Protestant Dissenting Deputies

The Protestant dissenting deputies (also known as the Deputies of the Three Denominations of Dissenters) were a group in the 18th and 19th centuries in England, consisting of two representatives from each congregation of the dissenting denominations within ten miles of London. The 'three denominations' were

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 ...

Independent Independent or Independents may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups * Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in the New Hope, Pennsylvania, area of the United States during the early 1930s * Independ ...

and

Baptist Baptists form a major branch of Protestantism distinguished by baptizing professing Christian believers only (believer's baptism), and doing so by complete immersion. Baptist churches also generally subscribe to the doctrines of soul compete ...

. The first formal meeting was in 1736 in

Salters' Hall The Worshipful Company of Salters is one of the Livery Company, Livery Companies of the City of London, 9th in order of precedence. The Company originated as the Guild of Corpus Christi, which was granted a Royal Charter of incorporation in 139 ...

when

Benjamin Avery Benjamin Avery, LL.D. (died 1764) was an English physician. Life Avery was originally a Presbyterian minister at Bartholomew Close, London, but quit the ministry in 1720, in consequence of the Salters' Hall controversy on subscription, 1719. He ...

was elected chairman. Their main aim was protecting the civil rights of

Dissenters A dissenter (from the Latin ''dissentire'', "to disagree") is one who dissents (disagrees) in matters of opinion, belief, etc. Usage in Christianity Dissent from the Anglican church In the social and religious history of England and Wales, an ...

(i.e. fighting against the several statutes passed after the Restoration that imposed civil and religious disabilities on non-

Anglicans Anglicanism is a Western Christian tradition that has developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protestant Reformation in Europe. It is one of the l ...

). They found support in the Whig party. They had a selected committee of twenty-one who met regularly at the King's Head Tavern on

Poultry, London Poultry (formerly also Poultrey) is a short street in the City of London, which is the historic nucleus and modern financial centre of London. It is an eastern continuation of Cheapside, between Old Jewry and Mansion House Street, towards Bank ...

. The group, though technically representative of the London congregations, was, ''de facto'', the representatives for dissenting bodies across the nation. They presented addresses to the Crown on behalf of all dissenters. They tended to support private influence over more public forms of protest. Their support was a leading cause for the

repeal A repeal (O.F. ''rapel'', modern ''rappel'', from ''rapeler'', ''rappeler'', revoke, ''re'' and ''appeler'', appeal) is the removal or reversal of a law. There are two basic types of repeal; a repeal with a re-enactment is used to replace the law ...

of the

Test and Corporations Act The Test Acts were a series of English penal laws that served as a religious test for public office and imposed various civil disabilities on Roman Catholics and nonconformists. The underlying principle was that only people taking communion in ...

in 1828. {{religion-stub Protestantism in England