The English statesman George Villiers, 2d Duke of Buckingham (1628-1687), was influential in Restoration England. An advocate of religious toleration, he was also known as a rake and as the author of lewd poetry and prose.

Elder son of the Duke of Buckingham, Charles l's most powerful subject, George Villiers was born on Jan. 30, 1628. In November his father was assassinated by a Puritan fanatic, and George, his brother Francis, and his sisters became wards of the King. Educated with the royal princes, Buckingham and his brother then attended Trinity College, Cambridge, and George received a master of arts degree in 1642. With the outbreak of civil war in the same year, George (age 15) and Francis (13) left their studies to fight for their guardian. Their youthful valor resulted in the sequestration of their estates by Parliament.

By summer 1643 anxious relatives had prevailed upon the boys to abandon the fighting and...