| Description | Engraving published by J Sewell 1794 of Archibald Bower (17 January 1686 – 3 September 1766) was a Scottish historian, now noted for his complicated and varying religious faith, and the accounts he gave of it, now considered by scholars to lack credibility. Educated at the Scots College, Douai, Bower became a Jesuit in Rome. He joined the Church of England a while after returning to London in 1726. He wrote a History of the Popes (1748–66, 7 volumes). This work was drawn into a damaging controversy concerning his apparent return to the Jesuit or Catholic fold. By the end of his life, it appeared he had changed religion three times. |