There is always this advantage in contending with illustrious
adversaries, that the combatant is equally immortalized by conquest or
defeat. He that dies by the sword of a hero will always be mentioned,
when the acts of his enemy are mentioned. The man, of whose life the
following account is offered to the publick, was, indeed, eminent
among his own party, and had qualities, which, employed in a good
cause, would have given him some claim to distinction; but no one is
now so much blinded with bigotry, as to imagine him equal either to
Hammond or Chillingworth; nor would his memory, perhaps, have been
preserved, had he not, by being conjoined with illustrious names,
become the object of publick curiosity.
Francis Cheynel was born in 1608, at Oxford [55], where his father,
Dr. John Cheynel, who had been fellow of Corpus Christi college,
practised physick with great reputation. He was educated in one of the
grammar schools of his native city, and, in the beginning of the year
1623, became a member of the university.
It is probable, that he lost his father when he was very young; for it
appears, that before 1629, his mother had married Dr. Abbot, bishop of
Salisbury, whom she had likewise buried. From this marriage he
received great advantage; for his mother, being now allied to Dr.
Brent, then warden of Merton college, exerted her interest so
vigorously, that he was admitted there a probationer, and afterwards
obtained a fellowship [56].
Having taken the degree of master of arts, he was admitted to orders,
according to the rites of the church of England, and held a curacy
near Oxford, together with his fellowship. He continued in his
college, till he was qualified, by his years of residence, for the
degree of bachelor of divinity, which he attempted to take in 1641,
but was denied his grace [57], for disputing concerning
predestination, contrary to the king's injunctions.
This refusal of his degree he mentions in his dedication to his
account of Mr. Chillingworth: "Do not conceive that I snatch up my pen
in an angry mood, that I might vent my dangerous wit, and ease my
overburdened spleen; no, no, I have almost forgotten the visitation of
Merton college, and the denial of my grace, the plundering of my
house, and little library: I know when, and where, and of whom, to
demand satisfaction for all these injuries and indignities. I have
learnt 'centum plagas Spartana nobilitate concoquere.' I have not
learnt how to plunder others of goods, or living, and make myself
amends by force of arms. I will not take a living which belonged to
any civil, studious, learned delinquent; unless it be the
much-neglected _commendam_ of some lordly prelate, condemned by
the known laws of the land, and the highest court of the kingdom, for
some offence of the first magnitude."
It is observable, that he declares himself to have almost forgot his
injuries and indignities, though he recounts them with an appearance
of acrimony, which is no proof that the impression is much weakened;
and insinuates his design of demanding, at a proper time, satisfaction
for them.
These vexations were the consequence rather of the abuse of learning,
than the want of it; no one that reads his works can doubt that he was
turbulent, obstinate, and petulant; and ready to instruct his
superiours, when he most needed instruction from them. Whatever he
believed (and the warmth of his imagination naturally made him
precipitate in forming his opinions) he thought himself obliged to
profess; and what he professed he was ready to defend, without that
modesty which is always prudent, and generally necessary, and which,
though it was not agreeable to Mr. Cheynel's temper, and, therefore,
readily condemned by him, is a very useful associate to truth, and
often introduces her, by degrees, where she never could have forced
her way by argument or declamation.
A temper of this kind is generally inconvenient and offensive in any
society, but in a place of education is least to be tolerated; for, as
authority is necessary to instruction, whoever endeavours to destroy
subordination, by weakening that reverence which is claimed by those
to whom the guardianship of youth is committed by their country,
defeats, at once, the institution; and may be justly driven from a
society, by which he thinks himself too wise to be governed, and in
which he is too young to teach, and too opinionative to learn.
This may be readily supposed to have been the case of Cheynel; and I
know not how those can be blamed for censuring his conduct, or
punishing his disobedience, who had a right to govern him, and who
might certainly act with equal sincerity, and with greater knowledge.
With regard to the visitation of Merton college, the account is
equally obscure. Visitors are well known to be generally called to
regulate the affairs of colleges, when the members disagree with their
head, or with one another; and the temper that Dr. Cheynel discovers
will easily incline his readers to suspect, that he could not long
live in any place, without finding some occasion for debate; nor
debate any question, without carrying opposition to such a length as
might make a moderator necessary. Whether this was his conduct at
Merton, or whether an appeal to the visiter's authority was made by
him, or his adversaries, or any other member of the college, is not to
be known; it appears only, that there was a visitation, that he
suffered by it, and resented his punishment.
