author
Nathaniel Ward
1578–1652
A sharp-tongued Puritan minister and pamphleteer, he left a mark on both early New England politics and religious life. He is best remembered for helping shape the Massachusetts Body of Liberties and for writing the lively, opinionated book The Simple Cobbler of Aggawam in America.
1 Audiobook
The Simple Cobler of Aggawam in America
by Nathaniel Ward
About the author
Born in Haverhill, Suffolk, around 1578, he studied at Emmanuel College, Cambridge, and later trained in law before turning fully toward the ministry. His life moved between England and colonial Massachusetts, and that mix of legal and religious experience helped shape his writing and public work.
After conflicts with church authorities in England, he emigrated to Massachusetts in the 1630s and became the first minister of Ipswich. He is often linked with the 1641 Massachusetts Body of Liberties, an important early legal code in New England, and he also wrote The Simple Cobbler of Aggawam in America, a spirited and often satirical defense of Puritan ideals.
Ward returned to England later in life and died in 1652. His reputation rests on his forceful prose, strong opinions, and his place in the story of early colonial law and religion.