John Ashwood (1657–1706) was an English Nonconformist minister and author in the 16th-17th century.

Life

Ashwood was born in

Axminster Axminster is a market town and civil parish on the eastern border of the county of Devon in England. It is from the county town of Exeter. The town is built on a hill overlooking the River Axe which heads towards the English Channel at Axmou ...

in 1657. In his youth he was extremely delicate. He was educated by his father,

Bartholomew Ashwood Bartholomew Ashwood (1622–1680) was an English puritan divine. Life Ashwood was 'a Warwickshire man,' son of a clergyman of the same name (who matriculated at Magdalen College, Oxford, in 1591, also as a Warwickshire man, aged 13, and proceede ...

, and admitted "as a member of his father's church." Soon after he was sent to London, where he was received into the family of the learned

Theophilus Gale Theophilus Gale (1628–1678) was an English educationalist, nonconformist and theologian of dissent. Early life Gale was born at Kingsteignton, Devon, the son of Bridget Gale (née Walrond) and Theophilus Gale D. D. (died 1639), vicar of Kingste ...

, who acted as his instructor. Before he began to preach he taught a school at Axminster, and afterwards at

Chard, Somerset Chard is a town and a civil parish in the English county of Somerset. It lies on the A30 road near the Devon and Dorset borders, south west of Yeovil. The parish has a population of approximately 13,000 and, at an elevation of , Chard is the s ...

. Driven from Chard as a conscience-ruled Nonconformist by

high-church The term ''high church'' refers to beliefs and practices of Christian ecclesiology, liturgy, and theology that emphasize formality and resistance to modernisation. Although used in connection with various Christian traditions, the term originated ...

intolerance, he decided with some friends to emigrate to Carolina in January 1683; but was prevented by a sudden attack of smallpox. He then appears to have resided successively at

Ilminster Ilminster is a minster town and civil parish in the South Somerset district of Somerset, England, with a population of 5,808. Bypassed in 1988, the town now lies just east of the junction of the A303 (London to Exeter) and the A358 (Taunton to ...

, Haveland, and Buckland, until he received a call to

Exeter Exeter () is a city in Devon, South West England. It is situated on the River Exe, approximately northeast of Plymouth and southwest of Bristol. In Roman Britain, Exeter was established as the base of Legio II Augusta under the personal comm ...

, where he was a minister for about ten years. He subsequently returned to London. For about two years he was evening lecturer at

Spitalfields Spitalfields is a district in the East End of London and within the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. The area is formed around Commercial Street (on the A1202 London Inner Ring Road) and includes the locale around Brick Lane, Christ Church, ...

, and morning preacher at

Hoxton Hoxton is an area in the London Borough of Hackney, England. As a part of Shoreditch, it is often considered to be part of the East End – the historic core of wider East London. It was historically in the county of Middlesex until 1889. I ...

, when he received a call from a congregation at

Peckham Peckham () is a district in southeast London, within the London Borough of Southwark. It is south-east of Charing Cross. At the United Kingdom Census 2001, 2001 Census the Peckham ward had a population of 14,720. History "Peckham" is a Saxon p ...

, Surrey. He died there on 22 September 1706.

Works

His ''Life'' was for long a favourite fireside companion among devout Nonconformists, circulating as a chap-book, ''Some Account of the Life, Character, and Death of the Rev. Mr. John Ashwood'', by

Thomas Reynolds Thomas, Tom or Tommy Reynolds may refer to: Politics * Thomas Reynolds (Assemblyman) (1840–1919), member of the Wisconsin State Assembly *Thomas Reynolds (Australian politician) (1818–1875), Premier of South Australia, 1860–1861 *Thomas Reyno ...

(1707). Added to the ''Account'' are two sermons preached shortly before he died.

References

;Attribution: {{DEFAULTSORT:Ashwood, John 1657 births 1706 deaths English Christian religious leaders 17th-century English clergy 18th-century English clergy People from Axminster Schoolteachers from Devon