William Austin was a lawyer of Lincoln's Inn active during the reign of Charles I. Following his death on January 16, 1633, his widow, Ann Austin, published his volume Devotionis Augustinianae Flamma in 1635. This work contains three carols for Christmas Day, three poems for Good Friday, one poem for the Annunciation, and a poem written in anticipation of his own death.
In the Harleian manuscripts, Ralph Crane's A Handful of Celestiall Flowers preserves additional hymns by Austin, including "What a gracious God have we." His carol beginning "All this Night shrill Chauntecleere / Daye's proclaiming Trumpeter" was adapted into the popular Christmas carol "All this night bright Angels sing." Austin lies buried in the north transept of St. Saviour's, Southwark, where a monument displays representations of Austin, his wife, and their children.
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