Here lieth the body of that celebrated divine, Thomas
Rosewell, M.A. A man not more eminent for his
learning than for his piety and modesty; a preacher distinguished
for judgment, eloquence, and study ; a most
diligent and skilful interpreter of the sacred volume. Who
after many labours, and through the iniquities of the
times, and many bitter sufferings, which for the sake of
Christ be bore with the greatest fortitude, calmly departed
this life at Rotherhithe, February 15th, in the 62nd year
of his age, and of Christ, 1692.
There is now this inscription:
—
Thomas Rosewell, Nonconformist Minister, Rotherhithe.
Died 1692. Tried for High Treason under the
infamous Jefferies. See "State Trials, 1684.
Mr. Rosewell was born at Dunkerton, near Bath, on
May 3rd, 1630, and his mother and father both died
before he was ten years old. He and his sister had a
considerable fortune bequeathed to them, but this was
dissipated whilst living with an uncle during their
minority. When about 16 years of age he began to sit
under the ministry of Mr. Matthew Haviland, and to his
preaching Rosewell always confessed that he owed his
conversion. After spending some time under a tutor in
London, he removed in March, 1674, to Pembroke
College, Oxford, where he prosecuted his studies under
Dr. Langley. He entered the ministry of the Church of
England, and was presented to the rectory at Rhode in
Somersetshire, in 1653, and in 1657 to Sutton Mandeville in Wilts. He was vicar here in 1662 when the Act
of Uniformity came into force, and was one of the noble
men who suffered ejectment then. He now became tutor
to the son of Lady Hungerford, but in 1674 he was
elected minister of the Presbyterian congregation meeting
at Rotherhithe. In spite of much persecution he continued
preaching, but he was tried for high treason in
1685. Daniel Neal gives an account of this in his
History as follows:
—
"Jefferies, now Lord Chief Justice of England, who was
scandalously vicious, and drunk every day, besides a drunkenness
of fury in his temper that looked like madness, was prepared
for any dirty work the court should put him upon.
September 23rd, Mr. Thomas Rosewell, the Dissenting minister
at Rotherhithe, was imprisoned in the Gate House,
Westminster, for high treason; and a Bill was found against
him at the Quarter Sessions, upon which he was tried on
November 8th at the King's Bench Bar, by a Surrey jury,
before Lord Chief Justice Jefferies, and his brethren (viz.)
Withins, Holloway, and Walcot. He was indicted for the
following expressions in his sermon of September 14th:
"That
the King could not cure the King's evil, but the priests and
prophets by their prayers could heal the griefs of the people;
that we had had two wicked Kings (meaning tke present King and his father), whom we can resemble to no other person but
to the most wicked Jeroboam; and that if they (meaning his
hearers), would stand to their principles, he did not doubt, but
they should overcome their enemies (meaning the King), as in
former times, with rams' horns, broken platters, and a stone in
a sling.'
The witnesses were three infamous women, who
swore to the words without the innuendos; but they were laden
with the guilt of many perjuries already, and such of them as
could be found afterwards, were convicted, and the chief of
them pilloried before the Exchange. The trial lasted seven
hours, and Mr. Rosewell behaved with all the decency and
respect to the Court that could be expected, and made a
defence that was applauded by most of the hearers. He said
it was impossible the witnesses should remember, and be able
to pronounce so long a period, when they could not so much as
tell the text, nor anything else in the sermon, besides the
words they had sworn. Several who heard the sermon and
writ it in shorthand, declared they heard no such words. Mr. Rosewell offered his own notes to prove it, but no regard was
had to them. The women could not prove (says Burnet), by
any one circumstance, that they were at the meeting; or that
any person saw them there on that day; the words they
swore were so gross, that it was not to be imagined that any
man in his wits would express himself so, before a mixed
assembly: yet Jefferies urged the matter with his usual
vehemence. He laid it for a foundation, that all preaching at
conventicles was treasonable, and that this ought to dispose
the jury to believe any evidence upon that head, so the jury
brought him in guilty; upon which (says the bishop), there
was a shameful rejoicing; and it was now thought, all conventicles
must be suppressed, when such evidence could be
received against such a defence. But when the words came
to be examined by men learned in the law, they were found
not to be treason by any Statute. So Mr. Rosewell moved in
arrest of judgement, and though it was doubtful, whether the
motion was proper on this foundation after the verdict, yet the
King was so out of countenance at the accounts he heard of
the witnesses, that he gave orders to yield to it; and in the
end he was pardoned. The Court lost a great deal of reputation
by this trial, for besides that Rosewell made a strong
defence, he proved that he had always been a loyal man even
in Cromwell's days, that he prayed constantly for the king in
his family, and that in his sermons he often insisted upon the
obligations to loyalty."
The manner of his escape was quite unusual. For once a Dissenter who had been condemned to death, and who was
bitterly hated by Jefferies, did not suffer the full penalty of
the law. Sir John Talbot, who had been present at the
trial, went to the King, and speaking quite plainly, told
him, "that he had seen the life of a gentleman and a
scholar dependent on such evidence as he would not hang
his dog on." He also said, "Sir, if your Majesty suffers
this man to die, we are none of us safe in our houses."
Just at this moment Jefferies, delighted with what he had
done, burst into the room, and with much joyful pleasure
told the King what a good deed he had accomplished, and
what great service he had rendered to his Master. The
surprise of Jefferies may be imagined when Charles II told
him that Rosewell should not die, but that he must by
some means make a way of escape. This was most unpalatable
to Jefferies, who was simply thirsting for the
blood of Rosewell, but a new trial was ordered, and
Counsel was assigned the condemned man in order to
plead the insufficiency of the indictment in arrest of judgment.
There was an adjournment until the following
term, and in the meantime the King granted Rosewell a
pardon and he was discharged.
The prosecution of Rosewell was particularly unjust in
that whilst a strong Puritan, he always had a very kindly
feeling towards the Stuart family. While he was a
schoolboy at Bath during the Civil War, the King's army
seized the town, and the school was broken up. It was
about this time that while he was taking a walk from
home, he saw Charles I in a field, sitting at dinner under
a tree with a few persons around him. This occurrence
always disposed him to be loyal to the Royal Family, but
it in no way influenced Jefferies in his decision.
His death took place on February 14th, 1692, in the
62nd year of his age, so that he outlived his trial about
seven years.
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