Sir Henry Vane (baptized May 26, 1613-June 14, 1662) was the Governor of Massachusetts in 1636. An English colonial administrator and statesman, he served as joint treasurer of the English Navy, elected to Long and Short Parliaments and in 1640 was knighted by King Charles I. Sir Henry Vane is noted for having helped Roger Williams secure the Charter for Rhode Island in 1644, which bore Vane’s signature as one of the commissioners for the plantation.
In April 1663, Roger Williams wrote of Sir Henry Vane:
1613HV001 Following Oliver Cromwell’s “Protectorate” government, 1653-59,
Charles II took the throne and executed Cromwell’s loyal followers, one of whom was Sir Henry Vane, who wrote:
<They that press so earnestly to carry on my trial do little know what the presence of God may be afforded me in it, and issue out of it to the magnifying of Christ in my body, by life or by death. Nor can they, I am sure, imagine how much I desire to be dissolved and be with Christ, which of all things which can befall me I account the best.> 1613HV002
Sir Henry Vane wrote:
<As the present storm we now lie under, the dark clouds that yet hang over the Reformed Churches of Christ, which are coming thicker and faster, so the coming of Jesus Christ in these clouds in order to a speedy and sudden revival of His cause, and spread of His kingdom over the face of the whole earth, is most clear to the eye of faith, even the faith in which I die, whereby the kingdoms of this world shall become the kingdoms of our Lord and of His Christ, Amen! Even so come, Lord Jesus!> 1613HV003
—
American Quotations by William J. Federer, 2024, All Rights Reserved, Permission granted to use with acknowledgement.
Endnotes:
1613HV003. William J. Federer, American Quotations (2014). Sir Henry Vane. Jacob Sparks, Library of American Biography, p. 293. Stephen Abbott Northrop, D.D., A Cloud of Witnesses (Portland, OR: American Heritage Ministries, 1987; Mantle Ministries, 228 Still Ridge, Bulverde, Texas), p. 471.
This post originally appeared at https://americanminute.com/blogs/todays-american-minute/sir-henry-vane-baptized-may-26-1613-june-14-1662