Pseudochristus: A Religious Romance, 1649–1650

Abstract

Prophets and messiahs have appeared throughout European history, often at times of crisis. An unusually welldocumented case occurred in 1649 in Hampshire, England, during the religious and social upheavals accompanying the Civil Wars. William Franklin, a craftsman suffering from mental distractions, claimed to be Christ. He was abetted by his companion Mary Gadbury,. she assumed the various roles of Christ's bride, the Virgin Mary, and Franklin's Precursor. Legally married to others, the couple lived together, preached, and attracted followers. Outraged, the local magistrates charged Franklin and Gadbury with adultery, bigamy, and blasphemy and suppressed their disciples as a threat to public order. Humphrey Ellis, a minister, set down the events and trial in an admonitory tract: Pseudochristus (1650). He listened to Gadbury's confession in court, visited the couple in prison, and collected facts from witnesses, giving an account of their backgrounds, possible motives, and strange illicit attraction. Ellis suggested natural and supernatural explanations for their behaviour and delusions (or frauds). He described in detail Gadbury's symptoms of religious possession visions of blazing lights, voices from God, and false birth pangs. Pseudochristus is the story of a man and woman who cast aside their unhappy marriages and their social anonymity for a joyful but doomed adventure of religion and romance.