John Conant
Encyclopedia
Rev. John Conant D.D. (18 October 1608 – 12 March 1694) was an English
clergyman, theologian, and Vice-Chancellor of Oxford University.
, in southeast Devon
, England
, the eldest son of Robert Conant, son of Richard Conant and his wife, Elizabeth Morris. He was educated first in the free school at Ilchester, Somerset, and then under the instruction of the schoolmaster Thomas Branker, with additional instruction by his uncle John, rector of Limington
in Somerset
. Taken by his uncle to Oxford
in 1627, he was enrolled on 18 February as a commoner of Exeter College, Oxford
. There he was tutored by Lawrence Bodley, nephew of the benefactor
of the Bodleian Library
at Oxford
. Conant quickly gained a mastery of Greek, debating publicly in that language, and also excelled in Hebrew, Syriac
, and Arabic. His potential was recognised by John Prideaux
, the anti-Arminian
rector of Exeter, who commented that he found nothing difficult. John Conant graduated B.A.
on 26 May 1631, and M.A. on 12 January 1634; on 30 June 1632 he was chosen a probationer of Exeter College, and on 3 July 1633 made a fellow. He was ordained deacon
and tutored pupils until 1642, when the disruption of Oxford by the Civil War
forced him to depart, abandoning valuable books, which he never regained.
With plans to join his uncle at Limington, Conant found by the time he arrived, his uncle, a supporter of the parliamentary cause, had gone to London. There his uncle preached to the House of Commons
on 26 July 1643, calling on it to reform the church, and was a member of the Westminster assembly
(not the nephew, as some sources incorrectly assert). Remaining for a while at Limington, Conant preached and carried out parish duties, until so menaced by royalist
troops that he joined his uncle in London and began to assist him in the parish of St Botolph, Aldersgate
, but he soon took up residence with the family of Lord and Lady Chandos at Harefield
, Middlesex
, whom he served as chaplain. Lady Chandos, the daughter of Henry Montagu, Earl of Manchester, was his patron, awarding him an annual stipend of £80, much of which he used to relieve the poor and needy of the parish, and provide them with bibles and schooling.
Meanwhile, he gave a weekday lecture for several years at nearby Uxbridge
. On 20 December 1645 the committee for plundered ministers
offered him the rectory of Whimple, Devon, but Conant refused it. When in 1647 subscription to the Solemn League and Covenant
was required of college fellows, Conant refused to take it, writing a letter from Harefield dated 27 September 1647, resigning his fellowship at Exeter College.
In 1649, when the Rector of Exeter College died, a majority of the fellows wanted Conant's uncle for the position, but the elder Conant, wishing to remain at the parish of St Thomas, Salisbury
, urged his nephew for the post; the nephew was duly elected on 7 June 1649, and admitted to the office on 29 June 1649. Confronted with the question of affirming his loyalty to the parliamentary government by taking the engagement, which in October 1649 was made mandatory for members of colleges, Conant took it, but declared to the commissioners that in doing so he was not abridging his liberty to declare allegiance to any other future power that God might put over him, and did not necessarily approve of all that the government had done.
Taking up his duties with alacrity, Conant was an ideal choice for rector. He found the college deficient in discipline and deeply in debt, and remedied both, enforcing strict observance of the college statutes. He also attended the academic exercises and daily prayers of the college and catechized the college servants. Refuting Socinianism
and Roman Catholicism in weekly instruction to the undergraduates, he drew on such standard works of reformed scholasticism as Johannes Wollebius's Compendium theologiae Christianae and Johannes Piscator
's Aphorismi doctrinae Christianae. For more advanced students he led a study of biblical prophecy, using Thomas Parker
's The Visions and Prophecies of Daniel Expounded (1646), a book by a New England minister which asserted that the pope was the antichrist
. Conant's style of leadership at Exeter attracted large numbers of students, including some from abroad. He was awarded the DD
on 31 May 1654.
During his time as Rector of Exeter College, John Conant preached regularly at three nearby parishes: he preached every Friday morning at seven o'clock at All Saints' for more than ten years, developing a complete body of divinity for his auditors; he preached almost every Sunday for several years at St Michael's; and he preached at St Mary Magdalen's every other Sunday for half of each year. As vicar of Kidlington
, near Oxford, which was annexed to the rectory of Exeter, he also preached frequently, although he declined the rectory of Ewelme
in Oxfordshire, which was also attached to the college.
