Henry Layton (1622–1705) was a minor British
philosopher
Philosophy ('love of wisdom' in Ancient Greek) is a systematic study of general and fundamental questions concerning topics like existence, reason, knowledge, Value (ethics and social sciences), value, mind, and language. It is a rational an ...
, theological writer, and contemporary of
John Locke
John Locke (; 29 August 1632 (Old Style and New Style dates, O.S.) – 28 October 1704 (Old Style and New Style dates, O.S.)) was an English philosopher and physician, widely regarded as one of the most influential of the Enlightenment thi ...
.
Life
He was the eldest son of Francis Layton (died 23 August 1661, aged 84) of
Rawdon, West Riding of Yorkshire. His father was one of the masters of the jewel-house to Charles I and Charles II. In accordance with his father's will, Layton built the chapel at Rawdon, a chapelry in the parish of
Guiseley
Guiseley ( ) is an area in the metropolitan borough of the City of Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. Historic counties of England, Historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, it is situated south of Otley and Menston and is now a north-west ...
. He died at Rawdon on 18 October 1705, aged 83. By his wife Elizabeth (died 1702, aged 55), daughter of Sir Nicholas Yarborough, he left no issue.
Works
Layton is remembered for his anonymous authorship of a series of pamphlets, printed between 1692 and 1704, on the question of the
immortality of the soul
Immortality is the concept of eternal life. Some species possess " biological immortality" due to an apparent lack of the Hayflick limit.
From at least the time of the ancient Mesopotamians, there has been a conviction that gods may be phy ...
, a doctrine which he rejected. He started writing on the topic in 1691 with short treatise of fifteen sheets, which was circulated in manuscript. A year's correspondence with a nearby minister ended in his being referred to
Richard Bentley
Richard Bentley FRS (; 27 January 1662 – 14 July 1742) was an English classical scholar, critic, and theologian. Considered the "founder of historical philology", Bentley is widely credited with establishing the English school of Hellenis ...
's second
Boyle Lecture
The Boyle Lectures are named after Robert Boyle, a prominent natural philosopher of the 17th century and son of Richard Boyle, 1st Earl of Cork. Under the terms of his Will, Robert Boyle endowed a series of lectures or sermons (originally eight ...
(4 April 1692). To this lecture Layton replied in his first published pamphlet. Bentley took no notice of it, but it was criticised five years later by a presbyterian divine,
Timothy Manlove of
Leeds
Leeds is a city in West Yorkshire, England. It is the largest settlement in Yorkshire and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds Metropolitan Borough, which is the second most populous district in the United Kingdom. It is built aro ...
. Another minister referred Layton to the ''Pneumatologia'' (1671) of
John Flavel
John Flavel (c. 1627–1691) was an English Puritan Presbyterian minister and author.
Life
Flavel, the eldest son of the Rev. Richard Flavel, described as 'a painful and eminent minister,' who was incumbent successively of Bromsgrove, Worces ...
. Layton's original work had now grown to fifty pages. Ultimately he printed it at his own expense as ''A Search after Souls''.
By 1697 he had impaired eyesight; Manlove's criticism, published in that year, was read to him by his amanuensis, Timothy Jackson, and he issued a reply. His pamphlets continued until the year before his death, restating his position that soul is a function of body, a view which he defends on physiological grounds, and harmonises with scripture. His authorship was little known.
Caleb Fleming, who replied to his ''Search'' in 1758, thought it was the work of
William Coward
William Coward (1657?–1725) was an English physician, controversial writer, and poet. He is now remembered for his sceptical writings on the soul, which Parliament of England, Parliament condemned as blasphemous and ordered to be burned in hi ...
. Besides his printed tracts, Layton left theological manuscripts; his
literary executor
The literary estate of a deceased author consists mainly of the copyright and other intellectual property rights of published works, including film rights, film, translation rights, original manuscripts of published work, unpublished or partially ...
was his nephew,
William Smith William, Willie, Will, Bill, or Billy Smith may refer to:
Academics
* William Smith (Master of Clare College, Cambridge) (1556–1615), English academic
* William Smith (antiquary) (c. 1653–1735), English antiquary and historian of University C ...
