John Lilburne (1614-29 August 1657) was an English political activist who led the populist "Levellers" during the English Civil War era.
Biography[]
John Lilburne was born in Sunderland, Tyne and Wear, England in 1614, and he was raised a Puritan. In 1638, he was arrested for selling unauthorized books, and he insisted that he had "freeborn rights" to hear the accusation, face his accusers, and avoid self-incrimination, earning himself the nickname "Freeborn John" and influencing later decisions by the US Supreme Court. He served as a Parliamentarian captain during the First English Civil War, befriending Oliver Cromwell and supporting him in his disputes with Edward Montagu, 2nd Earl of Manchester. In 1645, he wrote to William Prynne and condemned the intolerance of the Presbyterians, and he became the leader of the populist "Levellers", who campaigned for extended suffrage, equality before the law, and religious tolerance. He was imprisoned several times for his agitation, and he went into exile in the Netherlands in 1652 after Cromwell quelled Leveller mutinies in the military. He returned in 1655 and later joined the Quakers, and he died in 1657.