Edward, descended from an ancient family, was born in Gloucestershire in 1616, and made the tour of Europe during the distractions of the civil war. After the restoration he went as secretary with the Earl of Carlisle, who carried the order of the garter to the king of Sweden. He was appointed tutor to the Duke of Grafton, natural son of Charles II., and was afterwards pitched on to instruct Prince George of Denmark in the English tongue. He died in 1703, and was buried in a vault in Chelsea churchyard. His monumental inscription mentions six books of his composition; and adds, that he was so desirous of doing service to posterity, that he ordered some copies of his books to be covered with wax, and buried along with him. That work by which he is best known is his Anglia Notitia, or the Present State of England, which has been often printed since.

John, son of the author of The Present State of England, and continuator of that useful work, was admitted into Trinity College, Oxford, in 1685; but it does not appear that he took any degree. Besides the Continuation just mentioned, he was author of "Dissertations, historical, critical, theological, and moral, on the most memorable events of the Old and New Testaments, with Chronological Tables," one volume folio; and translated a variety of works from the French, Dutch, and other languages. He was likewise Fellow of the Royal Society, and communicated some pieces, which were inserted in the Philosophical Transactions. It was said of him that he understood sixteen languages; but it is certain that he was master of the Greek, Latin, French, High and Low Dutch, Portuguese, and Italian. After a useful and well-spent life, he died in the year 1724.