nadulterated Welsh. His “Poems” were published in 1792, 8vo, by Mr. Owen Jones and Mr. William Owen, who think that in invention, harmony, perspicuity, and elegance
, the Ovid of Wales, and one of
the most famous Welsh bards, was born in 1340 at Brogydin, in the county of Cardigan. He was brought up in the
family of Llewelyn ap Guilym Fychan, styled lord of Cardigan, at Emlyn, until he was fifteen years of age; at
which period he removed, after a short stay with his parents, and settled as steward and private tutor in the family
of Ivor Hael. Like other itinerant bards of that age, he
often visited different parts of the principality, and was so
universally admired, that he has been claimed by the men
of Anglesea as their countryman; and was generally
known by the name of David of Glamorgan, and the nightingale of Teivi vale, in Cardiganshire. He died about
1400. Excepting music and a few Latin words, which he
might pick up at mass, it cannot be ascertained from his
works, that he had any acquaintance with the sciences or
learned languages; for his poems consist chiefly of lively
descriptions of nature, written in pure unadulterated
Welsh. His “Poems
” were published in
erable eminence in his day, was the son of Edward Gwinne, descended from an ancient family in Wales, who at this time resided in London. His son was educated at Merchant
, an English physician of considerable eminence in his day, was the son of Edward Gwinne, descended from an ancient family in Wales, who at this time resided in London. His son was educated at Merchant Taylors’ school, whence in 1574 he was elected a scholar of St. John’s college, Oxford, took the degree of B. A. May 14, 1578, and was afterwards perpetual fellow of the college. It was the custom at that time in Oxford for the convocation to appoint a certain number of regent masters, to read each of them upon some one of the liberal arts two years, for which they received a small stipend, levied upon the younger scholars. This provision was made, before the public professorships were settled and supported by fixed salaries. Agreeably to this practice, Mr. Gwinne was made regent-master in July 1582, and appointed to read upon music, and there is extant a manuscript oration of his upon that subject, spoken Oct. 15, of that year, in which he calls himself prelector musica publicus. When he had taken his degrees in arts, he studied physic, and practised in and about Oxford for several years. In 1588 he was chosen junior proctor of the university, and in 1592 distinguished himself in a disputation at Oxford before queen Elizabeth. On July 17, 1593, he was created doctor of physic. He obtained leave of the college in 1595, to attend sir Henry Union, ambassador from queen Elizabeth to the French court, and continued with him during his absence abroad.
uestion respecting the salutary or hurtful nature of tobacco, proposed in compliment to his majesty, who was a professed enemy to that weed. In the evening of the same
Upon the settlement of Gresham college, he vras chosen
the first professor of physic about the beginning of March
1596, being one of the two nominated by the university of
Oxford. On the 25th June, 1604, he was admitted a candidate of the College of Physicians of London; at the beginning of 1605 was made physician of the Tower; and on
Dec. 22 in the same year, was chosen a fellow of the college. In the month of August of that year, king James
and his queen, with prince Henry and their courts, went
to Oxford, where they were entertained with academical
exercises of all kinds, in which Dr. Gwinne again distinguished himself, particularly in a question respecting the
salutary or hurtful nature of tobacco, proposed in compliment to his majesty, who was a professed enemy to that
weed. In the evening of the same day, a Latin comedy
was acted at St. John’s college, written by Dr. Gwinne,
and entitled “Vertumnus, sive Annus recurrens.
”
rederick I. to the throne, and gained constantly greater influence during the reign of this monarch, who appointed him counsellor of the Swedish empire, and chancellor
Gyllenborg afterwards waited on Charles XII. and was
appointed, with baron Goertz, minister-plenipotentiary at
the conferences of pacification which were opened with
the court of Russia in the isle of Aland, but which terminated without success. In 1719 he was raised to the dignity of high chancellor of Sweden. In the beginning of
the following year he also acted an important part in the
negociations respecting the accession of Frederick I. to the
throne, and gained constantly greater influence during the
reign of this monarch, who appointed him counsellor of
the Swedish empire, and chancellor of the university of
Lund; and in 1739, when a great change took place in the
senate and ministry, in which he took an active part, he
was made president of chancery, minister for the foreign
and home departments, and soon after chancellor of tin*
university of Upsal. He died Dec. 14, 1746, with a high
character for political talent, general learning, and ambition to promote learning and science in his country. He
left to the university of Upsal, his valuable cabinet of natural history, remarkable for a great number of amphibious
productions and corals, which Linnæus has described under
the title “Amphibia Gyllenborgiana.
