Cotton Mather

Profession: Puritan Minister

Nationality:

Biography: Cotton Mather was a Puritan minister and author in colonial New England who produced over 400 works on theology, history, and science, making him a major intellectual figure of his time. He was a key influence in the lead-up to the Salem witch trials.

Mather was born into an elite Puritan family in Boston, Massachusetts, in 1663. He was the grandson of influential ministers Richard Mather and John Cotton, and was educated at Harvard College. In 1685, he became co-pastor of Boston's Old North Church alongside his father, Increase Mather.

Mather played a role in the overthrow of Anglican governor Edmund Andros in the 1689 Boston revolt. He published "Memorable Providences" in 1689, which laid the groundwork for the Salem witch trials. Mather defended the trials in his book "Wonders of the Invisible World" (1693), attracting controversy.

In the early 1700s, Mather feuded with royal governor Joseph Dudley over political control of Massachusetts. He published his influential ecclesiastical history, "Magnalia Christi Americana," in 1702. Mather also promoted inoculation against smallpox in 1721 after learning the technique from a slave named Onesimus.

Mather was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1713 for his scientific writings and research. After being denied the presidency of Harvard College, he advocated for Yale College as an intellectual bulwark of Puritanism.

Born: February 12, 1663
Birthplace: Boston, Massachusetts, USA
Star Sign: Aquarius

Died: February 13, 1728 (aged 65)