William Wotton - Events at Milton Keynes

Events At Milton Keynes

Throughout his adult life, Wotton was known to be “a most excellent preacher, but a drunken whoring soul”. He was also very extravagant, transforming his rectory into a 32-roomed mansion. He was, however, able to borrow money against future expectations of ecclesiastical preferment as a result of his close friendship with William Wake, then bishop of Lincoln.” Between the summer of 1711 and the Spring of 1712, Wotton appears to have experienced a Mid-life crisis, and he scandalized the neighbourhood on many occasions by being found drunk in public, or else was known to have spent prolonged periods in local brothels. As a result, he was initially warned about his behaviour by Wake, who later broke off their friendship and rescinded his promise of providing an additional living in Buckinghamshire. As soon as it became known that the rector's expectations had been dashed, local tradesmen began to press for the payment of their debts. In May 1714, Wotton was forced to abandon his rectory at Milton Keynes in order to avoid his creditors, and for seven years he lived at Carmarthen in south-west Wales under the assumed name of Dr. William Edwards.