” He appears also
to have been a man of a religious turn of mind, from his
translating into the Swedish language Sherlock’s “Discourse on Death,
” but which he could not get licensed,
as the Swedish clergy pretended to find some things in it
contrary to sound doctrine. He procured it, therefore, to
be printed in Holland, and distributed the whole edition
for the benefit of his countrymen. He als* translated some
English comedies, with alterations suitable to the genius
of the Swedes, which were acted with applause at Stockholm. He had a concern in a periodical paper called the
“Argus,
” printed at Stockholm, but which, owing to the
editor meddling imprudently with politics, appears to have
been discountenanced. The count married an English
lady, second daughter of John Wright, esq. attorney-general of Jamaica, and widow of Elias Deritt, esq. deputy o'f
the great wardrobe under the duke of Montague, by whom
he had no issue; the counts of his name in Sweden are his
collateral relations. His lady’s daughter by Mr. Deritt,
accompanying her mother to Sweden, was created countess
Gyllenborg, and afterwards married Baron Sparre, on
whose dqath she returned to England, where she died in
1766, and her daughter by the Baron died at Thirske in
Yorkshire in 1778.
, who is said to have first suggested the weekly meetings of the royal
, who is said to have first suggested
the weekly meetings of the royal society, and was one of
its first fellows when established after the restoration, was
born in 1605, at Newhausen, near Worms in the Palatinate, and educated at home. In 1625 he came to Oxford,
and studied there about half a year, whence he went for
the same time to Cambridge. He then visited some of the
universities abroad, but returned to Oxford in 1629, and
became a commoner of Gloucester-hall (now Worcester college). Here he remained three years, but without
taking a degree, and, as Wood says, was made a deacon
by Dr. Joseph Hall, the celebrated bishop of Exeter. He
does not, however, appear to have proceeded farther in
ecclesiastical ordination, and both in his translation of the
“Dutch Annotations,
” and in the lists of the royal society,
we find him afterwards styled “Theodore Haak, Esq.
” In
the time of the German wars he was appointed one of the
procurators to receive the benevolence money, which was
raised in several dioceses in England to be transmitted to
Germany, which he used to say “was a deacon’s work.
”
When the rebellion broke out in this country, he appears
to have favoured the interests of parliament. In 1657 he
published in 2 vols, folio, what is called the “Dutch Annotations upon the whole Bible,
” which is a translation of the
Dutch Bible, ordered by the synod of Dort, and first published in 1637. Wood says that the Dutch translators
were assisted in this undertaking by bishops Carleton,
Davenant, Hall, and other English divines, who were
members of the synod of Dort; but, according to the preface, the only assistance they gave was in laying before
the synod an account of the manner in which king James’s
translation had been performed by the co-operation of a
number of the most eminent divines in England. The
synod accordingly adopted the same plan; and their annotations being considered of great value to biblical students,
the Westminster assembly of divines employed Haak in
making this English translation, and the parliament granted
him a sole right in it for fourteen years from the time of
publication. Haak also translated into Dutch several English books of practical divinity, and one half of Milton’s
“Paradise Lost.
” He left nearly ready for the press, a
translation of German proverbs, but it does not appear
that this was published. He was in 1645 one of several
ingenious men (Dr. Wilkins, Dr. Wallis, Dr. Goddard, &c.)
who agreed to meet once a week to discourse upon subjects
connected with mathematics and natural philosophy, and
it was he who first suggested this humble plan on which,
the royal society was afterwards formed. Mr. Haak died
at the house of his kinsman Dr. Slare, a physician near
Fetter-lane, London, May 9, 1690, and was buried in St.
