He was educated at Jesus College, Oxford, matriculating on 20 March 1690 and gaining various degrees thereafter: BA 1693, MA 1696, BD 1705, and DD 1712.
Whilst still a student, he assisted Edward Lhuyd in collecting archaeological information about Pembrokeshire and Carmarthenshire.
He helped institute a school in 1713, with the aid of local gentry, choosing a Welsh inscription: Aros a Llwydda ("Stay and Prosper").
He supported the work of the Society for the Propagation of Christian Knowledge and bought fifty copies of their edition of the Welsh Bible to assist with publication.
His eldest son also raised a memorial tablet in the church at Blockley, showing his coat of arms.