English Dissenters

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English Dissenters were religious dissenters from England. They opposed State interference in religious matters, and founded their own communities over the 16th to 18th century period. Having hoped for a better and more pure Reformation in the Church of England, many individuals were disappointed by the political decisions made by the Kings in order to control the Established Church.

The Restoration (1660) valued episcopacy and limited the rights of the dissenters. The Act of Uniformity (1662) required episcopal ordination for all ministers, but many clergymen instead withdrew from the Official State Church.

These English Dissenters were also known as Nonconformists, though originally this term referred to refusal to use certain vestments and ceremonies of the Church of England, rather than separation from it. Among the several groups, there were:

Ancient

In existence during the English Interregnum (1649–1660)