Archbishop of Canterbury. He served in this position from 1633 until his death. Born at Reading, Berkshire, England his father was a clothier. He received his education at Reading grammar school and enrolled at St. John's College, Oxford, England in October 1589, becoming a fellow of the college in 1593. He received his Bachelor of Arts Degree in 1594, his Master of Arts Degree in 1598, and his Doctor of Divinity in 1608. He was ordained a deacon in January 1601 and priest in April of that year. In 1611 he became President of St. John's College with the approval of King James I. In 1616 he became Dean of Gloucester and in 1621 he became Bishop of St. David's in Pembrokeshire, Wales. In September 1626 he took the court position of Dean of the Chapel Royal, London, England and in July 1628 he became Bishop of London. Following the death of Archbishop George Abbot in August 1633, he became Archbishop of Canterbury, during the Personal Rule of King Charles I, without recourse to the English Parliament. He was autocratic in matters of church polity and instituted what became known as "Laudianism," a collection of rules on matters of ritual, in particular, that were enforced by him in order to maintain uniform worship in England and Wales, that were in line with the preferences of Charles I. They would later become precursors to High Church views. In matters of theology, he was accused of being an Arminian and opponent of Calvinism, as well as covertly favoring Roman Catholic doctrines, and was regarded by Puritan clerics and laymen as a formidable and dangerous opponent. In late 1640 he was arrested for treason and was held initially for tactical reasons in the struggle between Charles I and the English parliament. When charges were actually brought, their main thrust was that he had run an ecclesiastical state within a state. His initial confinement was close, and he was allowed a visit to Lambeth Palace and his papers. He was later confined to the Tower of London. The ensuing trial has been called a "travesty of justice", in that he was clearly innocent of the major charges, which were not seriously documented, despite the run of his private papers. Testimony against him was subject to tampering. On the other hand, his defense of his own actions was not conducted with full candor and lesser charges sometimes stuck, despite his astute use of denial of personal responsibility. In January 1645 he was executed by beheading at Tower Hill, London, at the age of 71. After his execution, the office of Archbishop of Canterbury remained vacant 15 years until September 1660 with the installment of William Juxon. He is remembered in the Anglican Communion with a Commemoration on January 10th