The Moravian Church in England, 1728-1760 (Oxford Historical Monographs)

The effects of the great Evangelical Revival in eighteenth-century England were felt throughout the world, not least in America. It has long been accepted that the Revival owed much of its initial impetus to the Moravian Church, but previous accounts of the Moravians' role have been inadequate and overly dependent on Wesleyan sources. Colin Podmore uses original material, from German as well as British archives to dispel common misunderstandings about the Moravians, and to reveal that their influence was much greater than has previously been acknowledged. Dr Podmore discusses what motivated people to join the Church, analyses the Moravians' changing relationships with John Wesley and George Whitefield, and shows how Anglican bishops responded to the Moravians' successive ecumenical stategies. His analysis of the successful campaign to secure state recognition (granted in 1749) sheds light on the inner workings of the Hanoverian parliament. In conclusion, he examines how acclaim quickly turned to ridicule in a crisis of unpopularity which was to affect the Moravian Church for a generation.