He was afterwards presented to a living of great value, near Banbury,
where he had some dispute with archbishop Laud. Of this dispute I have
found no particular account. Calamy only says, he had a ruffle with
bishop Laud, while at his height.
Had Cheynel been equal to his adversary in greatness and learning, it
had not been easy to have found either a more proper opposite; for
they were both, to the last degree, zealous, active, and pertinacious,
and would have afforded mankind a spectacle of resolution and boldness
not often to be seen. But the amusement of beholding the struggle
would hardly have been without danger, as they were too fiery not to
have communicated their heat, though it should have produced a
conflagration of their country.
About the year 1641, when the whole nation was engaged in the
controversy about the rights of the church, and necessity of
episcopacy, he declared himself a presbyterian, and an enemy to
bishops, liturgies, ceremonies; and was considered, as one of the most
learned and acute of his party; for, having spent much of his life in
a college, it cannot be doubted that he had a considerable knowledge
of books, which the vehemence of his temper enabled him often to
display, when a more timorous man would have been silent, though in
learning not his inferiour.
When the war broke out, Mr. Cheynel, in consequence of his principles,
declared himself for the parliament; and, as he appears to have held
it as a first principle, that all great and noble spirits abhor
neutrality, there is no doubt but that he exerted himself to gain
proselytes, and to promote the interest of that party, which he had
thought it his duty to espouse. These endeavours were so much regarded
by the parliament, that, having taken the covenant, he was nominated
one of the assembly of divines, who were to meet at Westminster for
the settlement of the new discipline.
This distinction drew, necessarily, upon him the hatred of the
cavaliers; and his living being not far distant from the king's
head-quarters, he received a visit from some of the troops, who, as he
affirms, plundered his house, and drove him from it. His living, which
was, I suppose, considered as forfeited by his absence, though he was
not suffered to continue upon it, was given to a clergyman, of whom he
says, that he would become a stage better than a pulpit; a censure
which I can neither confute nor admit, because I have not discovered
who was his successour. He then retired into Sussex, to exercise his
ministry among his friends, in a place where, as he observes, there
had been little of the power of religion either known or practised. As
no reason can be given why the inhabitants of Sussex should have less
knowledge or virtue than those of other places, it may be suspected
that he means nothing more than a place where the presbyterian
discipline or principles had never been received. We now observe, that
the methodists, where they scatter their opinions, represent
themselves, as preaching the gospel to unconverted nations; and
enthusiasts of all kinds have been inclined to disguise their
particular tenets with pompous appellations, and to imagine themselves
the great instruments of salvation; yet it must be confessed, that all
places are not equally enlightened; that in the most civilized nations
there are many corners which may be called barbarous, where neither
politeness, nor religion, nor the common arts of life, have yet been
cultivated; and it is likewise certain, that the inhabitants of Sussex
huve been sometimes mentioned as remarkable for brutality.
From Sussex he went often to London, where, in 1643, he preached three
times before the parliament; and, returning in November to Colchester,
to keep the monthly fast there, as was his custom, he obtained a
convoy of sixteen soldiers, whose bravery or good fortune was such,
that they faced, and put to flight, more than two hundred of the
king's forces.
In this journey he found Mr. Chillingworth in the hands of the
parliament's troops, of whose sickness and death he gave the account,
which has been sufficiently made known to the learned world by Mr.
Maizeaux, in his Life of Chillingworth.
With regard to this relation, it may be observed, that it is written
with an air of fearless veracity, and with the spirit of a man who
thinks his cause just, and his behaviour without reproach; nor does
there appear any reason for doubting that Cheynel spoke and acted as
he relates; for he does not publish an apology, but a challenge, and
writes not so much to obviate calumnies, as to gain from others that
applause which he seems to have bestowed very liberally upon himself,
for his behaviour on that occasion.
