William Paley

William Paley (Peterborough, July 1743 – Lincoln, 25 May 1805) was an English Christian apologist and philosopher. He is best known for his exposition of the teleological argument for the existence of God in his work Natural Theology, which made use of the watchmaker analogy (also see natural theology). His book "A view of the evidences of Christianity", published in 1794, was a required reading for entrance to Cambridge University until well into the 20th century.