Edward Ecclestone (c.1647–1675) was an English cleric, rector of St Mary's,
Oldswinford
Oldswinford or Old Swinford is an area south of the centre of Stourbridge, in the Dudley district, in the county of the West Midlands, England.
History
Originally, Oldswinford was an extensive ancient parish, covering the whole of the former M ...
in
Worcestershire
Worcestershire ( , ; written abbreviation: Worcs) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England. It is bordered by Shropshire, Staffordshire, and the West Midlands (county), West ...
.
Life
Edward Ecclestone was a son of William Ecclestone of
Charnock Richard
Charnock Richard is a small village and civil parish in the borough of Chorley, Lancashire, in England. The population of the civil parish taken at the 2011 census was 1,748.
History
The village was named in the early 13th century by the local ...
,
Lancashire
Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated ''Lancs'') is a ceremonial county in North West England. It is bordered by Cumbria to the north, North Yorkshire and West Yorkshire to the east, Greater Manchester and Merseyside to the south, and the Irish Sea to ...
. He was educated at
Lincoln College,
Oxford
Oxford () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and non-metropolitan district in Oxfordshire, England, of which it is the county town.
The city is home to the University of Oxford, the List of oldest universities in continuou ...
, matriculating on 3 July 1663 at the age of 16. He was awarded his BA on 24 February 1666. He died and was buried at Oldswinford on 24 January 1675.
Career
Ecclestone was the household chaplain to
Thomas Foley, appointed on the recommendation of
Richard Baxter
Richard Baxter (12 November 1615 – 8 December 1691) was an English Nonconformist (Protestantism), Nonconformist church leader and theologian from Rowton, Shropshire, who has been described as "the chief of English Protestant Schoolmen". He ma ...
. According to Nash (citing the Register of Bishop
Walter Blandford), Foley presented Ecclestone as rector of Oldswinford on 17 May 1673. Ecclestone corresponded with Baxter about conforming, with the exchanges becoming acrimonious as Ecclestone decided to conform.
Suggested authorship of ''Noah's Flood''
Edward Ecclestone has been identified as the author of a verse version of ''Noah's Flood'', a sequel to
Dryden's ''
The State of Innocence'' (1677). This work was first published in 1679 with subsequent versions in 1685 and 1690. Although it is possible ''Noah's Flood'' was the posthumous publication of Edward Ecclestone of Oldswinford, it is less likely that the subsequent versions could be attributed to his authorship. The title page describes the author as "Gent". A second Edward Eccleston(e) is listed as a graduate of Oxford and is described as the son of Thomas of Middlesex, "gent".
(Edward Ecclestone of Oldswinford's father is described as "pleb".) There is no evidence to prefer the identification of Edward Ecclestone of Oldswinford as the author of ''Noah's Flood''.
References
See also
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ecclestone, Edward
1675 deaths
17th-century English Anglican priests
Alumni of Lincoln College, Oxford
1647 births