Whately, William (1583-05-21 - 1639-05-10)

William Whately was born at Banbury, Oxfordshire on 21 May 1583 to Thomas Whately (1550-1637), mercer, alderman, and mayor, and Joyce Knight (d.1612). He matriculated from Christ’s College, Cambridge in 1598, graduating B.A. in 1601; he was incorporated at Oxford in 1602 and proceeded M.A. from St Edmund Hall in 1604. He married Martha Hunt in 1602, with whom he had three sons: William, Thomas, and George. Whately was made curate and lecturer at Banbury in 1605 and vicar in 1610. Although he initially encountered opposition in 1607 for his policies, Whately fostered puritanism in his parish through his persuasive preaching. He participated in several lectures by combination, such as that held in Stratford upon Avon. In addition to his published sermons, including the highly popular “The Redemption of Time” (1606) and “The New-Birth, or, A Treatise of Regeneration” (1618), he penned the marriage treatises “A Bride-Bush” (1617) and “A Care-Cloth” (1624). Whately died at Banbury on 10 May 1639 and was buried four days later.