Andrew’s church, Holborn. Dr. Horneck preached his
funeral sermon. He appears to have been the friend and
correspondent of the most learned men of his time, and
has some observations and letters in the “Philosophical
Collections,
” published in May
rench academy, and appointed commissioner of artillery, through the interest of M. de la Meilleraye, who had a great regard for him. He unfortunately perished at the
, a French poet of the seventeenth
century, was abbot of Notre Dame de Cerisy, one of the
first members of the French academy, and the most distinguished among the beaux esprits of his time. He died
in 1655, and left several poems; that entitled “Metamorphose des Yeux d'Iris changes en Astres,
” Life, or Panegyric of Cardinal de Berulle,
” Le Temple de la Mort,
” written
on the death of M. de la "Meilleraye’s first wife, which
was once much admired.
ford, and afterwards travelled to Rheims and Paris. On his return he involved himself with the party who laboured to release Mary queen of Scots, and was afterwards
, an excellent English poet, was descended from a Roman catholic family. His greatgrandfather was Richard Habington or Abington of Brockhampton, in Herefordshire. His grandfather, John, second son of this Richard Habington, and cofferer to queen Elizabeth, was born in 1515, and died in 1581. He bought the manor of Hindlip, in Worcestershire, and rebuilt the mansion about 1572. His father, Thomas Habington, was born at Thorpe, in Surrey, 1560, studied at Oxford, and afterwards travelled to Rheims and Paris. On his return he involved himself with the party who laboured to release Mary queen of Scots, and was afterwards imprisoned on a suspicion of being concerned in Babington’s conspiracy. During this imprisonment, which lasted six years, he employed his time in study. Having been at length released, and his life saved, as is supposed on account of his being queen Elizabeth’s godson, he retired to Hindlip, and married Mary, eldest daughter of Edward Parker lord Morley, by Elizabeth, daughter and sole heir of sir William Stanley, lord Monteagle.
ouse, and was condemned to die, but pardoned by the intercession of his brother-in-law, lord Morley, who discovered the plot by the famous letter of warning, which Mrs.
On the detection of the gunpowder plot, he again fell
under the displeasure of government, by concealing some
of the agents in that affair in his house, and was
condemned to die, but pardoned by the intercession of his
brother-in-law, lord Morley, who discovered the plot by
the famous letter of warning, which Mrs. Habington is reported to have written. The condition of his pardon was,
that he should never stir out of Worcestershire. With
this he appears to have complied, and devoted his time,
among other pursuits, to the history and antiquities of
that county, of which he left three folio volumes of parochial antiquities, two of miscellaneous collections, and one
relating to the cathedral. These received additions from
his son and from Dr. Thomas, of whom bishop Lyttelton
purchased them, and presented them to the society of
antiquaries. They have since formed the foundation of
Dr. Nash’s elaborate history. Wood says he had a hand
in the “History of Edward IV.
” published afterwards
under the name of his son, the poet, whom he survived
dying in 1647, at the advanced age of eighty -seven.
order, which he declined. On his return from the continent he resided principally with, his father, who became his preceptor, and evidently sent him into the world
William Habington, his eldest son, was born at Hindlip,
Nov. 5, 1605, and was educated in the Jesuits’ college at
St. Omer’s, and afterwards at Paris, with a view to induce
him to take the habit of the order, which he declined. On
his return from the continent he resided principally with,
his father, who became his preceptor, and evidently sent him
into the world a man of elegant accomplishments and virtues.
