
Translator’s Preface
William Penn - Chapter I William Penn’s Father—Childhood of Penn—Expulsion from Oxford for his Religious Views—Travels on the Continent
Chapter II The Plague and its Results—Penn as a Soldier—His Religious Struggle—Becomes a Quaker—Imprisonment for Attending Meetings—Death of his Father
Chapter III Penn’s Third Imprisonment—His Happy Marriage—Fresh Persecutions—Visits to Germany—Quaker Emigration
Chapter IV The Popish Plot—Settlement of Virginia—The Royal Cession to Penn—Christening of Pennsylvania—Outlines of Penn’s Constitution
Chapter V Description of Penn’s Domain—Negotiations with the Indians by Penn’s Agent—Death of Penn’s Mother—Final Instructions to his Family—Departure of the Welcome
Chapter VI Penn’s Arrival—The Founding of Philadelphia—First General Assembly—Building of the “Blue Anchor”—The First School and Printing Press
Chapter VII The Indian Conference—Signing of the Treaty—Penn Returns to England to Defend his Rights against Lord Baltimore—Accession of James the Second—His Dethronement and Accession of William the Third
Chapter VIII Penn Tried for Treason and Acquitted—Withdrawal of Penn’s Charter—Death of his Wife and Son—Second Marriage—Journey to America—Penn’s Home—Attempts to Correct Abuses—Returns to England and Encounters Fresh Dangers—Penn in the Debtors’ Prison—Ingratitude of the Colonists
Chapter IX Death of his Dissolute Son William—Penn’s Last Illness and Mental Decline—His Death and Will
Through a vivid narrative, this biography traces the life of a visionary who sought to build a society rooted in liberty and mutual respect. From his youthful expulsion for religious convictions to his unwavering friendship with Native peoples, his story reveals a man guided by honesty, courage, and a deep belief in the brotherhood of man. The early chapters also expose the personal trials he endured—imprisonment, slander, and the disappointment of colonists who failed to honor his ideals.
Born into an ambitious naval family, he inherited his father's seafaring spirit and quickly rose through the ranks of the English navy, becoming a rear‑admiral before his twenty‑third birthday. His father's pragmatic shift from royalist to Commonwealth supporter opened doors that led him to command fleets in wars against Spain and the Dutch, earning him both fame and a reputation for merit‑based advancement. These formative experiences on the high seas and in political turmoil forged the resolve that later propelled him toward his grand experiment in the New World.
Language
en
Duration
~2 hours (146K characters)
Series
Life Stories for Young People
Publisher of text edition
Project Gutenberg
Credits
Produced by D A Alexander, Stephen Hutcheson, and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images generously made available by The Internet Archive)
Release date
2020-07-15
Rights
Public domain in the USA.
Subjects
Best known for historical biographies available through Project Gutenberg, this little-known writer focused on figures such as William Penn and William Wilberforce. Reliable biographical details about the person behind the books are scarce, which gives the work an extra air of mystery.
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