Mary Cary Rand (or Rande; c. 1621 – 1653) was an English writer, prophetess and

pamphleteer Pamphleteer is a historical term for someone who creates or distributes pamphlets, unbound (and therefore inexpensive) booklets intended for wide circulation. Context Pamphlets were used to broadcast the writer's opinions: to articulate a poli ...

supporting the Fifth Monarchists during the

English Civil War The English Civil War (1642–1651) was a series of civil wars and political machinations between Parliamentarians (" Roundheads") and Royalists led by Charles I ("Cavaliers"), mainly over the manner of England's governance and issues of re ...

Work

During the English Civil War, Cary lived in London. A

Presbyterian Presbyterianism is a part of the Reformed tradition within Protestantism that broke from the Roman Catholic Church in Scotland by John Knox, who was a priest at St. Giles Cathedral (Church of Scotland). Presbyterian churches derive their nam ...

, she became a Fifth Monarchist and started prophesying and writing about church reform, equality for women, and poverty. She was a follower of

Thomas Brightman Thomas Brightman (1562–1607) was an English clergyman and biblical commentator. His exegesis of the Book of Revelation, published posthumously, proved influential. According to William M. Lamont, Brightman and Joseph Mede were the two most impor ...

and

Henry Archer Henry Archer (1799 – 2 March 1863) was the son of an Ireland, Irish landowner and was educated at Trinity College, Dublin. He was called to the Irish Bar and spent most of his time between North Wales and London. Ffestiniog Railway In rail ...

. She believed the

New Model Army The New Model Army was a standing army formed in 1645 by the Parliamentarians during the First English Civil War, then disbanded after the Stuart Restoration in 1660. It differed from other armies employed in the 1639 to 1653 Wars of the Th ...

was a sign of the arrival of the

Two witnesses In the Book of Revelation, the two witnesses (, ''duo martyron'') are two prophets who are mentioned in Revelation 11:1-14. Christian eschatology interprets this as two people, two groups of people, or two concepts. Some believe they are Enoch and ...

and that

Charles I Charles I may refer to: Kings and emperors * Charlemagne (742–814), numbered Charles I in the lists of Holy Roman Emperors and French kings * Charles I of Anjou (1226–1285), also king of Albania, Jerusalem, Naples and Sicily * Charles I of ...

was the little horn found in

Daniel 7 Daniel 7 (the seventh chapter of the Book of Daniel) tells of Daniel's vision of four world-kingdoms replaced by the kingdom of the saints or "holy ones" of the Most High, which will endure for ever. Four beasts come out of the sea, the Ancient ...

. She believed Charles I's death to be the sign of the impending return of Christ. Her prophecies focused around Parliamentarian victory, believing it would result in the building of God's kingdom on earth in 1701. This would be summarized in her first pamphlet, ''The Resurrection of the Two Witnesses'' in 1648. Her major works, ''The Little Horns Doom and Downfall'' and ''A New and Exact Mappe or Description of New Jerusalems Glory'', were released in 1651.

Hugh Peters Hugh Peter (or Peters) (baptized 29 June 1598 – 16 October 1660) was an English preacher, political advisor and soldier who supported the Parliamentary cause during the English Civil War, and became highly influential. He employed a flamboyant ...

and

Christopher Feake Christopher Feake (1612–1683) was an English Independent minister and Fifth-monarchy man. He was imprisoned for maligning Oliver Cromwell in his preaching. He is a leading example of someone sharing both Leveller views and the millenarian appro ...

wrote introductions to the books. The books were dedicated to

Elizabeth Cromwell Elizabeth Cromwell (née Bourchier; 1598–1665) was the wife of Oliver Cromwell, Lord Protector of the Commonwealth of England, Scotland and Ireland; and the mother of Richard Cromwell, the second Lord Protector. Family and marriage Eli ...

, Bridget Ireton and Margaret Rolle. In her many additional works, she expressed interest in Parliament providing more support to the poor, including ending

tithing A tithing or tything was a historic English legal, administrative or territorial unit, originally ten hides (and hence, one tenth of a hundred). Tithings later came to be seen as subdivisions of a manor or civil parish. The tithing's leader or s ...

, and universities providing scholarships to fund impoverished preachers and scholars. Her last work, published in 1653, was ''The Resurrection of the Witnesses and England's Fall''. The work stated that Christianity would spread across Europe in the wake of England losing the

Anglo-Dutch Wars The Anglo–Dutch Wars ( nl, Engels–Nederlandse Oorlogen) were a series of conflicts mainly fought between the Dutch Republic and England (later Great Britain) from mid-17th to late 18th century. The first three wars occurred in the second ...

. Until 1651, she wrote as "M.C.", before which her gender was unknown to her readers.

Personal life

Little is known of Cary's personal life. She is believed to have started developing her theories and prophecies in the wake of studying the Bible starting at the age of 15. She was born Mary Cary around 1621 and died in 1653. She was married to a man with the surname "Rand" or "Rande."

Works

* ''A Word in Season to the Kingdom of England'' (1647) * ''The Resurrection of the Witness'' (1648) * ''England's Fall from The Mystical Babylon—Rome'' (1648) * ''The Little Horn's Doom and Downfall'' (1651) * ''A New and More Exact Mappe or Description of New Jerusalem's Glory, When Jesus Christ and His Saints with Him Shall Reign on Earth a Thousand Years, and Possess all Kingdoms'' (1651) * ''Twelve New Proposals to the Supreme Governours of the Three Nations now assembled at Westminster'' (1653). * ''The Resurrection of the Witnesses and England's Fall'' (1653)

External links

The Resurrection of the Witnesses by Mary Cary
at the Ex-Classics Web Site

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cary, Mary 1620s births 1653 deaths 17th-century English women writers 17th-century English writers 17th-century English non-fiction writers English pamphleteers English religious writers English women non-fiction writers Fifth Monarchists Prophets Women religious writers