Rather obscure today, Robert Browne (1550s-1633) is arguably one of the most important figures in Anglo-American religious history. Born to a gentry family in Rutland, Browne graduated from Corpus Christi College, Cambridge, in 1572. During his time at Cambridge he converted to Puritanism – which, at the time, wished simply to purge the Church of England of “papistry” and replace it with Calvinism, while keeping the relationship between the “reformed” Church and the state intact.
For a few years he preached these ideas while serving as a lecturer at a church in the London area. In 1578, he returned to Cambridge. While fulfilling his duties at a local church, he came to believe that the Anglican Church was too corrupt to be reformed from the outside, and that “true” Christians must form their own organisation.
