Abstract: This book is a study of Thomas Edwards’s Gangraena, an intemperate, comprehensive attack on religious radicalism and religious toleration, published in three parts in 1646. It explores the place of Gangraena within traditions of writing about heresy, and outlines the ways in which Edwards persistently smeared respectable Independents by associating them with more radical sectaries. Analysis of Edwards’s place within London Presbyterianism reveals the networks that enabled him to compile his book, and the accuracy of his accounts of religious divisions in London and beyond is assessed. The book discusses how Gangraena was produced and circulated, and shows how important it was within the print culture of the English Revolution — a struggle to which print was crucial. The various ways in which readers — contemporary and later — responded to the Edwards’s books are elucidated. The part played by Gangraena’s vivid polemic in encouraging polarization on the Parliament’s side as parliamentarians became divided over church government and political settlement once the civil war was won is highlighted, with particular emphasis on its connections with Presbyterian mobilizations and campaigns in London, and on the ways in which it encouraged hostility to the New Model Army. Readings of Gangraena from the later 17th century to the 20th century are covered in the final chapter.

Keywords: religious radicalism, Thomas Edwards, independents, presbyterians, presbyterianism, Gangraena, print culture, English Revolution, Parliament, church government