John Webster

Martin Wiggins (University of Birmingham)
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John Webster was a Londoner, the son of a prosperous coachmaker, also John Webster, and his wife Elizabeth (

née

Coates). The family business was based in Cow Lane a few hundred yards north-west of the old city wall in the West Smithfield district where the Websters were based throughout John's life. In fact, we don't know precisely when he was born or died — the Great Fire of London in 1666 destroyed many of the capital's official records, including those which would have contained details of his baptism and burial — but his parents were married in November 1577 and he probably came into the world within a year or two. He had a younger brother, Edward (

c

. 1590-1644), and probably more than one sister.

John Webster senior was a member of the Merchant Taylors' Company, one of the craft

2226 words

Citation: Wiggins, Martin. "John Webster". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 20 November 2001 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/speople.php?rec=true&UID=4643, accessed 19 March 2024.]

4643 John Webster 1 Historical context notes are intended to give basic and preliminary information on a topic. In some cases they will be expanded into longer entries as the Literary Encyclopedia evolves.

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