author
Nathaniel Ingelo
d. 1683
Best known for the allegorical romance Bentivolio and Urania, this 17th-century English clergyman also worked as a writer and musician. His life moved between church, court, and college, giving his work a distinctly learned and devotional character.
1 Audiobook
Prefaces to Four Seventeenth-Century Romances Roger Boyle, Lord Broghill, preface to Parthenissa (1655) Sir George Mackenzie, "Apologie for romances," prefixed to Aretina, the serious romance (1660) Nathaniel Ingelo, preface to Bentivolio and Urania (1660) Robert Boyle, preface to Theodora and Didymus (1687)
by Earl of Orrery Roger Boyle, Nathaniel Ingelo, George Mackenzie
About the author
Born around 1621, he became known as an English clergyman, writer, and musician. He is chiefly remembered for Bentivolio and Urania, published in two parts in 1660 and 1664, a work that blends romance, religion, and allegory in a way that makes him a distinctive figure in early English prose fiction.
His career was closely tied to education and the church. Sources describe him as an academic as well as a minister, and his life appears to have unfolded within the world of learned institutions and Restoration-era religious culture.
He died in August 1683 and was buried in Eton College Chapel. Although not widely read today, he remains of interest for readers exploring early fiction, devotional writing, and the literary byways of 17th-century England.