HERAUD, JOHN ABRAHAM (1799-1887).--Poet, _b._ in London, of Huguenot descent, he contributed to various periodicals, and _pub._ two poems, which attracted some attention, _The Descent into Hell_ (1830), and _The Judgment of the Flood_ (1834). He also produced a few plays, miscellaneous poems, books of travel, etc. HERBERT, of CHERBURY, EDWARD, 1ST LORD (1583-1648).--Philosopher and historian, was the eldest _s._ of Richard H., of Montgomery Castle, and was _b._ there or at Eyton, Shropshire. He was at Oxf., and while there, at the age of 16, he _m._ a kinswoman four years his senior, the _dau._ of Sir William H. Thereafter he returned to the Univ. and devoted himself to study, and to the practice of manly sports and accomplishments. At his coronation in 1603 James I. made him a Knight of the Bath, and in 1608 he went to the Continent, where for some years he was engaged in military and diplomatic affairs, not without his share of troubles. In 1624 he was _cr._ an Irish, and a few years later, an English, peer, as Baron H., of Cherbury. On the outbreak of the Civil War he sided, though somewhat half-heartedly, with the Royalists, but in 1644 he surrendered to the Parliament, received a pension, held various offices, and _d._ in 1648. It was in 1624 that he wrote his treatise, _De Veritate_, "An empirical theory of knowledge," in which truth is distinguished from (1) revelation, (2) the probable, (3) the possible, (4) the false. It is the first purely metaphysical work written by an Englishman, and gave rise to much controversy. It was reprinted in 1645, when the author added two treatises, _De Causis Errorum_ (concerning the Causes of Errors), and _De Religione Laici_ (concerning the Religion of a Layman). His other chief philosophical work was _De Religione Gentilium_ (1663), of which an English translation appeared in 1705, under the title of _The Ancient Religion of the Gentiles and Cause of their Errors considered_. It has been called "the charter of the Deists," and was intended to prove that "all religions recognise five main articles--(1) a Supreme God, (2) who ought to be worshipped, (3) that virtue and purity are the essence of that worship, (4) that sin should be repented of, and (5) rewards and punishments in a future state." Among his historical works are _Expeditio Buckinghamii Ducis_ (1656), a vindication of the Rochelle expedition, a _Life of Henry VIII._ (1649), extremely partial to the King, his _Autobiography_, which gives a brilliant picture of his contemporaries, and of the manners and events of his time, and a somewhat vainglorious account of himself and his doings. He was also the author of some poems of a metaphysical cast. On the whole his is one of the most shining and spirited figures of the time. Autobiography ed. by S. Lee (1886). Poems ed. by J. Churton Collins, etc.