe and repent. They also spoke out against the Queen and her ministers. Crowds gathered, and a riot ensued, forcing the fanatics to take refuge in the Mermaid Tavern
Mermaid Tavern
The Mermaid Tavern was a tavern on Cheapside in London during the Elizabethan era, located east of St. Paul's Cathedral on the corner of Friday Street and Bread Street. It was the site of the so-called Friday Street Club...
. The privy council
Privy council
A privy council is a body that advises the head of state of a nation, typically, but not always, in the context of a monarchic government. The word "privy" means "private" or "secret"; thus, a privy council was originally a committee of the monarch's closest advisors to give confidential advice on...
, on hearing of their conduct, had them and Hacket arrested, and they were imprisoned in Clerkenwell Bridewell
Clerkenwell Bridewell
Clerkenwell Bridewell was a prison located in the Clerkenwell area, immediately north of the City of London , between c.1615 and 1794, when it was superseded by the nearby Coldbath Fields Prison in Mount Pleasant...
.
Trial and execution
Hacket was brought to trial for treasonTreason
In law, treason is the crime that covers some of the more extreme acts against one's sovereign or nation. Historically, treason also covered the murder of specific social superiors, such as the murder of a husband by his wife. Treason against the king was known as high treason and treason against a...
on 26th July at the Sessions House
Old Bailey
The Central Criminal Court in England and Wales, commonly known as the Old Bailey from the street in which it stands, is a court building in central London, one of a number of buildings housing the Crown Court...
near Newgate
Newgate
Newgate at the west end of Newgate Street was one of the historic seven gates of London Wall round the City of London and one of the six which date back to Roman times. From it a Roman road led west to Silchester...
. He pleaded guilty to a charge of declaring that Queen Elizabeth was not queen of England, but pleaded not guilty to a second charge that he had defaced the queen's picture. His behaviour at and after the trial suggests that, by this time, he was not of sound mind. He was condemned to death, and executed near the Cross in Cheapside on 28th July 1591 by being hung, drawn and quartered
Hanged, drawn and quartered
To be hanged, drawn and quartered was from 1351 a penalty in England for men convicted of high treason, although the ritual was first recorded during the reigns of King Henry III and his successor, Edward I...
. On the way to the scaffold he is said to have insulted the clergyman accompanying him and uttered "execrable blasphemy" to the last. Of his fellow conspirators, Coppinger starved himself to death in Bridewell, though Arthington, claiming that he had been the victim of witchcraft, and after a penitent apology, was released in the following year.
A Life, Arraignment, Judgement, and Execution of William Hacket was licensed for publication to Robert Bourne on 28 July 1591. No copy seems to have survived. John Strype
John Strype
John Strype was an English historian and biographer. He was a cousin of Robert Knox, a famous sailor.Born in Houndsditch, London, he was the son of John Strype, or van Stryp, a member of a Huguenot family whom, in order to escape religious persecution within Brabant, had settled in East London...
gave a summary of a Conspiracy for pretended Reformation, (1592), which details Hacket, Coppinger, and Arthington's activities.
Aftermath
Civil disorder and popular uprisings were a very real threat in this period due to harsh economic conditions, social divisions, corruption, political intrigues etc. Although Hacket and his followers did excite some public interest there was no corresponding popular support for his views - in fact, quite the opposite. Also, at the time, Puritan leaders were being tried for seditionSedition
In law, sedition is overt conduct, such as speech and organization, that is deemed by the legal authority to tend toward insurrection against the established order. Sedition often includes subversion of a constitution and incitement of discontent to lawful authority. Sedition may include any...
and imprisoned; enemies attempted to use the Puritan affiliation of the Hacket rebels as the basis for a link with Thomas Cartwright and the wider Puritan faction, and undermine its influence. However there was never any evidence to suggest foreknowledge, and in fact, Cartwright had considered the insurrectionists to be deluded and disordered in mind, to be treated as such, and had suggested imprisonment as the correct course of action. In 1596, Cartwright, having already incurred the Government's displeasure, and been imprisoned for another matter, issued a written defence of his actions in answer to scurrilous accusations concerning the Hacket rebellion.