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Title
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Edmund Tattersall (1691-1761)
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Creator
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Tattersall, Edmund, 1691-1761
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Publisher
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Moravian Lives Project
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Date
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1761
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Type
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Text
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Format
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image/jpg
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Description
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This autobiographical and memorial account tells the life story of Edmund Tattersall (1691–1761), who grew up in Yorkshire, lost his father young, and spent much of his early adulthood in worldly living, including drunkenness, military service, and failed business ventures. Though he long desired true religion, he struggled with pride and outward religiosity until he encountered the Moravian Brethren, among whom he found the spiritual peace and fellowship he had been seeking. Over time he became deeply devoted to Christ, the Moravian community, and Holy Communion, despite continuing struggles with pride and temperament. In his later years he suffered greatly from asthma, dropsy, and poverty, yet remained comforted by faith in the “crucified Lamb” and died peacefully in 1761 after a long illness, surrounded by the care of the Brethren.
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Subject
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Tattersall, Edmund, 1691-1761
Moravians--Biography
Autobiographies
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Identifier
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Ful/3/43
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Place
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Fulneck, England
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Language
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eng
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Extent
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4 pages
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Rights Holder
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Fulneck Moravian Archives, Fulneck, England
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transcript of
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Departed on August 3rd, 1761, Edmund Tattersall’s course of life, the part of which was noted down from his own mouth.
I was born (in Heyroid, Worley Township) in the Parish of Hallifax 5/16 Oct. 1691 (and baptized in my father’s house by a church minister). My father departed this life when I was 6 years old. My mother took the tuition of me, because of a small estate which I had to expect. I was sent to school until I was 10 years old and learned to read and write. Afterwards I was put out as an apprentice to a clothier for 10 years and saw and heard nothing but wickedness and irreligion. Being free from my apprenticeship, I married and followed the Worsted Trade and lead a loose life of idleness and drunkenness and the people and servants which I employed proved bad and unfaithful, and I was forced to give up business, designing to go to the Isle of Man to a brother-in-law and there to follow my trade afresh I was already on board the vessel, but was three times brought back because of the rebellion in England at that time. After the battle at Preston I came back again and settled in Hallifax and resolved to break of from my former wicked course and to become religious. I had strong convictions in my mind and prayed often, but without understanding. Once I came amongst some soldiers who wanted
to trick me putting money into my pocket, but I, a desperate fellow, got off from them. Half a year after, I went as a volunteer among the King’s Dragoons and left my wife and children, but stayed only 13 weeks, and then got my discharge again. Two years after I enlisted in the same regiment and stayed again no longer then 13 weeks, because I saw so much wickedness and got at length my dismission which I desired. I returned to my wife and children and followed my trade weaving in Hallifax. It was at this time that I earnestly sought to become religious and went every month to the communion in the church and entered into a society with some churchmen who in principles were Calvinists; with them I continued until I was 49 years old. At that time I was seized with a violent fever and during that sickness I found that I was not in a state of being saved; I had not that satisfaction and rest, which I thought I had. I recognized from that illness and resolved to join no party, until I was better satisfied in my soul. When the Brethren came to keep meetings at the World’s End
(2) near Hallifax I went to hear them, liked them well, desired also to be in their society, which was granted the 21st of January. Amongst the Brethren and in their preaching I found that which I wanted: I loved them exceedingly, because I was convinced that the Lord was with them, I spared no time nor pain to go to hear them and to accompany them from place to place and discoursed with them, being mostly concerned about points of doctrine. My wife would not go with me at first, because she had not much hopes that I would continue, being so cross and peevish with her, for I was of a proud nature and wanted to be something.
From that the time that he joined the Brethren of our Savior’s word concerning his death and passion often reached his heart, but his pride and seeking to fill his head with knowledge long stifled our dear Savior’s work; he was also of a very talkative disposition and preached to everyone in his family and to others, so that to became burdensome to his wife and child; and to everybody he had hurt to himself and others they saw that his spirit and conversation was not agreeing. His labourers told him of it and he was glad and thankful for their reproofs but he could not help himself. He was often melted into tears and confessed his follies to the Brethren. His heart grew more and more attached to the wounded Savior and he felt himself overcome by His dying love, wished and earnestly entreated to be under the special care of the Brethren and to be a member of the congregation, which also was granted on August 13th, 1749 at Gracehill Lambs Hill; he was exceeding glad of it, delighted to come into the meetings, and to converse with the Brethren and went on cheerfully and happy, was beloved much by the Brethren and loved them as our Saviors peculiar chosen inheritance. He was made a partaker of the Holy Communion on June 17th, 1750. These many years he was troubled with an asthmatic disorder which increased more and more, so that it became very troublesome to him to walk and attend the meetings. However, as long as he could, he would not stay away from coming, for said he, nothing is such a comfort for my heart, soul, and body than as the heart of my crucified lamb and to be in fellowship with my dear Brethren. The Holy Sacrament was to him the highest festival, which if he could help, he would never miss. He borrowed last March was a twelve month a Galloway to come to Wike, but so was a good while after so sore in his Limbs, that he could come no more. On August the 4th, he was the last time at the Starary in Hallifax at the Quarterly Meeting and received at night his share with some others in the Holy Sacrament; he tried on September 2nd to come once more, but was obliged on account of illness to go home again and from that time his disorder turned into a dropsy; his legs began to swell and at last to break and run which continued ever since. He could not lie in bed, but sat in a chair by the fireside. Our dear and gracious Savior took him now into a peculiar school, which was beneficial to his heart, but on December 16th last year, when I was with him and the newly published Christian Magazine of a Man was mentioned, he said: I look upon Mount Olive & Calvary with my Lord did penance for me and the rest of man and all mankind, and hung as a lamb on the cross, wounded all over to be the best Magazin and Storehouse of for a Christian, I want to know nothing but Him in his dying form. He was very glad whenever Brethren came to see him, and this was done as often as it could be. Last February he complained much of his pain and distress in body, but above all, a dryness in his heart and that he had not a feeling sense of the dear Saviour’s precious nearness, and wept for on account of his impatience and peevishness. On March 10th, he kept an open hearted band with me and told me, that our Savior was so gracious as to help him, in his great outward poverty, he was ashamed more of himself than he was did not more relying more upon him and was not thankful to him enough for all the manifest proofs of his loving heart. He fell sometimes into reasoning thoughts that he was a burden to every one and wished that our Savior might grant him his dissolution. I told him, that all these things which he complained of arose from one cause: He should speak thoroughly with our dear Savior abt the state of his heart and beg a drop of his his healing blood for his soul, and that the spirit of Jesus should take full possession
of his heart, and that he should make a blessed use of this blessed passion season. His wife had been his nurse and dressed his running legs till the 27th of April, when she by a fit of the palsy was disabled and confined to this bed, which made his case still more pitiable and distressed. He could have no relief granted from the parish, but what some charitable persons did in consideration of the greatest poverty to which they were reduced to. They were visited at least every fortnight, and many an openhearted conversation kept with them both, which proved always a blessing and comfort to them, especially on June 23rd and July 7th, when they both after having they had been spoken with fully, received their share in the Holy Sacrament on their sickbed. I was these several months quite pleased with the state of his heart, he grew weaker and weaker in body, his legs began to heal in part and our dear Saviour made a blessed end of all his trouble, grief and woes by taking him home to himself on August the 3rd in the forenoon at 11 o’clock, when the text was Lazarus our friend sleepeth. He had groaned in his dying tabernacle at 69 years, 10 months & 17 days. His corpse had a lovely, sweet aspect bespeaking the happy sleep and rest which he had entered into.