Since, therefore, this relation is credible, a great part of it being
supported by evidence which cannot be refuted, Mr. Maizeaux seems very
justly, in his Life of Mr. Chillingworth, to oppose the common report,
that his life was shortened by the inhumanity of those to whom he was
a prisoner; for Cheynel appears to have preserved, amidst all his
detestation of the opinions which he imputed to him, a great kindness
to his person, and veneration for his capacity; nor does he appear to
have been cruel to him, otherwise than by that incessant importunity
of disputation, to which he was doubtless incited by a sincere belief
of the danger of his soul, if he should die without renouncing some of
his opinions.
The same kindness which made him desirous to convert him before his
death, would incline him to preserve him from dying before he was
converted; and accordingly we find, that, when the castle was yielded,
he took care to procure him a commodious lodging; when he was to have
been unseasonably removed, he attempted to shorten his journey, which
he knew would be dangerous; when the physician was disgusted by
Chillingworth's distrust, he prevailed upon him, as the symptoms grew
more dangerous, to renew his visits; and when death left no other act
of kindness to be practised, procured him the rites of burial, which
some would have denied him.
Having done thus far justice to the humanity of Cheynel, it is proper
to inquire, how far he deserves blame. He appears to have extended
none of that kindness to the opinions of Chillingworth, which he
showed to his person; for he interprets every word in the worst sense,
and seems industrious to discover, in every line, heresies, which
might have escaped for ever any other apprehension: he appears always
suspicious of some latent malignity, and ready to persecute what he
only suspects, with the same violence, as if it had been openly
avowed: in all his procedure he shows himself sincere, but without
candour.
About this time Cheynel, in pursuance of his natural ardour, attended
the army under the command of the earl of Essex, and added the praise
of valour to that of learning; for he distinguished himself so much by
his personal bravery, and obtained so much skill in the science of
war, that his commands were obeyed by the colonels with as much
respect as those of the general. He seems, indeed, to have been born a
soldier; for he had an intrepidity which was never to be shaken by any
danger, and a spirit of enterprise not to be discouraged by
difficulty, which were supported by an unusual degree of bodily
strength. His services of all kinds were thought of so much importance
ty the parliament, that they bestowed upon him the living of Petworth,
in Sussex. This living was of the value of seven hundred pounds per
annum, from which they had ejected a man remarkable for his loyalty,
and, therefore, in their opinion, not worthy of such revenues. And it
may be inquired, whether, in accepting this preferment, Cheynel did
not violate the protestation which he makes in the passage already
recited, and whether he did not suffer his resolutions to be overborne
by the temptations of wealth.
In 1646, when Oxford was taken by the forces of the parliament, and
the reformation of the university was resolved, Mr. Cheynel was sent,
with six others, to prepare the way for a visitation; being authorized
by the parliament to preach in any of the churches, without regard to
the right of the members of the university, that their doctrine might
prepare their hearers for the changes which were intended.
When they arrived at Oxford, they began to execute their commission,
by possessing themselves of the pulpits; but, if the relation of Wood
[58] is to be regarded, were heard with very little veneration. Those
who had been accustomed to the preachers of Oxford, and the liturgy of
the church of England, were offended at the emptiness of their
discourses, which were noisy and unmeaning; at the unusual gestures,
the wild distortions, and the uncouth tone with which they were
delivered; at the coldness of their prayers for the king, and the
vehemence and exuberance of those which they did not fail to utter for
_the blessed councils_ and actions of the parliament and army;
and at, what was surely not to be remarked without indignation, their
omission of the Lord's prayer.
But power easily supplied the want of reverence, and they proceeded in
their plan of reformation; and thinking sermons not so efficacious to
conversion as private interrogatories and exhortations, they
established a weekly meeting for _freeing tender consciences from
scruple_, at a house that, from the business to which it was
appropriated, was called the _scruple-shop_.
