WILLIAM CHILLINGWORTH.
Author of 'The Religion of Protestants,' 1638.
Born 1602. Died 1644.
By CLARENDON.
M'r Chillingworth, was of a stature little superiour to M'r Hales (and it was an Age in which ther were many greate and wounderfull men of that size) and a man of so grea[te] a subtlety of understandinge, and so rare a temper in debate, that as it was impossible to provoke him into any passyon, so it was very difficulte to keepe a mans selfe from beinge a little discomposed by his sharpnesse and quicknesse of argument and instances, in which he had a rare facility, and a greate advantage over all the men I ever knew. He had spent all his younger tyme in disputation, and had arryved to so greate a mastery, as he was inferior to no man in those skirmishes: but he had with his notable perfection in this exercise, contracted such an irresolution and habit of doubtinge, that by degrees he grew confident of nothinge, and a schepticke at least in the greatest misteryes of fayth; This made him from first waveringe in religion and indulginge to scruples, to reconcile himselfe to soone and to easily to the Church of Rome, and carryinge still his owne inquisitivenesse aboute him, without any resignation to ther authority (which is the only temper can make that Church sure of its Proselites) havinge made a journy to S't Omers purely to perfecte his conversion by the conversation of those who had the greatest name, he founde as little satisfaction ther, and returned with as much hast from them, with a beliefe that an intire exemption from error was nether inherent in, nor necessary to, any Church; which occasioned that warr which was carryed on by the Jesuitts with so greate asperity and reproches against him, and in which he defended himselfe by such an admirable eloquence of language, and the cleere and incomparable power of reason, that he not only made them appeare unæquall adversaryes, but carryed the warr into ther owne quarters, and made the Popes infallibility to be as much shaken and declyned by ther owne Doctors, and as greate an acrimony amon[g]st themselves upon that subjecte, and to be at least as much doubted as in the schooles of the Reformed or Protestant, and forced them since to defende and maintayne those unhappy contraversyes in religion, with armes and weopons of another nature, then were used or knowne in the Church of Rome when Bellarmyne dyed: and which probably will in tyme undermyne the very foundation that supportes it.
Such a levity and propensity to change, is commonly attended with greate infirmityes in, and no lesse reproch and præjudice to the person, but the sincerity of his hearte was so conspicuous, and without the least temptation of any corrupt end, and the innocence and candour of his nature so evident and without any perversenesse, that all who knew him cleerely decerned, that all those restlesse motions and fluctuation proceeded only from the warmth and jealosy of his owne thoughts, in a to nice inquisition for truth: nether the bookes of the Adversary, nor any of ther persons, though he was acquainted with the best of both, had ever made greate impression upon him, all his doubles grew out of himselfe, when he assisted his scruples with all the strenght of his owne reason, and was then to hard for himselfe; but findinge as little quyett and repose in those victoryes, he quickly recover'd by a new appeale to his owne judgement, so that he was in truth upon the matter in all his Sallyes and retreits his owne converte, though he was not so totally devested of all thoughts of this worlde, but that when he was ready for it he admitted some greate and considerable Churchmen to be sharers with him, in his publique conversion. Whilst he was in perplexity, or rather some passionate disinclination to the religion he had bene educated in, he had the misfortune to have much acquaintance with one M'r Lugar a minister of that church, a man of a competency of learninge in those points most contravened with the Romanists, but of no acute parts of witt or judgement, and wrought so farr upon him, by weakeninge and enervating those arguments by which he founde he was governed (as he had all the logique and all the Rhetorique that was necessary to perswade very powerfully men of the greatest talents) that the poore man, not able to lyve longe in doubte, to hastily deserted his owne church, and betooke himselfe to the Roman, nor could all the arguments and reasons of M'r Chillingworth make him pawse in the exspedition he was usinge, or reduce him from that Church after he had given himselfe to it, but had alwayes a greate animosity against him, for havinge (as he sayd) unkindly betrayed him, and carryed him into another religion, and ther left him: So unfitt are some constitutions to be troubled with doubtes, after they are once fixed.
He did really believe all warr to be unlawfull, and did not thinke that the Parliament (whose proceedings he perfectly abhorred) did intruth intende to involve the nation in a civill warr, till after the battell of Edgehill, and then he thought any exspedient or stratagemm that was like to putt a speedy ende to it, to be the most commendable; and so havinge to mathematically conceaved an Engyne that should moove so lightly, as to be a brest-worke in all incounters and assaultes in the feilde, he carryed it to make the exsperiment into that parte of his Majestys army, which was only in that winter season in the Feilde, under the commaunde of the L'd Hopton in Hampshyre upon the borders of Sussex, wher he was shutt up in the Castle of Arrundell, which was forced after a shorte, sharpe seige, to yeild for want of victuall, and poore M'r Chillingworth with it fallinge into the Rebells hands, and beinge most barbarously treated by them, especially by that Clargy which followed them, and beinge broken with sicknesse contracted by the ill accommadation and wante of meate and fyre duringe the seige, which was in a terrible season of frost and snow, he dyed shortly after in pryson. He was a man of excellent parts, and of a cheerefull disposition, voyde of all kinde of vice, and indewed with many notable virtues, of a very publique hearte, and an indefatigable desyre to do good; his only unhappinesse proceeded from his sleepinge to little, and thinkinge to much, which sometymes threw him into violent feavers.
53.
EDMUND WALLER.
Born 1606. Died 1687.