Richard Baxter (1615-91). Born at Rowton, Shropshire, and largely self-taught; studied in London under the patronage of Sir Henry Herbert, Master of the Revels (1633). His reaction against life at Court drove him home and into dissenting circles. Ordained (1638), Curate at Kidderminister (1641-60). Having at first preached for the Parliamentary Party during the Civil War, he changed sides to become Chaplain to Colonel Whalley's regiment (1645-47). An eminent Puritan divine, Baxter was famous for his classic devotional work, The Saints' Everlasting Rest (1650). Of almost 200 other works the best known are his Gildas Salvianus (1656) and his autobiography, Reliquiæ Baxterianæ; (1696). He suffered persecution, including imprisonment, for his views (1662-87).