The ‘church book’ of the Independent congregation at Cockermouth is a
remarkable document charting the origins and life of a nonconformist church
from its foundation in 1651 through to the eighteenth century. The bulk of it
written by George Larkham, the first pastor of the Independents in
Cockermouth. The book charts the vicissitudes of the church from the
Interregnum, through its struggle for survival in the face of official persecution
under the Clarendon Code from 1662, to freedom of worship after the
Toleration Act of 1689. It sheds light on the links between Larkham’s
congregation and other Independent churches in Cumbria and on relations
with other religious groups, notably the Quakers. This volume presents for the
first time a full scholarly edition of this important document.

Robert Wordsworth, an engineer by profession, describes himself as ‘a latterday
historian’, having embarked on the study of history in his retirement. This
volume draws on work he undertook as a postgraduate research student at
Lancaster University.

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