The Times and Trials of Anne Hutchinson: Puritans Divided

by Michael P. Winship

Anne Hutchinson was perhaps the most famous Englishwoman in colonial American history, viewed in later centuries as a crusader for religious liberty and a prototypical feminist. Michael Winship, author of the highly acclaimed Making Heretics, provides a startlingly new and fresh account of her oft-told tale, disentangling what really happened from the legends that have misrepresented her for so long.

During the 1630s, religious controversies drove a wedge into the puritan communities of Massachusetts. Anne Hutchinson and other members began to speak out against mainstream doctrine, while ministers like John Cotton argued for personal discovery of salvation. The puritan fathers viewed these activities as a direct and dangerous threat to the status quo and engaged in a fierce and finally successful fight against them. Refusing to disavow her beliefs, Hutchinson was put on trial twice—first for slandering the colony's ministers, then for heresy—and banished from the colony.

Combing archives for neglected manuscripts and ancient books for obscure references, Winship gives new voice to other characters in the drama whose significance has not previously been understood. Here are Thomas Shepard, a militant heresy hunter who vigorously pursued both Cotton and Hutchinson; Thomas Dudley, the most important leader in Massachusetts after Governor John Winthrop; Henry Vane, a well-connected supporter of radical theology; and John Wheelwright, a bellicose minister who was a lightning rod for the frustrations of other dissidents. Winship also analyzes the political struggle that almost destroyed the colony and places Hutchinson's trials within the context of this turmoil.

As Winship shows, although the trials of Anne Hutchinson and her allies were used ostensibly to protect Massachusetts' Christian society, they instead nearly tore it apart. His concise, fast-moving, and up-to-date account brings puritan doctrine back into focus, giving us a much closer and more informed look at a society marked by religious intolerance and immoderation, one that still echoes in our own times. As long as governments take it upon themselves to define orthodoxies of conscience, The Times and Trials of Anne Hutchinson will be required reading for students and concerned citizens alike.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Politics, Religion, Biography, Cultural, 17th Century

180 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2005

About the author

A specialist in the history of religion in colonial America, Michael Winship is professor of history at the University of Georgia, where he holds the E. Merton Coulter Chair.

Michael Winship's most recent book is Godly Republicanism: Puritans, Pilgrims, and Massachusetts' City on a Hill (Harvard UP, 2012), a Choice Academic Title of the Year for 2012. Previous books include Seers of God: Puritan Providentialism in the Restoration and Early Enlightenment (Johns Hopkins UP, 1996), Making Heretics: Militant Protestantism and Free Grace in Massachusetts, 1636-1641 (Princeton UP, 2002), The Times and Trials of Anne Hutchinson: Puritans Divided (UP of Kansas, 2005) and, with Edward J. Larson, The Constitutional Convention: A Narrative History from the Notes of James Madison (Random House, 2005.) Hot Protestants: A History of Puritanism in England and America is forthcoming with Yale University Press.

Recent articles include ''Freeborn (Puritan) Englishmen and Slavish Subjection: Popish Tyranny and Puritan Constitutionalism, c.1570-1606,'' English Historical Review 124 (2009), 1050-1074; ''Algernon Sidney's Calvinist Republicanism,'' Journal of British Studies 49 (2010), 753-773; ''Defining Puritanism in Restoration England: Richard Baxter and Others Respond to A Friendly Debate,'' Historical Journal 54 (2011), 689-715; "Straining the Bonds of Puritanism: English Presbyterians and Massachusetts Congregationalists Debate Ecclesiology, 1636–40," in Crawford Gribben, Scott Spurlock, eds. Puritans and Catholics in the Trans-Atlantic World 1600-1800 (Palgrave, 2015), pp. 89-111. A chapter on New England religion from the 1680s-1730s, "Congregationalist Hegemony in New England, from the 1680s to the 1730s," is in the Cambridge History of Religions in America, vol I (New York, 2012), and a chapter on the various early forms of English church establishments in the Americas, '' British America to 1662." is in the Oxford History of Anglicanism, vol. I (Oxford, 2017).

Reviews

[Patricia Roberts-Miller · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is basically a condensed version of Winship's Making Heretics, so it would be particularly useful for teaching, and it's a good book for someone who wants to know more about the Hutchinson controversy, but doesn't want a full scholarly treatment. He makes a persuasive case that it's a mistake to call it "antinomianism," and also the connection to Munster and fears of anarchy. Because it's a trade academic book, the citations are a little breezy (there's a bibliographic essay at the end), but all the quotes are also in Making Heretics, so it's straightforward to get them. Winship is also persuasive about what scholars have gotten wrong, largely because of the tendency until recently to rely heavily on a few sources.

[Addie Nolley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Winship’s excellent narrative sheds light on one of the most iconic puritan “protofeminists” in American history. Debunking the feminist narrative, he places Hutchinson in her historical context and explains well the major tenets of Puritanism and the free grace controversy. This book was easy to read and incredibly dense—not a word was wasted. Though he tends to mention Hutchinson only briefly and intermittently in the initial chapters, his discussion of her trials and the chaos ensuing was fascinating and well-researched.

[Andrew Martin · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a complete look at not only Anne Hutchinson's views but also the dissenters that came before her. Winship takes us back to England to see how the controversy started and gives us a ready analysis of the Covenant of Grace v. the Covenant of Works. Excellent book that requires careful reading so that you do not gloss over any of his important points.

[Debi · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting. Easy read. Does a decent job of explaining the theological quarrels of the early Puritans.

[Geoff VanDeusen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not enough Anne Hutchinson. SEPERATE CHURCH AND STATE

[peyton smith · Rating 2 out of 5]

i understood about 1/3 of what was said in this book the author was speaking some gibberish

[Q⋆˚⊹☆ · Rating 3 out of 5]

I only read this for apush help

[Margo Brooks · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow! This book paints an intricate and realistic picture of Puritan government and theology. Sparked by ego, fear and faith church and civil government in Massachusetts Bay Colony strived to control its citizen's behavior and thoughts while simultaneously producing harmony in their City on a Hill. But their way of producing harmony was to berate anyone who disagreed until they admitted the error of their ways. This is NOT a biography of Anne Hutchinson, but an intricate look at the social, religions, and political milieu of 1636-1639 during the free grace controversy which rocked the colony and lead to Roger Wiliams, John Wheelright, and Anne Hutchinson being banished from the Colony and/or excommunicated from the church. It exposes the true religious intolerance on which the Colony was founded and how political ties to England shaped life in the new world. It is a fascinating look at John Winthrop, John Cotton and other big colony names in a controversy that reads more like a soap opera than history.

[Danielle Reily · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was very interesting, I found the facts facsinating. The presentation is more textbook, which makes it a difficult book to get into. I had never heard of this division in the early American Puritan church, so I was very excited to learn about something new. I would recommend this book to anyone interested in early American history, or church history, but be prepared for the slightly dry presentation of facts. It was obviously meant as a textbook or addition to a class.

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

A must-read for its study of Puritan rule-making! Anyone who is interested in how early American society was influenced by the choices of Englishmen and women who settled in New England there will get a lot out of this book. I read it to gain insight into Puritan culture in anticipation of a play I ended up writing, and this book did not let me down.

[Christian Larsen · Rating 5 out of 5]

5 Stars all around. Very interesting sutyd in law, religion, and early New England History