In August 1651 he married Elizabeth Reynolds (d. 1707), youngest daughter of Edward Reynolds, then rector of Braunston, Northamptonshire; the couple had six sons and six daughters.
Conant was presbyterially ordained to the ministry at Salisbury in October 1652, and in September 1654 he was appointed Regius Professor of Divinity
at Oxford. He lectured twice a week in order to fulfil the duties of that office, basing his lectures on the biblical annotations of Hugo Grotius
, whose philological scholarship was much admired even by those who rejected his Arminianism
. In 1657 as compensation for the sequestered income of his divinity chair, Conant was awarded by Oliver Cromwell
the income from the rectory of Abergele
, Denbighshire
, returning much of which to its resident vicar and to the poor of the parish. None of his theological lectures were ever published, and Conant later destroyed his notes for them.
Shortly after Richard Cromwell
succeeded his father as chancellor
of Oxford University, he named John Conant as vice-chancellor, on 9 October 1657. Prior to this the bursars' accounts of Jesus College show him handling payments to the university by 1654. While vice-chancellor Conant restored many traditions, such as the wearing of caps and hoods, which his predecessor John Owen
had considered popish. He went to London in 1659 with Seth Ward
and John Wilkins
to help thwart the grant of a university charter
to Durham College
. And he now sought to enforce discipline in the whole university just as he had in Exeter College. In 1659 he was instrumental in procuring the enormous library of John Selden
for the Bodleian. On 8 June 1676, he was appointed archdeacon
of Norwich
.
Described by his contemporaries as thin and short in stature, Conant became completely blind in 1686. He died on 12 March 1694 and was buried in the rebuilt All Saints' Church, Northampton
, where he is commemorated by a monument and Latin epitaph.
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
clergyman, theologian, and Vice-Chancellor of Oxford University.
Life
John Conant was born at Yettington, BictonBicton, Devon
Bicton is a civil parish in the East Devon district of Devon, England, near the town of Budleigh Salterton. According to the 2001 census it had a population of 280. The parish includes the village of Yettington....
, in southeast Devon
Devon
Devon is a large county in southwestern England. The county is sometimes referred to as Devonshire, although the term is rarely used inside the county itself as the county has never been officially "shired", it often indicates a traditional or historical context.The county shares borders with...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, the eldest son of Robert Conant, son of Richard Conant and his wife, Elizabeth Morris. He was educated first in the free school at Ilchester, Somerset, and then under the instruction of the schoolmaster Thomas Branker, with additional instruction by his uncle John, rector of Limington
Limington
Limington is a village and parish in Somerset, England, situated north of Yeovil in the South Somerset district. The village has a population of 199...
in Somerset
Somerset
The ceremonial and non-metropolitan county of Somerset in South West England borders Bristol and Gloucestershire to the north, Wiltshire to the east, Dorset to the south-east, and Devon to the south-west. It is partly bounded to the north and west by the Bristol Channel and the estuary of the...
. Taken by his uncle to Oxford
Oxford
The city of Oxford is the county town of Oxfordshire, England. The city, made prominent by its medieval university, has a population of just under 165,000, with 153,900 living within the district boundary. It lies about 50 miles north-west of London. The rivers Cherwell and Thames run through...
in 1627, he was enrolled on 18 February as a commoner of Exeter College, Oxford
Exeter College, Oxford
Exeter College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England and the fourth oldest college of the University. The main entrance is on the east side of Turl Street...
. There he was tutored by Lawrence Bodley, nephew of the benefactor
Thomas Bodley
Sir Thomas Bodley was an English diplomat and scholar, founder of the Bodleian Library, Oxford.-Biography:...
of the Bodleian Library
Bodleian Library
The Bodleian Library , the main research library of the University of Oxford, is one of the oldest libraries in Europe, and in Britain is second in size only to the British Library...
at Oxford
University of Oxford
The University of Oxford is a university located in Oxford, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest surviving university in the world and the oldest in the English-speaking world. Although its exact date of foundation is unclear, there is evidence of teaching as far back as 1096...
. Conant quickly gained a mastery of Greek, debating publicly in that language, and also excelled in Hebrew, Syriac
Syriac language
Syriac is a dialect of Middle Aramaic that was once spoken across much of the Fertile Crescent. Having first appeared as a script in the 1st century AD after being spoken as an unwritten language for five centuries, Classical Syriac became a major literary language throughout the Middle East from...
