Edmund Staunton

Edmund Staunton (Stanton) (1600–1671) was an English clergyman, chosen by Parliament as President of Corpus Christi College, Oxford, and a member of the Westminster Assembly. Later he was a nonconformist minister.

Life

A younger son of Francis (afterwards Sir Francis) Staunton, he was born at Woburn, Bedfordshire, on 20 October 1600. He matriculated from Wadham College, Oxford, on 9 June 1615, and on 4 October following was admitted scholar of Corpus Christi. While still an undergraduate, on 22 March 1617, he was transferred from the Bedfordshire scholarship to the Bedfordshire fellowship. After an illness and an escape from drowning, he had, about 1620, in his own words, "many sad and serious thoughts concerning my spiritual and eternal state."^[1]

On proceeding M.A. in 1623, he selected the ministry as his profession, and commenced his clerical life as afternoon lecturer at Witney, where he was acceptable to the parishioners, but not to the rector. He left Witney for the living of Bushey in Hertfordshire, which he shortly afterwards exchanged for Kingston upon Thames. There he remained for about twenty years, being known by the name of "the searching preacher". He preached and catechised, taught from house to house, and set up a weekly lecture, attracting eminent names. While at Kingston he proceeded B.D.and D.D. at Oxford in 1634. He was chosen to be not only one of the assembly of divines which met at Westminster in 1643, but also one of the six preachers in Westminster Abbey.^[1]

When Robert Newlyn was ejected from the presidency of Corpus by the "committee of Lords and Commons for Reformation of the University of Oxford" (22 May 1648), Staunton, a former fellow, was appointed in his place. The actual ejection of Newlyn and assumption of the office by Staunton did not take place till 11 July 1649. Staunton was disciplinarian, and evangelical, incurring the ridicule of some royalists.^[1]

On 15 June 1652 Staunton, who had submitted to the "engagement" required by Parliament, was nominated by the committee of parliament to be on the new board of visitors, which was limited to ten. On the third board, nominated by Oliver Cromwell, the Lord Protector, about two years afterwards, Staunton's name does not appear.^[1]

Staunton was, in his turn, ejected from the president's lodge on 3 August 1660, his predecessor, Newlyn, having already been reinstated in his office. Withdrawing from Oxford, he retired, in the first instance, to Rickmansworth in Hertfordshire, and he ministered in various parishes around. After the Act of Uniformity 1662 he was silenced, like other nonconformists, but he seems, after remaining at Rickmansworth about two years longer, to have lived in private families, and to have exercised his ministerial functions covertly and in defiance of the law. According to the Rev. Robert Watts, Staunton became pastor of a meeting-house at Salters' Hall, London, built for him. His last move was to Bovingdon, Hertfordshire, where, and at towns such as St. Albans, he preached to small groups. He died at Bovingdon on 14 July 1671, and was buried in the parish church.^[1]

Works

A prolific and prominent preacher, Staunton wrote only a few sermons (one on Phinehas being to Parliament just before the attainder of William Laud^[2]) and two tracts, A Dialogue between a Minister and a Stranger about Soul Affairs, and A Treatise of Christian Conference. These were published at the end of Richard Mayo's biography in 1671.^[1]

Notes

References

This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: "Staunton, Edmund". Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co. 1885–1900.

Academic offices
Preceded by Robert Newlyn	President of Corpus Christi College, Oxford 1648-1660	Succeeded by Robert Newlyn

The Westminster Assembly

Documents	Westminster Confession of Faith Westminster Larger Catechism Westminster Shorter Catechism Directory for Public Worship Form of Presbyterial Church Government

People	John Arrowsmith Simeon Ashe Robert Baillie Thomas Baylie Robert Blair Samuel Bolton John Bond William Bridge Ralph Brownrigg Anthony Burges Cornelius Burges Jeremiah Burroughs Adoniram Byfield Richard Byfield Edmund Calamy Archibald Campbell John Campbell Richard Capel Joseph Caryl Thomas Case Daniel Cawdry William Cecil Francis Cheynell John Clotworthy Thomas Coleman John Conant Edward Conway John Cook Edward Corbet Robert Crosse Robert Devereux Robert Douglas Calybute Downing John Dury John Earle John Elphinstone Daniel Featley Basil Feilding Nathaniel Fiennes William Fiennes Thomas Ford Thomas Gataker George Gillespie John Glynne Thomas Goodwin William Gouge William Greenhill William Grey John Hacket Matthew Hale Henry Hammond Robert Harley John Harris Robert Harris Arthur Haselrig Alexander Henderson Philip Herbert Charles Herle Thomas Hill Richard Holdsworth Edward Howard Joshua Hoyle Archibald Johnston John Ley John Lightfoot Richard Love William Lyford John Maitland Stephen Marshall John Maynard William Mew Edward Montagu George Morley Matthew Newcomen William Nicholson Philip Nye Herbert Palmer Algernon Percy Andrew Perne William Pierrepont John Pym Edward Reynolds Robert Reynolds Henry Rich Francis Rous Benjamin Rudyerd Samuel Rutherford Robert Sanderson Henry Scudder Lazarus Seaman Obadiah Sedgwick John Selden Josias Shute Sidrach Simpson William Spurstowe Edmund Staunton Peter Sterry Oliver St John (1580–1646) Oliver St John (1598–1673) William Strode William Strong Zouch Tate Henry Tozer Anthony Tuckney William Twisse Henry Vane the Elder Henry Vane the Younger Richard Vines George Walker Samuel Ward Thomas Westfield Philip Wharton Jeremiah Whitaker John White Bulstrode Whitelocke John Wilde Henry Wilkinson Walter Yonge Thomas Young

Westminster Abbey Jerusalem Chamber

Authority control	WorldCat Identities VIAF: 10196406

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 10/27/2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.