Margery Baxter facts for kids

Margery Baxter (who lived around 1429) was a brave and outspoken woman from Martham, England. She had different beliefs from the main church at the time, following a group called the Lollards. Because of her strong views, she was put on trial twice and punished in church.

Life Story

We don't know much about Margery Baxter's early life. She lived in a place called Martham in Norfolk, England. Her husband, William Baxter, was a carpenter. He was also found guilty of having different religious beliefs before Margery faced her own trials.

What Were the Lollards?

The Lollards were a group of people in the 1300s and 1400s who followed the ideas of John Wycliffe. He was an English scholar who believed the Catholic Church had become too powerful and wealthy. Wycliffe wanted to make some changes.

Some of the Lollards' main ideas were:

• They wanted the Bible to be translated into English so everyone could read it, not just priests.
• They believed religion should be simpler and less about money.
• They wanted people to have a more direct connection with God.

These ideas were very new and even dangerous back then. The king and the powerful Catholic Church worked closely together. So, challenging the church was like challenging the government. The Lollards helped set the stage for the future of Protestantism in England.

Margery's Beliefs

Margery Baxter was inspired by John Wycliffe's ideas and her own strong thoughts. She had some very different beliefs, even for a Lollard. She often spoke out against many church practices. This included Sunday church services, the baptism of babies, and even the image of the crucifix.

Like many Lollards, Margery was accused of having beliefs that went against the church's official teachings. She was tried in October 1428 and again in 1429. These trials were part of a series known as the Norwich Heresy Trials.

Her Trials and Accusations

A woman named Johanna Clifland spoke against Margery. She said Margery had expressed many different ideas. Margery spoke against traditional marriage, fasting on religious days, and taking religious oaths.

Like other Lollards, Margery Baxter also disagreed with the great wealth of Catholic priests. She also believed that people didn't need to confess their sins to church officials.

Margery admired another Lollard named Hawise Mone. Both Margery and Hawise followed the teachings of a Lollard priest named William White. He had faced severe punishment in 1428.

Six months after Johanna Clifland's accusations, Margery Baxter admitted to some of her beliefs in October 1428. She was sentenced to be whipped four times on Sundays at her local church. She also had to make two public apologies at the local market and two more at the cathedral. She admitted that she had hidden William White's teachings in her home. She also believed in six main ideas that were considered against church rules:

• Only people who follow God's rules are true Christians.
• Confessing sins directly to God is enough; you don't need to confess to a priest.
• Pilgrimages (religious journeys) are usually not necessary.
• Killing of any kind, including punishment by death, is wrong.
• Any good person can be like a priest.
• Oaths (promises) are only truly needed in a court of law.

Margery was brought to trial again in April 1429. Even though the accusations were serious, she thought she might avoid being put to death because she was pregnant. This was not guaranteed, but she was not sentenced to death. This might have been because she named another Lollard, John Pyry from Martham.