With this project they were so well pleased, that they sent to the
parliament an account of it, which was afterwards printed, and is
ascribed, by Wood, to Mr. Cheynel. They continued for some weeks to
hold their meetings regularly, and to admit great numbers, whom
curiosity, or a desire of conviction, or a compliance with the
prevailing party, brought thither. But their tranquillity was quickly
disturbed by the turbulence of the independents, whose opinions then
prevailed among the soldiers, and were very industriously propagated
by the discourses of William Earbury, a preacher of great reputation
among them, who one day gathering a considerable number of his most
zealous followers, went to the house appointed for the resolution of
scruples, on a day which was set apart for the disquisition of the
dignity and office of a minister, and began to dispute, with great
vehemence, against the presbyterians, whom he denied to have any true
ministers among them, and whose assemblies he affirmed not to be the
true church. He was opposed with equal heat by the presbyterians, and,
at length, they agreed to examine the point another day, in a regular
disputation. Accordingly, they appointed the 12th of November for an
inquiry: "Whether, in the christian church, the office of minister is
committed to any particular persons?"
On the day fixed, the antagonists appeared, each attended by great
numbers; but, when the question was proposed, they began to wrangle,
not about the doctrine which they had engaged to examine, but about
the terms of the proposition, which the independents alleged to be
changed since their agreement; and, at length, the soldiers insisted
that the question should be, "Whether those who call themselves
ministers, have more right or power to preach the gospel, than any
other man that is a christian?" This question was debated, for some
time, with great vehemence and confusion, but without any prospect of
a conclusion. At length, one of the soldiers, who thought they had an
equal right with the rest to engage in the controversy, demanded of
the presbyterians, whence they themselves received their orders,
whether from bishops, or any other persons. This unexpected
interrogatory put them to great difficulties; for it happened that
they were all ordained by the bishops, which they durst not
acknowledge, for fear of exposing themselves to a general censure, and
being convicted from their own declarations, in which they had
frequently condemned episcopacy, as contrary to Christianity; nor
durst they deny it, because they might have been confuted, and must,
at once, have sunk into contempt. The soldiers, seeing their
perplexity, insulted them; and went away, boasting of their victory;
nor did the presbyterians, for some time, recover spirit enough to
renew their meetings, or to proceed in the work of easing consciences.
Earbury, exulting at the victory, which, not his own abilities, but
the subtlety of the soldier had procured him, began to vent his
notions of every kind, without scruple, and, at length, asserted, that
"the saints had an equal measure of the divine nature with our
Saviour, though not equally manifest." At the same time he took upon
him the dignity of a prophet, and began to utter predictions relating
to the affairs of England and Ireland.
His prophecies were not much regarded, but his doctrine was censured
by the presbyterians in their pulpits; and Mr. Cheynel challenged him
to a disputation, to which he agreed, and, at his first appearance in
St. Mary's church, addressed his audience in the following manner:
"Christian friends, kind fellow-soldiers, and worthy students, I, the
humble servant of all mankind, am this day drawn, against my will, out
of my cell into this publick assembly, by the double chain of
accusation and a challenge from the pulpit. I have been charged with
heresy; I have been challenged to come hither, in a letter written by
Mr. Francis Cheynel. Here, then, I stand in defence of myself and my
doctrine, which I shall introduce with only this declaration, that I
claim not the office of a minister on account of any outward call,
though I formerly received ordination, nor do I boast of illumination,
or the knowledge of our Saviour, though I have been held in esteem by
others, and formerly by myself; for I now declare, that I know
nothing, and am nothing, nor would I be thought of otherwise than as
an inquirer and seeker."
He then advanced his former position in stronger terms, and with
additions equally detestable, which Cheynel attacked with the
vehemence which, in so warm a temper, such horrid assertions might
naturally excite. The dispute, frequently interrupted by the clamours
of the audience, and tumults raised to disconcert Cheynel, who was
very unpopular, continued about four hours, and then both the
controvertists grew weary, and retired. The presbyterians afterwards
thought they should more speedily put an end to the heresies of
Earbury by power than by argument; and, by soliciting general Fairfax,
procured his removal.
Mr. Cheynel published an account of this dispute, under the title of,
Faith triumphing over Errour and Heresy, in a Revelation, &c.; nor can
it be doubted but he had the victory, where his cause gave him so
great superiority.
