William Cotton (died 1621) was Bishop of Exeter, in Devon, from 1598 to his death in 1621.

Origins

William Cotton was brought up in Finchley,

Middlesex Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a historic county in southeast England. Its area is almost entirely within the wider urbanised area of London and mostly within the ceremonial county of Greater London, with small sections in neighbour ...

. He was the eldest son of John Cotton, a Citizen of the

City of London The City of London is a city, ceremonial county and local government district that contains the historic centre and constitutes, alongside Canary Wharf, the primary central business district (CBD) of London. It constituted most of London f ...

by his wife Pery Cheyne. John Cotton was the third son of Richard Cotton (died 1534) of Hamstall Ridware in Staffordshire, descended from William Cotton (fl.1378,1400) lord of the manor of Cotton in Cheshire, by his wife Agnes de Ridware, daughter and heiress of Walter de Ridware, lord of the manor of Hamstall Ridware. The junior branch of the Cotton family descended from Agnes de Ridware adopted the armorials of Ridware (''Azure, an eagle displayed argent'') in lieu of their paternal arms of Cotton, which junior branch included Sir Robert Cotton, 1st Baronet (1570–1631) of Conington in Huntingdonshire, founder of the

Cottonian Library The Cotton or Cottonian library is a collection of manuscripts once owned by Sir Robert Bruce Cotton MP (1571–1631), an antiquarian and bibliophile. It later became the basis of what is now the British Library, which still holds the collection. ...

. The senior branch, of which Bishop Cotton was a member, retained the ancient arms of Cotton (''Argent, a bend sable between three pellets''), as is visible on the monuments in Exeter Cathedral to Bishop William Cotton himself and on that of his grandson Edward Cotton (died 1675), Treasurer of Exeter Cathedral.

Career

He graduated M.A. at Queens' College, Cambridge in 1575. He was Archdeacon of Lewes, in Sussex, from 1578 to 1598, when he became Bishop of Exeter. He was confrontational in his relationship with the

Puritan The Puritans were English Protestants in the 16th and 17th centuries who sought to purify the Church of England of Roman Catholic practices, maintaining that the Church of England had not been fully reformed and should become more Protestant. ...

s of his diocese. He objected strongly to the nomination of John Hazard as Bodley lecturer. Cotton suspected Hazard of "false doctrine", of intrusion into congregations that already had preachers, and association with John Traske, the

seventh-day Sabbatarian The seventh-day Sabbath, observed from Friday evening to Saturday evening, is an important part of the beliefs and practices of seventh-day churches. These churches emphasize biblical references such as the ancient Hebrew practice of beginning a ...

, which Hazard denied. George Abbot, Archbishop of Canterbury, had licensed Hazard to preach, but Cotton was not satisfied with that.

Marriage and children

He married Mary Hulme, a daughter of Thomas Hulme of Cheshire and widow of William Cutler, a Citizen of the

.'Pedigree of Cotton', in J.L. Vivian (ed.), ''The Visitations of the County of Devon: Comprising the Heralds' Visitations of 1531, 1564 & 1620'' (Author/Henry S. Eland, Exeter 1895), pp. 240-42
at p. 241
(Hathi Trust). By his wife he had children as follows: * William Cotton (died 1656), eldest son and heir, Rector of Silverton, Archdeacon of Totnes, and Precentor of Exeter Cathedral, all in Devon. He married Elizabeth Hender, a daughter and co-heiress of John Hender of Botreaux Castle, Cornwall. * Edward Cotton (died 1647), Rector of

Shobrooke Shobrooke is a village, parish and former manor in Devon, England. The village is situated about 1 1/2 miles north-east of Crediton. It is located close to Shobrooke park. The river Shobrooke Lake flows through the village. It had a populatio ...

and Archdeacon of Totnes, both in Devon. He married Margaret Bruton (''alias'' Breton) daughter of William Bruton of

Heavitree Heavitree is a historic village and parish situated formerly outside the walls of the City of Exeter in Devon, England, and is today an eastern district of that city. It was formerly the first significant village outside the city on the road to ...

, near Exeter. His monument survives in Shobrooke Church. *Judith Cotton, wife first of Freeman Page of Finchley in Middlesex, secondly of Roger Coniers of Finchley, Hertfordshire (sic).

Death and burial

He died on 6 August 1621 and was buried in Exeter Cathedral where his fine monument with recumbent effigy survives.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Cotton, William 16th-century births 1621 deaths Year of birth missing People educated at Royal Grammar School, Guildford Bishops of Exeter Archdeacons of Lewes People from Finchley Alumni of Queens' College, Cambridge 17th-century Church of England bishops 16th-century Church of England bishops