Although allied to some noble families, and occasionally
mixing in the gaieties of high life, his natural disposition
inclined him to the purer pleasures of rural life. He wa
probably very early a poet and' a lover, and in both successful. He married Lucy, daughter of William Herbert,
first lord Powis, by Eleanor, daughter of Henry Percy,
eighth earl of Northumberland, by Katharine, daughter
and coheir of John Neville, lord Latimer. It is to this
lady that we are indebted for his poems, most of which were
written in allusion to his courtship and marriage. Sha>
was the Castara who animated his imagination with tenderness and elegance, and purified it from the grosser
opprobria of the amatory poets. His poems, as was not
unusual in that age, were written occasionally, and dispersed confidentially. In 1635 they appear to have been
first collected into a volume, which Oidys calls the second
edition, under the title of “Castara.
” Another edition
was published in Censura Literaria.
” His other works are, the
“Queen of Arragon,
” a tragi-comedy, which was acted
at court, and at Black-friars, and printed in 1640. It has
since been reprinted among Dodsley’s Old Plays. The
author having communicated the manuscript to Philip earl
of Pembroke, lord chamberlain of the household to king
Charles I. he caused it to be acted, and afterwards published against the author’s consent. It was revived, with
the revival of the stage, at the restoration, about 1666,
when a new prologue and epilogue were furnished by the
author of Hudibras.
Roman catholic family. It is, indeed^ grossly improbable that he should have complied with Cromwell, who was as yet no usurper, and during the life of his royal master,
Our author wrote also “Observations upon History,
”
Loud. History of
Edward IV.
” 1640, fol. which, as Wood asserts, was both
written and published at the desire of Charles I. He also
insinuates that Habington <c did run with the times, and
was not unknown to Oliver the Usurper," but we have no
evidence of any compliance with a system of political
measures so diametrically opposite to those which we may
suppose belonged to the education and principles of a
Roman catholic family. It is, indeed^ grossly improbable
that he should have complied with Cromwell, who was as
yet no usurper, and during the life of his royal master,
whose cause was not yet desperate. Of his latter days we
have no farther account than that he died Nov. 13, 1645,
and was buried at Hendlip, in the family vault. He left
a son, Thomas, who dying without issue, bequeathed his
estate to sir William Compton.
n. But above all others, he was regarded by Dr. Williams, dean of Westminster and bishop of Lincoln, who, being appointed lord-keeper of the great seal in 1621, chose
, bishop of Lichfield and Coventry,
descended from an ancient family in Scotland, was born
near Exeter-house in the Strand, London, September 1,
1592. He was admitted very young into Westminsterschool, where, on account of his proficiency, he was much
noticed by Dr. (afterwards bishop) Andrews, but then dean
of Westminster. In 1608, along with Herbert the poet,
he was elected to Trinity-college, Cambridge. His uncommon parts and learning recommended him to particular notice; so that, after taking the proper degrees, he
was chosen fellow of his college, and became a tutor of
great repute. One month in the long vacation, retiring
with his pupil, afterwards lord Byron, to Newstede abbey,
Nottinghamshire, he composed a Latin comedy entitled
“Loyola,
” which was twice acted before James I. and
printed in 1648. He took orders in 1618, and was collated to the rectory of Stoke Hamon, in Buckinghamshire,
and had singular kindness shewn him by bishop Andrews
and several great men. But above all others, he was regarded by Dr. Williams, dean of Westminster and bishop
of Lincoln, who, being appointed lord-keeper of the great
seal in 1621, chose Hacket for his chaplain, and ever preserved a high esteem for him. In 1623, he was made
chaplain to Jame$ I. with whom he became a favourite
preacher, and was also made a prebendary of Lincoln; and
the year following, upon the lord-keeper’s recommendation,
rector of St. Andrew’s, Holborn, in London. His patron
also procured him the same year the rectory of Cheam, in.
Surrey; telling him that he intended Holborn for wealth,
and Cheam for health.
and grace as touched the hearts of every one present, and especially of the friends of the deceased, who unanimously declared they had never heard a finer discourse.
When rector of St. Andrew’s, having soon after the restoration, received notice of the interment of a dissenter
belonging to his parish, he got the burial-office by heart.
