Daniel Finch, author of the Toleration Act of 1689, was one of the most important and able of later Stuart political leaders. His career as parliamentarian and minister spanned the half-century from the stormy years of the 1670s to the calmer 1720S. During this period he served as First Commissioner of the Admiralty in the Exclusion Crisis, Secretary of State under William III and again under Queen Anne, and President of the Council under George I.
