The Welsh Trust, 1674–1681: a Charitable Proposal for Comprehension

Abstract

The Welsh Trust (1674–81), established by Thomas Gouge, an ejected Presbyterian minister, brought together clergy and laity across emerging denominational divides who shared a desire to unite English Protestants against the perceived resurgence of Catholicism. The enterprise serves as a miniature of the tension among many Presbyterians between the reality of their dissent and the desire for church comprehension, challenging the traditional binary of ‘Dons’ and ‘Ducklings’. Furthermore, it reveals the creative ways in which mobilisers of comprehension pursued their ideals, which profoundly shaped the many godly reformations of the English Church after the Glorious Revolution.