Lilburne - John Lilburne

A leader of the Levellers during the Puritan Revolution in England. Born in Sunderland, he received his secondary education and then became an apprentice to a cloth merchant in London. There he was influenced by Puritanism, and in 1638 he was arrested for possession of illegal documents, but his provocative attitude made him very popular among Londoners. After his release at the start of the revolution, he took the lead in the London popular movement, and joined the army when the civil war began. Later, he clashed with the Presbyterians, who were the majority in Parliament, and was arrested again, but his actions and words advocating democratic political reform gradually gained him support among the soldiers, and he became the theoretical leader of the Levellers. His ideas were radical, regarding humans as rational beings and rejecting any kind of rule that was not based on consent. He continued his activities even after the defeat of the Levellers, but in his later years he converted to Quakerism and died in Eltham in 1657. (Book version 1988)
[Toru Koizumi]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

イギリスのピューリタン革命期におけるレベラーズ（水平派、平等派）の指導者。サンダーランドに生まれ、中等教育を受けたのちロンドンの織物商の徒弟になる。そこでピューリタニズムの影響を受け、1638年、不法文書所持の罪で捕らえられたが、挑発的な態度のために一躍ロンドン市民の人気者となった。革命の開始によって釈放されると、ロンドンの民衆運動の先頭にたち、内戦の開始とともに軍隊に加わって戦った。その後、議会内多数派の長老派と衝突してふたたび逮捕されたが、民主主義的政治改革を主張する言動によってしだいに兵士の間に支持層を増やし、レベラーズの理論的指導者となった。その思想は、人間を理性的存在としてとらえ、同意に基づかないいかなる支配も拒否するという急進的なものであった。レベラーズの敗北後も活動を続けていたが、晩年はクェーカー教徒に転向し、1657年エルサムで没した。（書籍版　1988年）
［小泉　徹］

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