As he was a great master of elocution, and was himself
always affected with the propriety and excellence of the
composition of that service, he delivered it with such emphasis and grace as touched the hearts of every one present, and especially of the friends of the deceased, who
unanimously declared they had never heard a finer discourse. But their astonishment was great, when they
were told that it was taken from our liturgy, a book which,
though they had never read, they had been taught to regard with contempt and detestation. This story, but
without the name of Dr. Hacket, for which we are indebted to Mr. Granger, is circumstantially told in bishop
Sprat’s excellent “Discourse to his Clergy,
”
church commanded, as well as less, were guilty of it; and that he only was a true son of the church, who broke riot the boundals of it either way.” His church of St.
In 1625 he was named by the king himself to attend an
ambassador in to Germany; but was dissuaded from the journey by being told, that on account of his severe treatment of the Jesuits in his “Loyola,
” he might be in
danger, though in an ambassador’s train. In 1628, he
commenced D. D. and in 1631 was made archdeacon of
Bedford, to which charge he usually went once in a year,
and frequently exhorted his clergy “to all regular conformity to the doctrine and discipline by law established,
without under or overdoing, asserting in his opinion, that
puritanism lay on both sides; whosoever did more than
the church commanded, as well as less, were guilty of it;
and that he only was a true son of the church, who broke
riot the boundals of it either way.
” His church of St. Andrew being old and decayed, he undertook to rebuild it,
and for that purpose got together a great sum of money
in stock and subscriptions; but, upon the breaking out of
the civil war, this was seized by the parliament, as well as
what had been gathered for the repair of St. Paul’s cathedral. In March 1641, he was one of the sub-committee appointed by the house of lords to consult of what
was amiss and wanted correction in the liturgy, in hopes
by that means to dispel the cloud hanging over the church.
He delivered a masterly speech against the bill for taking
away deans and chapters, which is published at length in
his life by Dr. Plume. In March 1642 he was presented
to a residentiary’s place in St. Paul’s, London; but the
troubles coming on, he had no enjoyment of it, nor of his
rectory of St. Andrew’s. Besides, some of his parishioners
there having articled against him at the committee of plunderers, his friend Seltlen told him it was in vain to make
any defence; and advised him to retire to Cheam, where
he would endeavour to prevent his being molested. He
was disturbed here by the earl of Essex’s army, who,
marching that way, took him prisoner along with them;
but he was soon after dismissed, and from that time lay
hid in his retirement at Cheam, where we hear no more
of him, except that in 1648-9, he attended in his last moments Henry Rich, earl of Holland, who was beheaded
for attempting the relief of Colchester.
cal schools of Jena for seven years, he went to Altdorf, to profit hy the instructions of Schwenter, who was then esteemed one of the ablest Orientalists. From Altdorf
, a Lutheran divine, and eminent oriental scholar, was born in 1607, at Weimar. Becoming early attached to the study of sacred philology, he endeavoured to acquire a knowledge of the Oriental languages as necessarily connected with it, and therefore, after attending the philosophical and theological schools of Jena for seven years, he went to Altdorf, to profit hy the instructions of Schwenter, who was then esteemed one of the ablest Orientalists. From Altdorf he removed to Helmstadt, where he applied to his theological studies under Calixtus, Horneius, and others, and on his return to Altdorf in 1636 was the first who gave lessons in public on the Oriental languages in that place. In 1654 he became professor of theology, and in both situations evinced great talents and persevering industry. No man in his time was better skilled in the Hebrew, Syriac, Chaldean, and Arabic, and being the first who attempted to teach these languages, he wished to assist his students by proper elementary books, but the German press at that time was so deficient in the requisite types, that he must have abandoned his design if Jodocus Schmidmaier, an advocate at Nuremberg, had not established a printing-office properly supplied with Oriental characters; and at this place Hackspan was enabled to print his valuable works. He died of a decline in 1659. His principal writings are,
is father was minister from the king of Denmark to the circles of Lower Saxony, a well informed man, who associated with men of letters, and was capable of giving a
, a celebrated German poet
of the last century, was born at Hamburgh in 1708. His
father was minister from the king of Denmark to the circles
of Lower Saxony, a well informed man, who associated
with men of letters, and was capable of giving a direction
to his son’s studies suitable to his genius. By various misfortunes, however, he lost his property, and died when our
poet was only fourteen, and very ill provided for the liberal
education which his father intended. His mother endeavoured to make up this loss by placing him at a college at
Hamburgh, where, having previously imbibed a taste for
poetry, he read the ancient as well a* the modern poets
with eagerness and assiduity. Without the help of a master, or the salutary aid of criticism, he endeavoured to
draw from his own stock the power of dissipating the fogs
of dulness in the north, as Haller had done in the south of
Germany. In 1728 or 1729, he published a small collection of poems, which have many marks of youth, and
though his versification is free, and his language often very
pure, the thoughts are frequently cold, and the expression
too concise. In subjects which require little taste and
philosophy, he has succeeded better than in works of sentiment and imagination. Of his taste at this time, he has
given a bad specimen in his satire entitled “The Poet,
” in
which he puts Pietsch by the side of Virgil.