Somewhat before this, his captious and petulant disposition engaged
him in a controversy, from which he could not expect to gain equal
reputation. Dr. Hammond had, not long before, published his Practical
Catechism, in which Mr. Cheynel, according to his custom, found many
errours implied, if not asserted; and, therefore, as it was much read,
thought it convenient to censure it in the pulpit. Of this Dr. Hammond
being informed, desired him, in a letter, to communicate his
objections; to which Mr. Cheynel returned an answer, written with his
usual temper, and, therefore, somewhat perverse. The controversy was
drawn out to a considerable length; and the papers, on both sides,
were afterwards made publick by Dr. Hammond.
In 1647, it was determined by parliament, that the reformation of
Oxford should be more vigorously carried on; and Mr. Cheynel was
nominated one of the visiters. The general process of the visitation,
the firmness and fidelity of the students, the address by which the
inquiry was delayed, and the steadiness with which it was opposed,
which are very particularly related by Wood, and after him by Walker,
it is not necessary to mention here, as they relate not more to Mr.
Cheynel's life than to those of his associates.
There is, indeed, some reason to believe that he was more active and
virulent than the rest, because he appears to have been charged, in a
particular manner, with some of their most unjustifiable measures. He
was accused of proposing, that the members of the university should be
denied the assistance of counsel, and was lampooned by name, as a
madman, in a satire written on the visitation.
One action, which shows the violence of his temper, and his disregard,
both of humanity and decency, when they came in competition with his
passions, must not be forgotten. The visiters, being offended at the
obstinacy of Dr. Fell, dean of Christchurch, and vicechancellor of the
university, having first deprived him of his vicechancellorship,
determined afterwards to dispossess him of his deanery; and, in the
course of their proceedings, thought it proper to seize upon his
chambers in the college. This was an act which most men would
willingly have referred to the officers to whom the law assigned it;
but Cheynel's fury prompted him to a different conduct. He, and three
more of the visiters, went and demanded admission; which, being
steadily refused them, they obtained by the assistance of a file of
soldiers, who forced the doors with pick-axes. Then entering, they saw
Mrs. Fell in the lodgings, Dr. Fell being in prison at London, and
ordered her to quit them, but found her not more obsequious than her
husband. They repeated their orders with menaces, but were not able to
prevail upon her to remove. They then retired, and left her exposed to
the brutality of the soldiers, whom they commanded to keep possession,
which Mrs. Fell, however, did not leave. About nine days afterwards,
she received another visit of the same kind from the new chancellor,
the earl of Pembroke; who having, like the others, ordered her to
depart without effect, treated her with reproachful language, and, at
last, commanded the soldiers to take her up in her chair, and carry
her out of doors. Her daughters, and some other gentlewomen that were
with her, were afterwards treated in the same manner; one of whom
predicted, without dejection, that she should enter the house again
with less difficulty, at some other time; nor was she mistaken in her
conjecture, for Dr. Fell lived to be restored to his deanery.
At the reception of the chancellor, Cheynel, as the most accomplished
of the visiters, had the province of presenting him with the ensigns
of his office, some of which were counterfeit, and addressing him with
a proper oration. Of this speech, which Wood has preserved, I shall
give some passages, by which a judgment may be made of his oratory.
Of the staves of the beadles he observes, that "some are stained with
double guilt, that some are pale with fear, and that others have been
made use of as crutches, for the support of bad causes and desperate
fortunes;" and he remarks of the book of statutes which he delivers,
that "the ignorant may, perhaps, admire the splendour of the cover,
but the learned know that the real treasure is within." Of these two
sentences it is easily discovered, that the first is forced and
unnatural, and the second trivial and low.
Soon afterwards Mr. Cheynel was admitted to the degree of bachelor of
divinity, for which his grace had been denied him in 1641, and, as he
then suffered for an ill-timed assertion of the presbyterian
doctrines, he obtained that his degree should be dated from the time
at which he was refused it; an honour which, however, did not secure
him from being soon after publickly reproached as a madman.
But the vigour of Cheynel was thought, by his companions, to deserve
profit, as well as honour; and Dr. Bailey, the president of St. John's
college, being not more obedient to the authority of the parliament
than the rest, was deprived of his revenues and authority, with which
Mr. Cheynel was immediately invested; who, with his usual coolness and
modesty, took possession of the lodgings soon after by breaking open
the doors.
