Puritan Gentry Besieged 1650-1700

The latter half of the seventeenth century saw the Puritan families of Engliand struggle to survive in an era of political and religious upheaval. Even Puritan ministers were inclined to be pessimistic about the endurance of 'godliness'--Puritan attitudes and practices--among the upper classes at a time when moral standards were generally considered to be in decline. Based on a wide-ranging study of family papers and other primary sources,Puritan Gentry Besiegedreveals that in many cases, the nobility were playing both ends: outwardly in communion with the Church, they often employed nonconformist chaplains and tutors for their children and attended nonconformist meetings. Trevor Cliffe's study of the established Puritan families, as well as the 'nouveau riche', reveals that the situation was far more complex than it appeared.