Anthony Stafford

Anthony Stafford (1587–1645?) was an English Anglican devotional writer. He was in particular concerned for, and attacked over, the use of Marian devotions within the Church of England.

Life He was the fifth and youngest son of John Stafford of Blatherwycke, Northamptonshire, and his wife, Bridget Clopton. He matriculated as a gentleman commoner at Oriel College, Oxford, on 8 March 1605; in 1606 he entered the Inner Temple. A homosexual scandal hit his family in 1607, when his elder brother was executed for buggery, and he did not complete his education.

In 1609, "having then a design to publish certain matters", Stafford was permitted to study in the Bodleian Library. In 1622 he was in Antwerp, gathering intelligence for William Trumbull. It has been suggested that the poem was connected to a visit by Stafford to Berkeley Castle. There is a dedication to Robert Cecil, 1st Earl of Salisbury. or the objection may have been from her husband, Richard Sackville, 3rd Earl of Dorset. Guide of Honour; or the Ballance wherein she may weigh her actions (1634), undated and written abroad c.1621, dedicated to George Berkeley, 8th Baron Berkeley. A Synopsis or Compendium of the Fathers (1635), translation from the French of Daniel Tossanus. The Day of Salvation, or a Homily upon the Bloody Sacrifice of Christ (1635). A Wittie Encounter between Monsieur de Moulin and Monsieur de Balzac (1636), translation from the French. Honour and Virtue triumphing over the Grave, exemplified in a fair devout Life and Death, adorned with the surviving perfections of Henry, lord Stafford, lately deceased (1640), with elegies on the death of Henry Stafford, 5th Baron Stafford, mostly associated with St. John's College, Oxford. Life of the Blessed Virgin: Together With the Apology of the Author, Now First Printed, 1860 edition