, and Arabic. His potential was recognised by John Prideaux
John Prideaux
John Prideaux D.D. was an English academic and Bishop of Worcester.-Early life:The fourth son of John and Agnes Prideaux, he was born at Stowford House in the parish of Harford, near Ivybridge, Devon, England, on 17 September 1578...
, the anti-Arminian
Arminianism in the Church of England
Arminianism in the Church of England was a theological strand or tendency within the clergy of the Church of England particularly evident in the second quarter of the 17th century...
rector of Exeter, who commented that he found nothing difficult. John Conant graduated B.A.
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
on 26 May 1631, and M.A. on 12 January 1634; on 30 June 1632 he was chosen a probationer of Exeter College, and on 3 July 1633 made a fellow. He was ordained deacon
Deacon
Deacon is a ministry in the Christian Church that is generally associated with service of some kind, but which varies among theological and denominational traditions...
and tutored pupils until 1642, when the disruption of Oxford by the Civil War
English Civil War
The English Civil War was a series of armed conflicts and political machinations between Parliamentarians and Royalists...
forced him to depart, abandoning valuable books, which he never regained.
With plans to join his uncle at Limington, Conant found by the time he arrived, his uncle, a supporter of the parliamentary cause, had gone to London. There his uncle preached to the House of Commons
British House of Commons
The House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, which also comprises the Sovereign and the House of Lords . Both Commons and Lords meet in the Palace of Westminster. The Commons is a democratically elected body, consisting of 650 members , who are known as Members...
on 26 July 1643, calling on it to reform the church, and was a member of the Westminster assembly
Westminster Assembly
The Westminster Assembly of Divines was appointed by the Long Parliament to restructure the Church of England. It also included representatives of religious leaders from Scotland...
(not the nephew, as some sources incorrectly assert). Remaining for a while at Limington, Conant preached and carried out parish duties, until so menaced by royalist
Cavalier
Cavalier was the name used by Parliamentarians for a Royalist supporter of King Charles I and son Charles II during the English Civil War, the Interregnum, and the Restoration...
troops that he joined his uncle in London and began to assist him in the parish of St Botolph, Aldersgate
Aldersgate
Aldersgate was a gate in the London Wall in the City of London, which has given its name to a ward and Aldersgate Street, a road leading north from the site of the gate, towards Clerkenwell in the London Borough of Islington.-History:...
, but he soon took up residence with the family of Lord and Lady Chandos at Harefield
Harefield
Harefield is a village in the London Borough of Hillingdon in northwest London, England. It is situated on top of a hill, northwest of Charing Cross, near the Greater London boundary with Buckinghamshire to the west and Hertfordshire to the north...
, Middlesex
Middlesex
Middlesex is one of the historic counties of England and the second smallest by area. The low-lying county contained the wealthy and politically independent City of London on its southern boundary and was dominated by it from a very early time...
, whom he served as chaplain. Lady Chandos, the daughter of Henry Montagu, Earl of Manchester, was his patron, awarding him an annual stipend of £80, much of which he used to relieve the poor and needy of the parish, and provide them with bibles and schooling.
Meanwhile, he gave a weekday lecture for several years at nearby Uxbridge
Uxbridge
Uxbridge is a large town located in north west London, England and is the administrative headquarters of the London Borough of Hillingdon. It forms part of the ceremonial county of Greater London. It is located west-northwest of Charing Cross and is one of the major metropolitan centres...
. On 20 December 1645 the committee for plundered ministers
Committee for Plundered Ministers
The Committee for Plundered Ministers was appointed by the Long Parliament, then under the influence of the Presbyterians, after the start of the English Civil War in August 1643 for the purpose of replacing and effectively silencing those clergy who were loyal to the King Charles...
offered him the rectory of Whimple, Devon, but Conant refused it. When in 1647 subscription to the Solemn League and Covenant
Solemn League and Covenant
The Solemn League and Covenant was an agreement between the Scottish Covenanters and the leaders of the English Parliamentarians. It was agreed to in 1643, during the First English Civil War....
was required of college fellows, Conant refused to take it, writing a letter from Harefield dated 27 September 1647, resigning his fellowship at Exeter College.
In 1649, when the Rector of Exeter College died, a majority of the fellows wanted Conant's uncle for the position, but the elder Conant, wishing to remain at the parish of St Thomas, Salisbury
Salisbury
Salisbury is a cathedral city in Wiltshire, England and the only city in the county. It is the second largest settlement in the county...
