Come Rack, Come Rope

Come Rack, Come Rope, one of Robert Hugh Benson’s best-known novels, is based on true events and individuals in the time of the Elizabethan persecution of Catholics in England. Come Rack, Come Rope centers on Robin and Marjorie, who give up their love for another and hope of marriage in order to minister to their persecuted neighbors. Surrounding Robin and Marjorie are a host of fascinating characters—including the historical figures of Richard Topcliffe, Anthony Babington, and Saint Edmund Campion.

Weaving the historical source material with his own creative additions, Benson presents an unflinching, honest portrayal of the terror of those times along with an achingly beautiful depiction of true faith. Come Rack, Come Rope illustrates the words of Christ from Matthew’s Gospel, “you will be hated by all because of my name, but whoever endures to the end will be saved,” in its stirring movements from doubt to faith, from hatred to love, and from fear to the heroic death of a martyr.

Robert Hugh Benson (1871–1914) the son of the Anglican Archbishop of Canterbury, was a convert to Roman Catholicism and was ordained a priest in 1904. A dynamic preacher and author, Benson wrote dozens of novels as well as numerous short stories, plays, essays, and spiritual texts.