John Newton (1721-1807)

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John Newton (1721-1807) was born in London, the son of the commander of a merchant sea ship which sailed the mediterranean. At the age of eleven he went to sea with his father, and made six trips with him before his dad retired. At the age of 19, Newton was forced into service on H.M.S Harwich; but finding conditions intolerable, deserted, but was soon recaptured and publically flogged and demoted from midshipman to common seaman. Finally he was moved to service on a slave ship, and had his first bit of luck as a seaman, when at the age of 23 he was rescued by another Captain who had known his father. He would ultimately become captain of his own ship plying the slave routes off the coast of Sierra Leone.

It was around this time that he converted to being a practicing Christian. He married in 1750, and retired from seafaring in 1755 after serious illness, and until 1760 worked as surveyor of tides in Liverpool. By this time he had become fully committed to his faith, and he became ordained as a minister; and also became friendly with William Cowper, who he would collaborate with to produce some of the most famous hymns that we now know, such as Amazing Grace. He continued to preach, and in 1780 left his Olney parish to became rector of a parish in Woolwich, London; where he would stay until his death over 25 years later.