John Wilmot, Earl of Rochester

Rochester was born in Ditchley[?], Oxfordshire, and educated at Wadham College, Oxford. Having carried out the Grand Tour[?], he became the toast of the Restoration court and a patron of the arts. He married an heiress, Elizabeth Malet, but had many mistresses, including the actress Elizabeth Barry. Shortly before his death, he had a change of heart, largely thanks to the influence of Bishop Gilbert Burnet.