On 1 January 1559 the anonymous "Beggars' Summons" was posted on the doors of friaries, threatening friars with eviction on the grounds that their property belonged to the genuine poor. This was calculated to appeal to the passions of the populace of towns who appeared to have particular complaints against friars. Knox returned to Scotland and preached at the church of St. John the Baptist's at Perth on 11 May on Christ cleansing the temple. The congregation responded by stripping the shrines, images and altars of the church and then sacked the local friaries and Carthusian house. The regent responded by sending troops to restore order and Glencairn led a force to defend the town's new Protestant status. A royal delegation, including Argyll and James Stuart persuaded the burgh to open its gates, but the heavy handed treatment by the regent's forces led to a breakdown in negotiations. Argyll and Stuart changed sides and the Lords of the Congregation now began raising their followers for an armed conflict.