Editing George Fox (section)

===Encounters with Cromwell===
[[File:Oliver Cromwell - Statue - Palace of Westminster - London - 240404.jpg|thumb|right|upright|Cromwell was sympathetic to Fox and almost agreed to follow his teaching—but persecution of Quakers continued.]]

Parliamentarians grew suspicious of monarchist plots and fearful that the group travelling with Fox aimed to overthrow the government: by this time his meetings were regularly attracting crowds of over a thousand. In early 1655 he was arrested at [[Whetstone, Leicestershire]] and taken to London under armed guard. In March<ref>Ingle (2004) says 9 March; Nickalls, p. 199, says 6 March.</ref> he was brought before the [[Lord Protector]], [[Oliver Cromwell]]. After affirming that he had no intention of taking up arms, Fox was able to speak to Cromwell for most of the morning about the Friends. He advised him to listen to God's voice and obey it, so that as Fox left, Cromwell "with tears in his eyes said, 'Come again to my house; for if thou and I were but an hour of a day together, we should be nearer one to the other'; adding that he wished [Fox] no more ill than he did to his own soul."<ref>Fox in Jones, chapter 8, and Nickalls, p. 199.</ref>

This episode was later recalled as an example of "speaking truth to power", a preaching technique by which subsequent Quakers hoped to influence the powerful.<ref>Frederick Barnes Tolles (1956). [http://www.quaker.org/pamphlets/ward1956a.html ''The Ward Lecture 1956: Quakerism and Politics''.] Quaker Pamphlets.</ref> Although not used until the 20th century, the phrase is related to the ideas of plain speech and simplicity which Fox practised, but motivated by the more worldly goal of eradicating war, injustice and oppression.

Fox petitioned Cromwell over the course of 1656 to alleviate the persecution of Quakers.<ref>Fox in Nickalls, pp. 220–221 and 254</ref> Later that year, they met for a second time at Whitehall. On a personal level, the meeting went well; despite disagreements between the two men, they had a certain rapport. Fox invited Cromwell to "lay down his crown at the feet of Jesus" – which Cromwell declined to do.<ref>Fox in Nickalls, p. 274, and Jones, chapter 10.</ref> Fox met Cromwell again twice in March 1657.<ref>Fox in Nickalls, p. 289.</ref> Their last meeting was in 1658 at [[Hampton Court]], though they could not speak for long or meet again because of the Protector's worsening illness – Fox even wrote that "he looked like a dead man".<ref>Fox in Jones, chapter 12, and Nickalls, p. 350.</ref> Cromwell died in September of that year.