ABSTRACT
In 1659 two pamphlets were published in London, the author of which signed himself Peter Cornelius van Zurickzee. The annexed “invitation” is from people who supported the project and had subscribed some hundred pounds towards it. They speak of the author as “our friend Cornelius”. The instances quoted refer to the dispersed remnants of the Moravian Anabaptist communities, whose communism eventually found a footing in England. It is true that the end of the Republic, which came soon after the pamphlet appeared, shattered the hopes of the plan’s supporters, but the ideas behind the proposal had taken root in the minds of some Englishmen, and have influenced the evolution of ideas in England. The managers and officials are to be elected by the members to serve for one year, so that no official hierarchy may be established.
