John Cennick, 1718-1755: his role in the eighteenth-century international revivals : formation; doctrine; activity in Ireland

It seeks to place him in the intellectual, political and religious context of his times as a unique and significant protagonist, whose role has hitherto only been partially understood. The study is neither a biography nor an account of all the events in which he participated, but a reflection upon how Cennick’s individuality, his upbringing and his apprenticeship to some of the century’s religious luminaries equipped him to thrive as an influential participant in the eighteenth-century revivals in Britain and Ireland.

Unlike previous studies which have often seen him either as an evangelical or a Moravian hero, often downplaying those elements of his personality and spirituality which are more problematic, the thesis reveals a more rounded and authentic Cennick in all his protean complexity. The thesis has been able to make use of a much broader range of primary documents than has any previous study. Original letters and journals held in Moravian archives in London or Herrnhut have enabled me to shed new light on issues which have baffled previous researchers or tempted them to supposition.