CALAMY, Edmund, grandson to the preceding (by his eldest son, Mr Edmund Calamy, who was ejected from the living of Moreton in Essex, in 1662), was born in London, April 5, 1671. After having learned the languages, and gone through a course of natural philosophy and logic at a private academy in England, he studied philosophy and civil law at the university of Utrecht, and attended the lectures of the learned Grævius. While there, an offer of a professor's chair in the university of Edinburgh was made him by Mr Carstairs, principal of that university, sent over on purpose to find a person properly qualified for such an office. This he declined, and returned to England in 1691, bringing with him letters from Grævius to Dr Pococke, canon of Christ Church and regius professor of Hebrew, and to Dr Bernard, Savilian professor of astronomy, who obtained leave for him to prosecute his studies in the Bodleian Library. Having resolved to make divinity his principal study, he entered into an examination of the controversy between the conformists and nonconformists, which determined him to join the latter; and, coming to London in 1692, he was unanimously chosen assistant to Mr Matthew Sylvester at Blackfriars. In 1694 he was ordained at Mr Annesley's meeting-house in Little St Helen's, and soon afterwards was invited to become assistant to Mr Daniel Williams in Hand-Alley. In 1702 he was chosen one of the lecturers in Salters' Hall; and in 1703 he succeeded Mr Vincent Alsop as pastor of a great congregation in Westminster. He drew up the table of contents to Baxter's History of his Life and Times, which was sent to the press in 1696; made some remarks on the work itself, and added to it an index; and, reflecting on the usefulness of the book, he saw the expediency of continuing it, as Baxter's history came no lower than the year 1684. Accordingly he composed an abridgment of it, with an account of many other ministers who were rejected after the restoration of Charles II.; their apology, containing the grounds of their nonconformity and practice as to stated and occasional communion with the Church of England; and a continuation of their history until the year 1691. This work was published in 1702. He afterwards published a moderate defence of nonconformity, in three tracts, in answer to some tracts of Dr Hoadley. In 1709 Mr Calamy made a tour to Scotland, and had the degree of doctor of divinity conferred on him by the universities of Edinburgh, Aberdeen, and Glasgow.
In 1713 he published a second edition of his Abridgment of Baxter's History of his Life and Times; in which, among various additions, there is a continuation of the history through King William's reign and Queen Anne's, down to the passing of the Occasional bill. At the end is subjoined the reformed liturgy, which was drawn up and presented to the bishops in 1661. In 1718 he wrote a vindication of his grandfather and several other persons, against certain reflections cast upon them by Archdeacon Echard in his History of England; and in 1728 appeared his continuation of the account of the ministers, lecturers, masters, and fellows of colleges, and schoolmasters, who were ejected, after the Restoration in 1660, by or before the Act of Uniformity. He died June 3, 1732. Besides the pieces already mentioned, he published a great many sermons on several subjects and occasions. He was twice married, and had thirteen children.