Author: Brothers, R.
Biography:
BROTHERS, Richard (1757-1824: ODNB)
Brothers had a career with the navy before he became a self-styled prophet and visionary; his written works, including the book listed in this database, belong to the latter period. His parents, William and Hester Brothers, were living in Newfoundland, Canada, when he was born on 25 Dec. 1757; his father was a gunner with the Royal Navy. He was sent to England to be educated at Woolwich and in 1772 he entered the navy as a midshipman. By 1783 he was a lieutenant but in July of that year he was discharged on half-pay. He married Elizabeth Hassall (or Hasall) in Wrenbury, Cheshire, on 6 July 1786; by then he had joined the merchant marine. During his absence on board ship, his wife began living with another man and in 1787 he moved to London alone. His career as a prophet began with a decision to reject his government pension. This led to financial difficulties and he spent time in both the workhouse and Newgate prison for debt. His visions led him to develop an apocalyptic perspective and increasingly he was preoccupied with the destiny of the Jews; one title he gave himself was Prince of the Hebrews. Although derided by many, he succeeded in gathering followers who subscribed to his visionary beliefs; supported his criticisms of the authorities; and, like him, were opposed to war with revolutionary France. One supporter was Nathaniel Brassey Halhed (q.v.) who wrote a testimony to the authenticity of Brothers’s visions and another was George Riebau who printed Brothers's works. In 1795 Brothers was arrested and on 27 Mar. he was declared insane and confined in a private asylum in Islington. This did not deter his followers: an Edinburgh lawyer, James Finlayson, moved to London in 1797 to help him and changed his name to Finleyson on Brothers's insistence. It was at Finleyson’s Regent Park home that Brothers died on 25 Jan. 1824 and was buried in St. John’s Wood cemetery. Brothers wrote many pamphlets and books; they include A Revealed Knowledge of the Prophecies and Times (1795), Wrote in Confinement. An Exposition of the Trinity (1796), The Writings of Mr Richard Brothers, God’s Anointed King (1798), and A Letter from Mr Brothers to Miss Cott. The Recorded Daughter of King David (1798). (ancestry.co.uk 11 Sept. 2023; ODNB 11 Sept. 2023)