Henry Cooke
Henry Cooke (Captain Henry Cooke; about 1616-72) was an English composer, actor and singer. At the outbreak of the
English Civil War he was a chorister in the
Chapel Royal and joined the
Royalist cause, in the service of which he rose to the rank of Captain. With the
Restoration of
Charles II he returned to the Chapel Royal as Master of the Children and was responsible for the rebuilding of the Chapel and the introduction of instrumental music into the services. The choristers in his charge included his successor and eventual son-in-law
Pelham Humfrey, as well as
Henry Purcell and
John Blow.
