John Quarles (1624 or 1625 – 1665) was an English poet.

Life

One of the eighteen children of Francis Quarles and Ursula Woodgate, Quarles may have been born in

Essex Essex ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East of England, and one of the home counties. It is bordered by Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, the North Sea to the east, Kent across the Thames Estuary to the ...

in 1624. He was educated under the care of Archbishop

James Ussher James Ussher (or Usher; 4 January 1581 – 21 March 1656) was the Church of Ireland Archbishop of Armagh and Primate of All Ireland between 1625 and 1656. He was a prolific Irish scholar and church leader, who today is most famous for his ...

. Quarles matriculated at

Exeter College, Oxford Exeter College (in full: The Rector and Scholars of Exeter College in the University of Oxford) is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England, and the fourth-oldest college of the university. The college was founde ...

, on 9 February 1643, but does not seem to have taken a degree. During the

English Civil War The English Civil War or Great Rebellion was a series of civil wars and political machinations between Cavaliers, Royalists and Roundhead, Parliamentarians in the Kingdom of England from 1642 to 1651. Part of the wider 1639 to 1653 Wars of th ...

, Quarles joined the

Royalist A royalist supports a particular monarch as head of state for a particular kingdom, or of a particular dynastic claim. In the abstract, this position is royalism. It is distinct from monarchism, which advocates a monarchical system of gove ...

cause and served as a soldier at the garrison at

Oxford, England 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 ...

. After the Parliamentarian victory, Quarles was first imprisoned and later banished from England. While in banishment in

Flanders Flanders ( or ; ) is the Dutch language, Dutch-speaking northern portion of Belgium and one of the communities, regions and language areas of Belgium. However, there are several overlapping definitions, including ones related to culture, la ...

he wrote the poems contained in his first published volume, ''Fons Lachrymarum''. Quarles was back in England in 1648, but his "occasions beyond sea" compelled him to leave again in 1649. The date of his final return to England is unknown. Towards the end of his life Quarles became impoverished, surviving off his literary work. In 1665, he died during the

Great Plague of London The Great Plague of London, lasting from 1665 to 1666, was the most recent major epidemic of the bubonic plague to occur in England. It happened within the centuries-long Second plague pandemic, Second Pandemic, a period of intermittent buboni ...

Works

The published works of Quarles are: * ''Fons Lachrymarum, or a Fountain of Tears; from whence flow England's Complaint, Jeremiahs Lamentations paraphras'd, with Divine Meditations. And an Elegy upon that Son of Valor, Sir Charles Lucas,'' London, 1648; reprinted 1649, 1655, 1677. * ''Regale Lectum Miseriæ, or a Kingly Bed of Miserie. In which is contained a Dreame; with an Elegy upon the Martyrdome of Charles, late King of England. … And another upon … Lord Capel. With a Curse against the Enemies of Peace, and the Authors Farewell to England,'' London, 1648; reprinted 1649, 1658, 1659, 1660, 1679. * ''Gods Love and Mans Unworthiness,'' London, 1651; reprinted, with ''Divine Meditations,'' 1655. * ''The Tyranny of the Dutch against the English. … And likewise the Sufferings and Losses of Abraham Woofe … and others in the Island of Banda,'' London, 1653 (prose); reprinted 1660. * ''Divine Meditations upon several Subjects …,'' London, 1655; reprinted 1663, 1671, 1679. * ''The Banishment of Tarquin, or the Reward of Lust,'' annexed to Shakespeare's ''Rape of Lucrece,'' London, 1655. * ''An Elegie on … James Usher, L. Archbishop of Armagh, …,'' London, 1656. * ''The History of the most vile Dimagoras …,'' London, 1658. * ''A Continuation of the History y his fatherof Argalus and Parthenia,'' London, 1659. * ''Rebellions Downfall,'' London, 1662, broadside. * ''Londons Disease and Cure. Being a Soveraigne Receipt against the Plague, for Prevention sake,'' London, 1665, broadside. * ''The Citizens Flight, with their Recall, to which is added Englands Tears and Englands Comforts'', London, 1665. * ''Self-Conflict, or the powerful Motions between the Flesh and Spirit, represented in the Person … of Joseph … ,'' London, 1680; reprinted, with a slightly different title (''Triumphant Chastity, or Joseph's Self-Conflict''), 1684. There is nothing in the book to show that this last item, a translation entirely in the manner of Quarles, is a posthumous publication, but the date of his death given above is confirmed by William Winstanley, who was apparently acquainted with at least one member of his family. Quarles also wrote a prose preface to

John Hall John Hall may refer to: Academics * John Hall (NYU President) (fl. c. 1890), American academic * John A. Hall (born 1949), sociology professor at McGill University, Montreal * John F. Hall (1951–2023), professor of classics at Brigham Young Univ ...

's ''Emblems,'' 1648, and contributed verses to

Thomas Fuller Thomas Fuller (baptised 19 June 1608 – 16 August 1661) was an English churchman and historian. He is now remembered for his writings, particularly his ''Worthies of England'', published in 1662, after his death. He was a prolific author, and ...

's ''Abel Redevivus'' (1651).

References

;Attribution {{DEFAULTSORT:Quarles, John 1620s births 1665 deaths 17th-century English poets English male poets