before his graduation from Pembroke Hall in 1634. During his education, Crashaw gravitated to the High Church tradition in Anglicanism, particularly towards the ideals and ritual practices that emphasised the church's Catholic heritage. These practices were advocated by William Laud, the Archbishop of Canterbury. Laud, with the support of King Charles I, had reoriented the practices of the Church of England with a programme of reforms that sought "beauty in holiness". Laud sought to incorporate "more reverence and decorum in church ceremonial and service, in the decoration of churches, and in the elaboration of the ritual". This movement, called Laudianism, rose out of the influence of the Counter-Reformation. The University of Cambridge was a centre of the Laudian movement at the time of Crashaw's attendance. Richard Crashaw matriculated as a scholar at Pembroke on 26 March 1632. At that time, the college's master was the Reverend Benjamin Lany, an Anglican clergyman and friend of William Crashaw. Early in his career, Lany shared many of William Crashaw's Puritan beliefs. However, Lany's beliefs evolved toward more High Church practices. It is likely that Richard Crashaw was under Lany's influence while at Pembroke. Crashaw was acquainted with Nicholas Ferrar and participated in his Little Gidding community, a family religious group. Little Gidding was noted for its adherence to High Church rituals centred around Ferrar's model of a humble spiritual life of devoted to prayer and eschewing material, worldly life. Little Gidding was criticised by its Puritan detractors as a "Protestant Nunnery". Pembroke Hall conferred on Crashaw a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1634. This degree was promoted to a Master of Arts in 1638 by Cambridge, and through incorporation ad eundem gradum by the University of Oxford in 1641. High Churchman and Cambridge fellow Curate in Cambridge In 1636, Crashaw was elected a Fellow of Peterhouse at Cambridge. In 1638, he was ordained into the priesthood of the Church of England, and was installed as curate of the Church of St Mary the Less in Cambridge, England This church, commonly known as "Little St Mary's", is adjacent to Peterhouse and had served as the college chapel until 1632. Peterhouse's Master, John Cosin, and many of the college's Fellows, adhered to Laudianism and embraced the Anglican tradition's Catholic heritage. Crashaw became close to the Ferrar family and frequently visited Little Gidding. Crashaw incorporated these influences into his conduct at St Mary the Less. These