and placing him among the standard poets of his country. He had a brother, Christian Lewis Hagedorn, who was born at Hamburgh in 1717, and died at Dresden in 1780, counsellor
The second edition of his “Moral Poems
” appeared in
Meditations on Painting,
” one of the few which the Germans think have not been equalled by their neighbours
“Lettre a un Amateur de Peinture,
” The Library of the
Fine Arts,
” to the progress of which arts in Saxony he contributed greatly.
he published a history, which reaches from Phararnond to the death of Charles VII. and was the first who composed a body of the French history in French. Henry III.
, a French
historian, of an ancient family, was born at Bourdeaux about
1535. He went to court at twenty years of age, and in
1556 and 1557 was secretary to Francis de Noailles, bishop
of Acqs, in his embassies to England and Venice. After
that, his first appearance in the republic of letters was in
the quality of a poet and translator. In 1559, he published
a poem, entitled “The Union of the Princes, by the Marriages of Philip King of Spain and the Lady Elizabeth of
France, and of Philibert Emanuel Duke of Savoy, and the
Lady Margaret of France;
” and another entitled “The
Tomb of the most Christian King Henry II.
” In 1560 he
published an abridged translation of “Tully’s Offices, 7 '
and of
” Eutropius’s Roman History;“and, in 1568, of
” The Life of JEmilius Probus.“He applied himself
afterwards to the writing of history, and succeeded so well,
that by his first performances of this nature, he obtained
of Charles IX. the title of Historiographer of France 1571.
He had published the year before at Paris a book entitled
” Of the State and Success of the Affairs of France;“which
was reckoned very curious, and was often reprinted. He
augmented it in several successive editions, and dedicated it
to Henry IV. in 1594: the best editions of it are those of
Paris 1609 and 1613, in 8vo. He had published also the
same year a work entitled
” Of the Fortune and Power of
France, with a Summary Discourse on the Design of a History of France:“though Niceron suspects that this may be
the same with
” The Promise and Design of the History of
France," which he published in 1571, in order to let
Charles IX. see what he might expect from him in support
of the great honour he had conferred of historiographer of
France. In 1576, he published a history, which reaches
from Phararnond to the death of Charles VII. and was the
first who composed a body of the French history in French.
Henry III. shewed his satisfaction with this by the advantageous and honourable gratifications he made the author.
The reasons which induced de Haillan to conclude his
work with Charles Vllth’s death were, that the event beingrecent, he must eitlier conceal the truth, or provoke the
resentment of men in power, but he afterwards promised
Henry IV. to continue this history to his time, as may be
seen in his dedication to him of this work in 1594; nothing
however of this kind was found among his papers after his
death: the booksellers, who added a continuation to his
work as far as to 1615, and afterwards as far as to 1627,
took it from Paulus Æmilius, de Comines, Arnoul Ferron,
du Bellay, &c.
a fair hand, and then presented it to the prince. The prince perused it, and shewed it to the king; who, being highly offended at it, caused the author to be imprisoned,
, a learned English divine, was
the son of a merchant in Exeter, and born there in 1579.