, urged his nephew for the post; the nephew was duly elected on 7 June 1649, and admitted to the office on 29 June 1649. Confronted with the question of affirming his loyalty to the parliamentary government by taking the engagement, which in October 1649 was made mandatory for members of colleges, Conant took it, but declared to the commissioners that in doing so he was not abridging his liberty to declare allegiance to any other future power that God might put over him, and did not necessarily approve of all that the government had done.
Taking up his duties with alacrity, Conant was an ideal choice for rector. He found the college deficient in discipline and deeply in debt, and remedied both, enforcing strict observance of the college statutes. He also attended the academic exercises and daily prayers of the college and catechized the college servants. Refuting Socinianism
Socinianism
Socinianism is a system of Christian doctrine named for Fausto Sozzini , which was developed among the Polish Brethren in the Minor Reformed Church of Poland during the 15th and 16th centuries and embraced also by the Unitarian Church of Transylvania during the same period...
and Roman Catholicism in weekly instruction to the undergraduates, he drew on such standard works of reformed scholasticism as Johannes Wollebius's Compendium theologiae Christianae and Johannes Piscator
Johannes Piscator
Johannes Piscator was a German Reformed theologian, known as a Bible translator and textbook writer.He was a prolific writer, and initially moved around as he held a number of positions...
's Aphorismi doctrinae Christianae. For more advanced students he led a study of biblical prophecy, using Thomas Parker
Thomas Parker (minister)
Thomas Parker was an English nonconforming clergyman and founder of Newbury, Massachusetts.-Life:He was born probably at Stanton St. Bernard, Wiltshire, the only son of the Reverend Robert Parker, M.A. and Dorothy Stephens. He was admitted into Magdalen College, Oxford, but left when his father...
's The Visions and Prophecies of Daniel Expounded (1646), a book by a New England minister which asserted that the pope was the antichrist
Antichrist
The term or title antichrist, in Christian theology, refers to a leader who fulfills Biblical prophecies concerning an adversary of Christ, while resembling him in a deceptive manner...
. Conant's style of leadership at Exeter attracted large numbers of students, including some from abroad. He was awarded the DD
Doctor of Divinity
Doctor of Divinity is an advanced academic degree in divinity. Historically, it identified one who had been licensed by a university to teach Christian theology or related religious subjects....
on 31 May 1654.
During his time as Rector of Exeter College, John Conant preached regularly at three nearby parishes: he preached every Friday morning at seven o'clock at All Saints' for more than ten years, developing a complete body of divinity for his auditors; he preached almost every Sunday for several years at St Michael's; and he preached at St Mary Magdalen's every other Sunday for half of each year. As vicar of Kidlington
Kidlington
Kidlington is a large village and civil parish between the River Cherwell and the Oxford Canal, north of Oxford and southwest of Bicester.-History:...
, near Oxford, which was annexed to the rectory of Exeter, he also preached frequently, although he declined the rectory of Ewelme
Ewelme
Ewelme is a village and civil parish in the Chiltern Hills in South Oxfordshire, northeast of the market town of Wallingford.To the east of the village is Cow Common and to the west, Benson Airfield, the north-eastern corner of which is within the parish boundary.The solid geology is chalk...
in Oxfordshire, which was also attached to the college.
In August 1651 he married Elizabeth Reynolds (d. 1707), youngest daughter of Edward Reynolds, then rector of Braunston, Northamptonshire; the couple had six sons and six daughters.
Conant was presbyterially ordained to the ministry at Salisbury in October 1652, and in September 1654 he was appointed Regius Professor of Divinity
Regius Professor of Divinity
The Regius Professorship of Divinity is one of the oldest and most prestigious of the professorships at the University of Oxford and at the University of Cambridge.Both chairs were founded by Henry VIII...
at Oxford. He lectured twice a week in order to fulfil the duties of that office, basing his lectures on the biblical annotations of Hugo Grotius
Hugo Grotius
Hugo Grotius , also known as Huig de Groot, Hugo Grocio or Hugo de Groot, was a jurist in the Dutch Republic. With Francisco de Vitoria and Alberico Gentili he laid the foundations for international law, based on natural law...
, whose philological scholarship was much admired even by those who rejected his Arminianism
Arminianism
Arminianism is a school of soteriological thought within Protestant Christianity based on the theological ideas of the Dutch Reformed theologian Jacobus Arminius and his historic followers, the Remonstrants...
