Elizabeth Lilburne facts for kids

Elizabeth Lilburne (born Elizabeth Dewell) was a brave and determined woman who lived in England during the 1600s. She was married to John Lilburne, a famous leader of a group called the Levellers. The Levellers believed in fairness and equal rights for all people. Elizabeth was a strong supporter of her husband and often helped him in his fight for justice.

Elizabeth Lilburne's Life Story

Elizabeth's father was a merchant in London named Henry Dewell. We don't know much about her early life before she married John Lilburne in 1641. At that time, she was already involved with groups in London who wanted to worship freely. In fact, she was one of many people arrested for attending a Baptist church service in Stepney in 1641.

Supporting a Political Leader

John Lilburne was very active in politics, which meant he was often in prison or had to leave the country. This made life very difficult for Elizabeth, who often had to lobby (ask for support) and face many challenges.

One time, John was captured by royalist soldiers during the Battle of Brentford (1642). They threatened to execute him. Elizabeth bravely went to Parliament and asked them to threaten the royalists back. She said that if John was executed, Parliament would execute royalist prisoners in return. Elizabeth even carried a letter with this message from the Speaker of Parliament to the Royalist court in Oxford, even though she was pregnant!

After John was released, Elizabeth spent a few quieter months in Boston, Lincolnshire. But John soon became unhappy with the way Parliament was running things.

Facing Hardships Together

In 1645, Elizabeth joined John in Newgate Prison when he was sent there for speaking out against a powerful leader. Their daughter, also named Elizabeth, was born in prison. Around this time, parliamentary officers even stole Elizabeth's baby clothes from their home while searching for John's "dangerous books." Between 1645 and 1649, they also had two sons.

John was imprisoned again from 1646 to 1648 for criticizing the government. During this time, Elizabeth herself was arrested for sharing John's books. In 1649, John was in prison again. Elizabeth and their three children caught smallpox, a serious illness. Sadly, their two sons died, but Elizabeth and their daughter survived. This illness led to John being released on bail.

Elizabeth recovered and went on to have seven more children, but only two of them (plus their first daughter) lived to be adults. She became ill again in 1649 and could not be there when John was found not guilty of treason by a jury in London.

Life After Prison and Exile

For about 18 months, Elizabeth and John had a peaceful life. They lived partly on money from church lands that John had been given as payment for his earlier troubles. However, their peace ended in 1652. John was fined £7,000 and sent away from England after he criticized a powerful man named Sir Arthur Haselrig.

During John's time away, Elizabeth was looked after by an old friend of John's, a Baptist leader named William Kiffin. Elizabeth tried to convince John to make peace with Oliver Cromwell, who was then the leader of England. She visited John in Bruges and convinced him to return to England in 1653.

However, John was imprisoned as soon as he arrived back in England. He stayed in prison until he died, except for a few short times when he was allowed out. Two more children were born during this period. John's father and Elizabeth tried to get him released in 1655, promising he would behave, but they failed. John was moved from the island of Jersey to Dover. He finally died in Eltham on August 29, 1657.

Elizabeth's Later Years

In his last years, John became a Quaker, but it seems Elizabeth did not join him in this new faith. After John's death, Elizabeth worked hard to improve her family's situation. She eventually convinced Oliver Cromwell to remove the large fine that had been placed on John. She also managed to get her weekly pension of 40 shillings for herself and her children renewed. She even received help in settling arguments over their property in Durham.

Elizabeth's pension was still being paid in March 1660. Her improved financial situation likely ended when the king returned to power in England during the English Restoration. With John's stubbornness no longer an issue, Elizabeth was also able to solve the complicated property disputes the Lilburnes had in Durham. She even became an ally of Arthur Haselrig in Parliament, the very man John had criticized, by giving him all the papers related to their original dispute.