Ashley, Robert

, a Wiltshire gentleman, descended from the family of that name residing at Nashhill in that county, was born in 1565, and admitted a gentleman commoner of Hart hall in Oxford, in 1580. From the university he removed to the Middle Temple, where he was called to the dignity of barrister at law. After some time he travelled into Holland, France, &c. conversing with the learned, and frequenting the public libraries. Being returned into England, he lived many years in the Middle Temple, and honoured the commonwealth of learning with several of his lucubrations. He died in a good old age, the beginning of October 1641, and was buried in the Temple church the 4th of the same month. He gave several books to that society. His principal works were, 1. “A Relation of the kingdom of Cochin China,” Lond. 1633, 4to, which is chiefly taken from an Italian work of Christopher Barri. 2. A Translation from French into Latin verse of Du Bartas’s “Urania, or heavenly muse,” London, 1589, 4to. 3. A Translation from Spanish into English of “Au manzor, the learned and victorious king that conquered Spain, his life and death,” London, 1627, 4to. 4. A Translation from Italian into English of “II Davide perseguitate,” i.e. David persecuted, London, 1637, written originally by the marquis Virgilio Malvezzi. Wood tells us, that part of the impression of this book had a new title | put to it, bearing date 1650, with the picture before it of Charles I. playing on a harp, like king David, purposely to carry off the remaining copies. ¹