. In 1657 as compensation for the sequestered income of his divinity chair, Conant was awarded by Oliver Cromwell
Oliver Cromwell
Oliver Cromwell was an English military and political leader who overthrew the English monarchy and temporarily turned England into a republican Commonwealth, and served as Lord Protector of England, Scotland, and Ireland....
the income from the rectory of Abergele
Abergele
Abergele is a community and old Roman trading town, situated on the north coast of Wales between the holiday resorts of Colwyn Bay and Rhyl, in Conwy County Borough. Its northern suburb of Pensarn lies on the Irish Sea coast and is known for its beach, where it is claimed by some that a ghost ship...
, Denbighshire
Denbighshire
Denbighshire is a county in north-east Wales. It is named after the historic county of Denbighshire, but has substantially different borders. Denbighshire has the distinction of being the oldest inhabited part of Wales. Pontnewydd Palaeolithic site has remains of Neanderthals from 225,000 years...
, returning much of which to its resident vicar and to the poor of the parish. None of his theological lectures were ever published, and Conant later destroyed his notes for them.
Shortly after Richard Cromwell
Richard Cromwell
At the same time, the officers of the New Model Army became increasingly wary about the government's commitment to the military cause. The fact that Richard Cromwell lacked military credentials grated with men who had fought on the battlefields of the English Civil War to secure their nation's...
succeeded his father as chancellor
Chancellor
Chancellor is the title of various official positions in the governments of many nations. The original chancellors were the Cancellarii of Roman courts of justice—ushers who sat at the cancelli or lattice work screens of a basilica or law court, which separated the judge and counsel from the...
of Oxford University, he named John Conant as vice-chancellor, on 9 October 1657. Prior to this the bursars' accounts of Jesus College show him handling payments to the university by 1654. While vice-chancellor Conant restored many traditions, such as the wearing of caps and hoods, which his predecessor John Owen
John Owen (theologian)
John Owen was an English Nonconformist church leader, theologian, and academic administrator at the University of Oxford.-Early life:...
had considered popish. He went to London in 1659 with Seth Ward
Seth Ward (bishop)
Seth Ward was an English mathematician, astronomer, and bishop.-Early life:He was born in Hertfordshire, and educated at Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge, where he graduated B.A. in 1636 and M.A. in 1640, becoming a Fellow in that year...
and John Wilkins
John Wilkins
John Wilkins FRS was an English clergyman, natural philosopher and author, as well as a founder of the Invisible College and one of the founders of the Royal Society, and Bishop of Chester from 1668 until his death....
to help thwart the grant of a university charter
University charter
University Charter redirects here. For the middle school in California, see University Charter School .University charter is a charter given by provincial, state, regional, and sometimes national governments to legitimize the university's existence.-Canada:In most Canadian province's university...
to Durham College
Durham College (17th-century)
New College, Durham was a university institution set up by Oliver Cromwell, to provide an alternative to the older University of Oxford and University of Cambridge. It also had the aim of bringing university education to Northern England. The idea met with opponents, including John Conant.Such a...
. And he now sought to enforce discipline in the whole university just as he had in Exeter College. In 1659 he was instrumental in procuring the enormous library of John Selden
John Selden
John Selden was an English jurist and a scholar of England's ancient laws and constitution and scholar of Jewish law...
for the Bodleian. On 8 June 1676, he was appointed archdeacon
Archdeacon
An archdeacon is a senior clergy position in Anglicanism, Syrian Malabar Nasrani, Chaldean Catholic, and some other Christian denominations, above that of most clergy and below a bishop. In the High Middle Ages it was the most senior diocesan position below a bishop in the Roman Catholic Church...
of Norwich
Norwich
Norwich is a city in England. It is the regional administrative centre and county town of Norfolk. During the 11th century, Norwich was the largest city in England after London, and one of the most important places in the kingdom...
.
Described by his contemporaries as thin and short in stature, Conant became completely blind in 1686. He died on 12 March 1694 and was buried in the rebuilt All Saints' Church, Northampton
All Saints' Church, Northampton
All Saints' Church, Northampton situated in the centre of Northampton, is a Parish Church of the Church of England and Northampton's Civic Church....
, where he is commemorated by a monument and Latin epitaph.
Sources
- Dictionary of National BiographyDictionary of National BiographyThe Dictionary of National Biography is a standard work of reference on notable figures from British history, published from 1885...