Who were Alexander Leighton and William Prynne?

Alexander Leighton and William Prynne were both prominent Puritan propagandists who faced severe persecution under the authority of William Laud, the archbishop of Canterbury from 1633 to 1645.1

• William Prynne (1600–1669) was an English lawyer and Puritan pamphleteer who frequently attacked the ceremonialism of the Anglican Church. His writings, such as Histrio Mastix, led to his imprisonment by Laud, where he suffered brutal punishments, including having his ears partially cut off and his cheeks branded with the letters "S.L." for "seditious libeler". After being freed by the Long Parliament in 1640, Prynne played a key role in the trial and eventual execution of Archbishop Laud.21

• Alexander Leighton (c. 1568–1649) was a Presbyterian whose religious activities also drew the ire of Archbishop Laud. He was a celebrated Puritan propagandist who was imprisoned and mutilated for his writings. He is also noted as the father of the Scottish minister and devotional writer Robert Leighton.13