This preferment being not thought adequate to the deserts or abilities
of Mr. Cheynel, it was, therefore, desired, by the committee of
parliament, that the visiters would recommend him to the lectureship
of divinity, founded by the lady Margaret. To recommend him, and to
choose, was, at that time, the same; and he had now the pleasure of
propagating his darling doctrine of predestination, without
interruption, and without danger.
Being thus flushed with power and success, there is little reason for
doubting that he gave way to his natural vehemence, and indulged
himself in the utmost excesses of raging zeal, by which he was,
indeed, so much distinguished, that, in a satire mentioned by Wood, he
is dignified by the title of archvisiter; an appellation which he
seems to have been industrious to deserve by severity and
inflexibility; for, not contented with the commission which he and his
colleagues had already received, he procured six or seven of the
members of parliament to meet privately in Mr. Rouse's lodgings, and
assume the style and authority of a committee, and from them obtained
a more extensive and tyrannical power, by which the visitors were
enabled to force the _solemn league and covenant_, and the
_negative oath_ upon all the members of the university, and to
prosecute those for a contempt who did not appear to a citation, at
whatever distance they might be, and whatever reasons they might
assign for their absence.
By this method he easily drove great numbers from the university,
whose places he supplied with men of his own opinion, whom he was very
industrious to draw from other parts, with promises of making a
liberal provision for them out of the spoils of hereticks and
malignants.
Having, in time, almost extirpated those opinions which he found so
prevalent at his arrival, or, at least, obliged those, who would not
recant, to an appearance of conformity, he was at leisure for
employments which deserve to be recorded with greater commendation.
About this time, many socinian writers began to publish their notions
with great boldness, which the presbyterians, considering as heretical
and impious, thought it necessary to confute; and, therefore, Cheynel,
who had now obtained his doctor's degree, was desired, in 1649, to
write a vindication of the doctrine of the Trinity, which he
performed, and published the next year.
He drew up, likewise, a confutation of some socinian tenets advanced
by John Fry, a man who spent great part of his life in ranging from
one religion to another, and who sat as one of the judges on the king,
but was expelled afterwards from the house of commons, and disabled
from sitting in parliament. Dr. Cheynel is said to have shown himself
evidently superiour to him in the controversy, and was answered by him
only with an opprobrious book against the presbyterian clergy.
Of the remaining part of his life, there is found only an obscure and
confused account. He quitted the presidentship of St. John's, and the
professorship, in 1650, as Calamy relates, because he would not take
the engagement; and gave a proof that he could suffer, as well as act,
in a cause which he believed just. We have, indeed, no reason to
question his resolution, whatever occasion might be given to exert it;
nor is it probable that he feared affliction more than danger, or that
he would not have borne persecution himself for those opinions which
inclined him to persecute others.
He did not suffer much upon this occasion; for he retained the living
of Petworth, to which he, thenceforward, confined his labours, and
where he was very assiduous, and, as Calamy affirms, very successful
in the exercise of his ministry, it being his peculiar character to be
warm and zealous in all his undertakings.
This heat of his disposition, increased by the uncommon turbulence of
the times in which he lived, and by the opposition to which the
unpopular nature of some of his employments exposed him, was, at last,
heightened to distraction, so that he was, for some years, disordered
in his understanding, as both Wood and Calamy relate, but with such
difference as might be expected from their opposite principles. Wood
appears to think, that a tendency to madness was discoverable in a
great part of his life; Calamy, that it was only transient and
accidental, though, in his additions to his first narrative, he pleads
it, as an extenuation of that fury with which his kindest friends
confess him to have acted on some occasions. Wood declares, that he
died little better than distracted; Calamy, that he was perfectly
recovered to a sound mind, before the restoration, at which time he
retired to Preston, a small village in Sussex, being turned out of his
living at Petworth.
It does not appear that he kept his living till the general ejection
of the nonconformists; and it is not unlikely that the asperity of his
carriage, and the known virulence of his temper, might have raised him
enemies, who were willing to make him feel the effects of persecution,
which he had so furiously incited against others; but of this incident
of his life there is no particular account.
After his deprivation, he lived, till his death, which happened in
1665, at a small village near Chichester, upon a paternal estate, not
augmented by the large preferments wasted upon him in the triumphs of
his party; having been remarkable, throughout his life, for
hospitality and contempt of money.