Timeline

Saxon

St Mary’s

St Giles’

St Laurence’s

The Abbey

The Monks Day

The Abbot

Pilgrims

The Grey Friars

Quakers

Baptists

Congregation-alists

Catholic Church

St Mary’s Castle Street

Quakers

Quakers, or the Religious Society of Friends, originated in the North of England in 1652. The first meeting in Reading was in Market Place in the Spring of 1655, and this was followed by a visit of one of the founders of the movement, George Fox, in 1655, who spoke in the orchard belonging to Thomas Curtis who was a clothier in the town. The Quakers were not popular with Oliver Cromwell, and some were imprisoned during the Commonwealth which followed the Civil War.
William Penn, who founded Pennsylvania, worshipped with the Quakers at the Meeting House which was then in London Street, where the RISC centre is today.

In 1650, when King Charles II was invited back to be King, the situation for the Quakers became worse. As Quakers believe that it is wrong to swear on the Bible and would not go to ordinary church services, they came into conflict with the new King. Their silent meetings, to which everyone was welcome, meant that people who wanted to tell tales on the Quakers found it easy to do so.
The troubles of the Reading Quakers were spread over many years. In January 1662 all the Quakers at a meeting were thrown out. Names were taken of those at meetings. Women and children were handled roughly, poked and pricked and had buckets of cold water thrown over them. In July 1671, 77 Reading Quakers were in prison, and 6 had died there.

The present Meeting House built in 1835 on land donated by Thomas Curtis 150 years before.