Snape, Andrew

, a learned divine, was the son of Andrew Snape, serjeant-farrier to Charles II. and author of “The Anatomy of a Horse,” which has been several times printed in folio, with a considerable number of copperplates and a portrait. It is said that one or other of the family of Snape had been serjeant-farrier to the king for three centuries. The subject of this article was born at Hampton-court, and admitted into Eton college in 1683, and of King’s college, Cambridge, in 1689. After taking his degrees, of B. A. in 1693, and M. A. in 1697, he obtained a fellowship, and went to London, where he was much admired as a preacher, and was elected lecturer of St. Martin’s-in-the-Fields, and afterwards held the rectory of St. Mary-at-Hill. He was created D. D. in 1705, and represented the university of Cambridge, in that faculty, at the Jubilee atFrancfortin 1707, when the university of Francfort intending to celebrate the jubilee of its foundation by the house of Brandenburgh in 1507, sent a formal invitation to Cambridge to be present at it, or to depute some of the members to represent it. This was accordingly complied with, by sending over Dr. Snape, for divinity, Dr. Peurice for law, Dr. Plumptre for medicine, and William Grigg, M. A. and John Wyvill, M. A. as regent and nonregent masters. These representatives were received with the greatest kindness, the king of Prussia himself assisting | at the ceremony. While Dr. Snape was in Germany, he took an opportunity to pay his duty to the princess Sophia of Hanover, and preached a sermon before her, which he afterwards printed under the title of “The just prerogative of Human Nature.”

In 1717, on the breaking out of the Bangorian controversy, he took a zealous part against Hoadly, in a “Letter to the bishop of Bangor,” which was so extremely popular as to pass through seventeen editions in a year; but Hoadly’s interest at court prevailed, and in so extraordinary a degree, that in the same year, 1717, Dr. Snape, as well as Dr. Sherlock, were removed from the office of chaplain to his majesty. Atterbury, in a letter to bishop Trelawny, on this occasion, says; “These are very extraordinary steps; the effects of wisdom, no doubt; but of so deep a wisdom, that I, for my part, am not able to fathom it.”

In 1713, he had been installed a canon of Windsor, and on Feb. 21, 1719, was elected provost of King’s college, although the court-interest was in favour of Dr. Waddington. In 1723 he served the office of vice-chancellor of the university, and gave every satisfaction in discharging the duties of both offices. The revenues of the college were greatly augmented in his time, by the assistance of some fellows of the college, his particular friends. It was said that in 1722 he drew up the address to his majesty, George II. upon the institution of Whitehall preachers, “an address,” says Dr. Zachary Grey, “worthy of the imitation of both universities on all occasions of the like kind, as it was thought to have nothing redundant or defective in it.” He was for a short time rector of Knebworth in Hertfordshire, and afterwards, in 1737, of West-Ildesley in Berkshire. This last he retained till his death, which happened at his lodgings at Windsor castle, Dec, 30, 1742. He was buried at the east end of the south aile of the choir of the chapel, near his wife, who died in 1731. She was, when he married her, the opulent widow of sir Joshua Sharpe, knt. and alderman of London. It remains yet to be added to his preferments that he was several years head master of Eton school. He was a man of great learning and acuteness, and of an amiable temper. His zeal for the principles of the church of England was warm and honest, for it procured him many enemies, and probably obstructed his promotron. In 17 15, '3 vols. 8vo. of his “Sermons” were published by Drs. Berriman and Chapman. He had | himself been editor of Dean Moss’s Sermons, and gave that divine a character which was thought to resemble his own. Although we seldom notice such matters, it may be worth while to add that there was a 4to mezzotinto print of him, which, after he was out of fashion, the print-sellers imposed on the public as the portrait of orator Henley.¹