, rector of
Melsonby
Melsonby is a village and civil parish in the county of North Yorkshire, England. It lies west of the A1(M) motorway and north of the A66.
Etymology
The second element in the name ''Melsonby'' is the Old Norse suffix ''-by'', meaning "farm, ...
, North Riding of Yorkshire.
Layton published the following, all anonymous:
*''Observations upon a Sermon intituled, "A Confutation of Atheism,"''
692? pp. 19.
* ''A Search after Souls and Spiritual Operations in Man'',
693?pp. 278.
* ''A Second Part of … A Search after Souls'',
694? pp. 188 (consists in part of replies to letters of "a minister, eminent as scholar and teacher", who on 21 November 1693 advised him not to publish).
* ''Observations upon a Short Treatise … by … Timothy Manlove, intituled, "The Immortality of the Soul,"''
697? pp. 128.
* ''Observations upon Mr. Wadsworth's book of the Soul's Immortality'',
699? pp. 215; deals with
Thomas Wadsworth's ''Ἀντιψυχοθανασία'', 1670; from p. 201 with ''The Immortality of the Humane Soul'', 1659, by
Walter Charleton
Walter Charleton (2 February 1619 – 24 April 1707) was a natural philosopher and English writer.
According to Jon Parkin, he was "the main conduit for the transmission of Epicurean ideas to England".Jon Parkin, ''Science, Religion and Politi ...
.
*''An Argument concerning the Humane Souls Subsistance'',
699? pp. 16 (Abbot).
*''Arguments and Replies in a Dispute concerning the Nature of the Humane Soul'', &c., London, 1703, pp. 112 (no publisher; deals with letters, dated 15 August and 14 September 1702;
Francis Blackburne
Francis Blackburne PC (Ire) KS (11 November 1782 – 17 September 1867) was an Irish judge and eventually became Lord Chancellor of Ireland.
Background
Born at Great Footstown in County Meath, he was the son of Richard Blackburne of Great Foo ...
, in ''Hist. View'', p. 305, identifies the writer with
Henry Dodwell
Henry Dodwell (October 16417 June 1711) was an Anglo-Irish scholar, theologian and controversial writer.
Life
Dodwell was born in Dublin in 1641. His father, William Dodwell, who lost his property in Connacht during the Irish rebellion, was ...
the elder; the tract is evidently meant as the first of the following series).
*''Observations upon … "A Vindication of the Separate Existence of the Soul. …" By Mr. John Turner, lecturer of Christ Church, London'', &c.
703? pp. 55 (Turner had written in 1702 against Coward).
* ''Observations upon Dr. Nicholl's … "Conference with a Theist,"'' &c.
703? pp. 124 (against
William Nicholls).
* ''Observations upon … "Vindiciæ Mentis," … 1702'', &c.
703? pp. 88.
* ''Observations upon … "Psychologia" … by John Broughton, M.A. … 1703'',
703? pp. 132.
* ''Observations upon … Broughton's Psychologia, Part Second'', &c.
703? pp. 52.
* ''Observations upon … A Discourse … By Dr. Sherlock … 1704'', &c.
704? pp. 115 (
William Sherlock
William Sherlock (c. 1639/1641June 19, 1707) was an English church leader.
Life
He was born at Southwark, the son of a tradesman, and was educated at St Saviour's Grammar School and Eton, and then at Peterhouse, Cambridge. In 1669 he became ...
).
Almost all were collected (not reprinted) 1706, 2 vols., as ''A Search after Souls … By a Lover of Truth''. Most of the copies were suppressed by Layton's executors, a few being deposited in public libraries and given to private friends.
References
;Attribution
{{DEFAULTSORT:Layton, Henry
17th-century English philosophers
18th-century English philosophers
1622 births
1705 deaths
English male non-fiction writers