John Tillotson | |
|---|---|
| Archbishop of Canterbury | |
 Portrait byGodfrey Kneller | |
| Church | Church of England |
| Diocese | Canterbury |
| Installed | April 1691 |
| Term ended | 22 November 1694 |
| Predecessor | William Sancroft |
| Successor | Thomas Tenison |
| Orders | |
| Consecration | 31 May 1691 by Peter Mews |
| Personal details | |
| Born | October 1630 |
| Died | 22 November 1694 (aged 64) |
| Nationality | English |
| Denomination | Anglican |
| Spouse | Elizabeth Tillotson née French |
| Alma mater | Clare College, Cambridge |
| Signature |  |
John Tillotson (October 1630 – 22 November 1694) was theArchbishop of Canterbury from 1691 to 1694.
Tillotson was the son of aPuritanclothier at Haughend,Sowerby, Yorkshire. Little is known of his early youth; he studied atColne Grammar School,[1] before entering as apensioner ofClare Hall, Cambridge, in 1647. His tutor wasDavid Clarkson and he graduated in 1650, being made a fellow of his college in 1651.[2][3]
In 1656 Tillotson became tutor to the son ofEdmund Prideaux, attorney-general toOliver Cromwell. About 1661 he was ordained without subscription byThomas Sydserf, a Scottish bishop. Tillotson was present at theSavoy Conference in 1661, and remained identified with thePresbyterians until the passing of theAct of Uniformity 1662. Shortly afterwards he became curate ofCheshunt, Herts, and in June 1663, rector ofKedington, Suffolk.[3]
He now devoted himself to an exact study of biblical andpatristic writers, especiallyBasil andChrysostom. The result of this reading, and of the influence ofJohn Wilkins, Master ofTrinity College, Cambridge, was seen in the general tone of his preaching, which was practical rather than theological, concerned with issues of personal morality instead of theoretical doctrine. This plain style of preaching is reflective of the late 17th century, when the integration of reason into Protestant theology came to be seen as one of its finest attributes againstCatholicism. Tillotson himself was personally tolerant enough towards Catholics, remarking in a famous sermon that while Popery was "gross superstition", yet "Papists, I doubt not, are made like other men". He was actually alatitudinarian, also known as "Cambridge Arminianism".[4] Besides, Tillotson adoptedArminian views.[5]
He was a man of the world as well as a divine, and in his sermons, he exhibited a tact which enabled him at once to win the ear of his audience. In 1664 he became preacher atLincoln's Inn. The same year he married Elizabeth French, a niece ofOliver Cromwell; and he also became a Tuesday lecturer atSt Lawrence, Jewry (where he was later buried). Tillotson employed his controversial weapons with some skill againstatheism and Catholicism. In 1663 he published a characteristic sermon on "The Wisdom of being Religious," and in 1666 replied toJohn Sergeant'sSure Footing in Christianity by a pamphlet on the "Rule of Faith." The same year he received the degree of D.D.[6]
In 1670 he became prebendary and in 1672dean of Canterbury. That latter year he was also elected aFellow of the Royal Society.[7] In 1675 he editedJohn Wilkins'sPrinciples of Natural Religion, completing what was left unfinished of it, and in 1682 his Sermons. Along withBurnet, Tillotson attendedWilliam Russell, Lord Russell on the scaffold in 1683. In 1684, he wrote aDiscourse againstTransubstantiation. He afterwards enjoyed the friendship of Lady Russell, and it was partly through her that he obtained so much influence withPrincess Anne, who followed his advice in regard to the settlement of the crown onWilliam of Orange. He possessed the special confidence of William and Mary, and was madeclerk of the closet to the king in March 1689.[6]
It was chiefly through his advice that the king appointed an ecclesiastical commission for the reconciliation of the Dissenters. In August of this year, he was appointed by the chapter of his cathedral to exercise the archepiscopal jurisdiction of the province of Canterbury during the suspension of Sancroft. He was also, about the same time, namedDean of St Paul's. Soon afterwards he was elected to succeedSancroft as archbishop; but accepted the promotion with extreme reluctance, and it was deferred from time to time, at his request, until April 1691. In 1693 he published four lectures on theSocinian controversy,[8] partly to clear his own name from charges of sympathy with Socinianism in his previous associations withThomas Firmin,Stephen Nye and others.
His attempts to reform certain abuses of the Church of England, especially that of clerical non-residence, awakened much ill-will, and of this theJacobites took advantage, pursuing him to the end of his life with insult and reproach. He died on 22 November 1694.[6]
For his manuscript sermons, Tillotson's widow received 2500 guineas. Ralph Barker edited some 250 of them together with the "Rule of Faith" (1695–1704). In 1752 an edition appeared in 3 vols., withLife by Thomas Birch, compiled from Tillotson's original papers and letters. Various selections from his sermons and works have been published separately.[9] AMS Press, New York, published a modern edition of his works in the 1980s. In his home town of Sowerby, a statue of Tillotson still exists in St. Peter's church and an avenue is named after him in the lower end of the town.
He is buried in the church ofSt Lawrence Jewry just west of theBank of England in the City of London.
Thomas Tillotson was his great great nephew.
This article incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Tillotson, John".Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 26 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 976.| Church of England titles | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Dean of Canterbury 1672–1689 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Dean of St Paul's 1689–1691 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Archbishop of Canterbury 1691–1694 | Succeeded by |
