William Barton (hymnologist) facts for kids

William Barton (born around 1598, died 1678) was an English writer who focused on hymns. Hymns are religious songs or poems. He was known for turning parts of the Bible, called Psalms, into songs that people could sing.

William Barton's Life Story

William Barton was born about 1598. He lived to be around 80 years old. Later in his life, he became the vicar of St. Martin's church in Leicester, England. A vicar is a type of church leader.

It is thought that Barton was also a vicar in Mayfield, Staffordshire, when the English Civil War began. This war was a big conflict in England during the 1640s. During this time, he was described as a good and skilled minister. He was also said to have been forced to leave his home and church because of soldiers called "cavaliers" who took things from people.

Barton was known as a "conforming Puritan." This means he followed the Puritan religious beliefs but also accepted the rules of the Church of England. We know he died in May 1678, at the age of 80.

William Barton's Writings

Barton's most famous work was his version of the Psalms, which are songs from the Bible. He rewrote them as poems that could be sung.

His Psalm Books

His first book of Psalms came out in 1644. He kept making changes and improvements to it over the years. New versions were printed in 1645, 1646, 1651, and 1654. The very last version, which he had worked on, was published after he died in 1682.

In the introduction to this final book, Barton explained that he had fixed any parts that sounded awkward. He also added many new ways to sing the songs. He mentioned that people in Scotland had created their own Psalm book using some of his work. He also talked about how some of his books were secretly printed in England and sent to Ireland.

In 1654, before his improved Psalm book came out, he wrote another book. It was called A View of the many Errors and some gross Absurdities in the old Translations of the Psalms in English Metre. This book pointed out mistakes in older versions of the Psalms.

Other Hymn Collections

In 1659, Barton published a book called A Century of Select Hymns. A "century" here means 100 hymns. He later made this book much bigger. In 1668, it became Four Centuries, with 400 hymns. Then, in 1688, it grew to Six Centuries, which had 600 hymns. His son, Edward Barton, who was also a minister, helped to publish this last version.

Barton dedicated his hymn collections to a famous judge named Sir Matthew Hale. Another important religious leader, Richard Baxter, even suggested that Barton should translate and write a song version of the Te Deum, which is an ancient Christian hymn.