The Rainborowes: One Family’s Quest to Build a New England
*Starred Review* A seventeenth-century preacher determined to “overturn, overturn, overturn” was sure to attract followers, none more fervent than the Rainborowes, a family whose zeal left an indelible mark on both the New England of John Winthrop and the New Commonwealth of Oliver Cromwell. In recounting this clan’s ocean-spanning deeds, Tinniswood explodes the common perception that Puritans coming to colonial America were turning their backs on England. When 1640 brings an English-Scottish war, opening exciting possibilities for reforming old England, some Rainborowes join other visionaries recrossing the Atlantic to press for revolution. Emboldened by a colonial experience that has made them resistant to royal prerogatives and open to democratic experiments, the Rainborowes assume major roles in the Roundhead revolt against Charles I and his aristocratic supporters. In Tinniswood’s compelling narrative, no figure stands taller than Colonel Thomas Rainborowe, a Puritan firebrand who challenges even Cromwell in his advocacy of egalitarian government. Less prominent but more colorful, Thomas’ brother William even embraces the views of the anarchist—sometimes nudist—Ranters. Though Thomas is felled by royalist assassins and William drifts out of the public eye, readers will recognize the enduring relevance of this family’s political passions. Rare historical scholarship, radiant with singular personalities aflame with world-transforming convictions. --Bryce Christensen