RICHARD, was the son of William Crashaw, an eminent divine, and educated at the charterhouse near London. He was then sent to Pembroke-hall in Cambridge, and was afterwards of Peter-house, of which he became fellow. In both colleges he was distinguished for his Latin and English poetry. Subsequently, however, he was ejected from his fellowship, together with many others, for denying the covenant in the time of the rebellion; and he changed his religion, being by catholic artifices induced to reconcile himself to the church of Rome; being not converted, but rather, as Pope says, outwitted. He went to Paris, in hopes of recommending himself to some preferment there; but being a mere scholar, he was incapable of executing the plan he had formed, and fell into great distress. But, in 1646, Cowley the poet hearing of his situation, very kindly sought him out, gave him all the assistance he could, and at last got him recommended to Henrietta Maria, queen of England, then residing at Paris. Having obtained from her letters of recommendation, Crashaw travelled into Italy; and, by virtue of those letters, became secretary to a cardinal at Rome, and at last one of the canons or chaplains of the rich church of Our Lady at Loreto, some miles distant from thence, where he died and was buried about 1650. Before he left England, he wrote certain poems, entitled Steps to the Temple; because, says Wood, he led his life in the temple of God, in St Mary's church, near to his college. To the Steps are joined other poems entitled The Delight of the Muses, among which are several Latin poems of considerable merit. He also wrote Carmen Deo Nostro, and other sacred poems, addressed to the Countess of Denbigh. He excelled in five languages besides his mother tongue, namely, Hebrew, Greek, Latin, Italian, and Spanish.