Background

It shouldn't be too surprising that Quakers as Nonconformists are not so popular in the eyes of legal enforcement. However, I think it will be helpful to start this article with some additional background knowledge about why, more specifically, were Quakers prosecuted so often. The first reason, as shown in the excerpt, is that Quakers are unwilling to take off their courts in the court. Trivial it may appear now, such behavior could be intolerable in 17th century England. It was a social customary at that time that people would doff their hats to acknowledge others passing by, and not wearing the hat in church or court, particularly not in the presence of superiors. Friends, due to their religious beliefs that I will not explain more here, did not follow those customs; they use dress simply, use words like "thou" and "thee" casually, and refuse to take off their hats in front of any judge or magistrate. While Charles II may tolerate William Penn's hat by taking off his own and tease that only one person may wear a hat in the palace, most authorities did not take such acts lightly. To authorities, such actions were not simply innocent eccentricity, as they have historically stand for a social protest. The feeling of being disrespected and the concern of social disturbances as Quakers group grew was therefore a big reason why Quakers were so unpopular among Judges and other law enforcement.