Life

The son of a wood-turner and householder of St. Katharine's, near the Tower, a precinct of St. Botolph, Aldgate, he was born probably in 1637. He was admitted student of Pembroke College, Oxford

Pembroke College, Oxford

Pembroke College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England, located in Pembroke Square. As of 2009, Pembroke had an estimated financial endowment of £44.9 million.-History:...

, in 1654, then under presbyterian influence, where he took a B.A. Afterwards he obtained the livings of Norwood

Norwood

- Australia :* Norwood Secondary College, Secondary School in Ringwood, Victoria.* Norwood, South Australia, suburb of Adelaide**Electoral district of Norwood, a state electoral district in South Australia...

 and Southam

Southam

Southam is a small market town in the Stratford-on-Avon district of Warwickshire, England. The 2001 census recorded a population of 6,509 in the town.The nearest sizeable town to Southam is Leamington Spa, located roughly 7 miles to the west...

, from which he was ejected in 1662.

In 1667, having complied and signed the articles (11 January), he was presented to the small living of Horsendon, Buckinghamshire

Buckinghamshire

Buckinghamshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan home county in South East England. The county town is Aylesbury, the largest town in the ceremonial county is Milton Keynes and largest town in the non-metropolitan county is High Wycombe....

. He became perpetual curate

Perpetual curate

A Perpetual Curate was a clergyman of the Church of England officiating as parish priest in a small or sparsely peopled parish or districtAs noted below the term perpetual was not to be understood literally but was used to indicate he was not a curate but the parish priest and of higher...

 of Princes Risborough

Princes Risborough

Princes Risborough is a small town in Buckinghamshire, England, about 9 miles south of Aylesbury and 8 miles north west of High Wycombe. Bledlow lies to the west and Monks Risborough to the east. It lies at the foot of the Chiltern Hills, at the north end of a gap or pass through the Chilterns,...

 in 1669, and vicar of Bledlow

Bledlow

Bledlow is a village in the civil parish of Bledlow-cum-Saunderton in Buckinghamshire, England. It is situated about a mile and a half WSW of Princes Risborough, and on the border with Oxfordshire....

 in 1674. He gave these up in 1677 for the city living of Allhallows Staining. He is said by Thomas Babington Macaulay in The History of England from the Accession of James the Second

The History of England from the Accession of James the Second

The History of England from the Accession of James the Second is the full title of the multi-volume work by Lord Macaulay more generally known as The History of England...

to have acted as broker for Louise de Kérouaille, Duchess of Portsmouth

Louise de Kérouaille, Duchess of Portsmouth

Louise Renée de Penancoët de Kérouaille, Duchess of Portsmouth was a mistress of Charles II of England. Through her son by Charles II, Charles Lennox, 1st Duke of Richmond, she is ancestress of both wives of The Prince of Wales: the late Diana, Princess of Wales, as well as The Duchess of...

 in the sale of pardons.

Under James II he published the royal declaration for liberty of conscience (1687), and on the death of Bishop Samuel Parker he was nominated (18 August 1688) to the see of Oxford. Although he had been duly consecrated at Lambeth

Lambeth

Lambeth is a district of south London, England, and part of the London Borough of Lambeth. It is situated southeast of Charing Cross.-Toponymy:...

 on 7 October, he was refused installation by the canons of Christ Church, Oxford

Christ Church, Oxford

Christ Church or house of Christ, and thus sometimes known as The House), is one of the largest constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England...

 and consequent admission to the temporalities, while the university refused to create him doctor of divinity

Doctor of Divinity

Doctor of Divinity is an advanced academic degree in divinity. Historically, it identified one who had been licensed by a university to teach Christian theology or related religious subjects....

, though he had a mandamus

Mandamus

A writ of mandamus or mandamus , or sometimes mandate, is the name of one of the prerogative writs in the common law, and is "issued by a superior court to compel a lower court or a government officer to perform mandatory or purely ministerial duties correctly".Mandamus is a judicial remedy which...

.

After the Glorious Revolution

Glorious Revolution

The Glorious Revolution, also called the Revolution of 1688, is the overthrow of King James II of England by a union of English Parliamentarians with the Dutch stadtholder William III of Orange-Nassau...

, he at first refused to take the oaths to the new king and queen, but yielded at the last moment and retained his title till his death. His death is recorded in the registers of St. John, Hackney; he died on 9 April and was buried 13 April 1690.