Jeremy Taylor

Jeremy Taylor was an English cleric in the Church of England who lived from 1613 to 1667 and achieved fame as an author during the Protectorate of Oliver Cromwell. Sometimes called the Shakespeare of Divines for his poetic style, he is frequently cited as one of the greatest prose writers in the English language. He was under the patronage of William Laud, Archbishop of Canterbury, and became chaplain in ordinary to King Charles I as a result of Laud's sponsorship, which made him politically suspect when Laud was tried by Parliament and executed during the English Civil War; after the parliamentary victory over the king he was briefly imprisoned several times. He was eventually allowed to live quietly in Wales as private chaplain to the Earl of Carbery, and after the Restoration he was made Bishop of Down and Connor in Ireland and Vice-Chancellor of the University of Dublin. He is remembered in the liturgical calendars of the Church of England and other Anglican churches.