Our history
George Fox founded the Quaker movement in the mid 17th century. Our name may have come from Fox telling a magistrate to tremble (or 'quake') at the name of God.
Quaker timeline
1647 George Fox recognises God's light is within everyone
1652 Birth of Quakerism in the North of England
1655 Margaret Fell shapes national Quaker organisation
1660 Restoration of the monarchy – systematic persecution of Quakers
1661 Quakers present their peace testimony to Charles II
1681 William Penn establishes the Quaker state of Pennsylvania
1689 Act of Toleration allows Quakers to worship legally
1755 Quaker marriage becomes legal
1758 Quakers begin campaigning to abolish slavery
1796 Quakers pioneer humane mental care at The Retreat, York
1813 Elizabeth Fry starts her prison reform work at Newgate Prison
1825 Quaker firms open first steam railway, 'Stockton & Darlington'
1870s Growth of Quaker chocolate makers Cadburys and Rowntrees
1890s Fair-trading Quaker banks Barclays and Lloyds thrive
1920 First conference of Quakers worldwide
1927 Friends House opens as the home of British Quakers
1938 Quakers evacuate children from Nazi Germany on Kindertransport
1947 Quakers awarded Nobel Peace Prize for their war relief work
1997 Quakers work at the UN to bring about Landmine Ban Treaty
2009 British Quakers campaign for same-sex marriage
2014 Quakers in Britain disinvest from fossil fuels
Famous Quakers
You may have heard of some of the following Quakers:
- George Fox – founder of Quakers, 1624–1691
- William Penn – friend of George Fox, founder of Pennsylvania, 1621–1670
- John Woolman – American Quaker involved in the abolition of slavery, 1720–1772
- John Dalton – British scientist who invented the atomic theory of matter, 1766–1844
- Edward Pease – first Quaker member of Parliament, 1767–1858
- Elizabeth Fry – British prison reformer, 1780–1845
- Joseph Rowntree – Chocolate manufacturer, 1837–1925
- George Cadbury – Chocolate manufacturer, 1839–1922
- Arthur Eddington – physicist, 1882–1944
- James Dean – actor, 1931–1955
- Jocelyn Bell Burnell – astronomer, discoverer of pulsars, born 1943
- Bonnie Raitt – musician, born 1949
- Tom Robinson – musician, born 1950