Lawrence Echard

Born in Suffolk around 1670, Laurence Echard studied at Christ’s College, Cambridge, and went on to build a career in the Church of England. He was ordained, held church livings in Lincolnshire, and later became Archdeacon of Stow.

Alongside his church work, he wrote and translated a range of historical and classical books. His best-known achievement was The History of England, published in parts in the early 1700s, which became a standard history book of its day and was widely read for many years.

Echard died in 1730, but his reputation lasted because he helped bring history to a broad reading public. For listeners interested in older historical writing, his books offer a window into both England’s past and the way that past was interpreted in the early 18th century.