HACKET, JOHN, D.D. (1592-1670), bishop of Lichfield and Coventry, was educated first at Westminster and afterwards at Trinity College, Cambridge. In the civil war he espoused the royal cause with an indiscreet zeal that got him into trouble when victory sided with the parliament. At the Restoration, however, he was promoted to the bishopric of Lichfield and Coventry, which he held till his death. Hacket's name will be long remembered in the history of church architecture in Britain. He restored, with skill and success, the cathedral of Lichfield, which had been seriously damaged in the iconoclastic fury of the Puritans. With indefatigable zeal he set himself to collect subscriptions for its repair, which seems to have cost about L.20,000. Of this sum he contributed himself nearly one-tenth. As an author, Hacket is only known to have written Loyola, a comedy which was twice acted before James II. After his
Hackney death appeared a Century of Sermons on several remarkable subjects, and a Life of Archbishop Williams. All these works are now forgotten.