After a proper education in classical literature, he was admitted of St. Alban’s-hall, in Oxford, in 1595, where he
became so noted a disputant and orator, that he was unanimously elected fellow of Exeter college at two years standing. He then studied philosophy and divinity, and having
received holy orders, travelled abroad. In 1610 he was
admitted to the reading of the sentences, and in 1611 took
his degrees in divinity. He was afterwards made chaplain
to prince Charles, and archdeacon of Surrey, in 1616; but
never rose to any higher dignity, on account of the zealous
opposition he made to the match of the infanta of Spain
with the prince his master. Wood relates the story thus:
After Hakewill had written a small tract against that match,
not without reflecting on the Spaniard, he caused it to be
transcribed in a fair hand, and then presented it to the
prince. The prince perused it, and shewed it to the king;
who, being highly offended at it, caused the author to be
imprisoned, in August 1621; soon after which, being released, he was dismissed from his attendance on the prince.
He was afterwards elected rector of Exeter college, but
resided very little there, although he proved a liberal benefactor to the college; for, the civil war breaking out, he
retired to his rectory of Heanton near Barnstaple in Devonshire, and there continued to the time of his death in
1649. He wrote several things, enumerated by Wood;
but his principal work, and that for which he is most
known, is “An Apology or Declaration of the Power and
Providence of God in the Government of the World, proving that it doth not decay, &c.
” in four books,
He had a brother John, who was mayor of Exeter in 1632; and an elder brother William, who
He had a brother John, who was mayor of Exeter in 1632;
and an elder brother William, who was of Exeter college,
and removed thence to Lincoln’s-inn, where he arrived at
eminence in the study of the common law. He was always
a puritan, and therefore had great interest with the prevailing party in the civil war. He published some pieces
in his own way; and, among the rest, “The Liberty of
the Subject against the pretended Power of Impositions,
&c. 1641,
” 4to.
of science, that he was chosen to read public lectures on naval matters at Oxford, and was the first who introduced maps, globes, spheres, and other instruments of the
, an eminent naval historian, was descended from an ancient family at Eyton or Yetton, in Herefordshire, and born about 1553. He was trained up at Westminster school; and, in 1570, removed to Christ church college in Oxford. While he was at school, he used to visit his cousin Richard Hakluyt, of Eyton, esq. at his chambers in the Middle Temple, a gentleman well known and esteemed, not only by some principal ministers of state, but also by the most noted persons among the mercantile and maritime part of the kingdom, as a great encourager of navigation, and the improvement of trade, arts, and manufactures. At this gentleman’s chambers young Hakluyt met with books or' cosmography, voyages, travels, and maps; and was so pleased with them, that he resolved to direct his studies that way, to which he was not a little encouraged by his cousin. For this purpose, as soon as he got to Oxford, he made himself master of the modern as well as ancient languages; and then read over whatever printed or written discourses of voyages and discoveries, naval enterprizes, and adventures of all kinds, he found either extant in Greek^ Latin, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, French, or English. By such means he became so conspicuous in this new branch of science, that he was chosen to read public lectures on naval matters at Oxford, and was the first who introduced maps, globes, spheres, and other instruments of the art, into the common schools. The: zeal and knowledge he displayed made him acquainted with and respected by the principal sea-commanders, merchants, and manners of our nation; and^ though it was but a few years after that he went beyond sea, yet his fame travelled thither long before him. He held a correspondence with the learned in these matters abroad, as with Ortelius, the king of Spain’s cosmographer, Mercator, &c.
589 he published these collections in one volume folio, with a dedication to sir Francis Walsingham, who was a principal patron and promoter of the work. About 1594
Hakluyt returned to England in the memorable year
1588, and applied himself to methodize the naval history
of England more accurately and more extensively than had
ever yet been attempted, in which he was, as usual, encouraged by sir Walter Raleigh. He applied himself also
to collect, translate, and digest, all voyages, journals, narratives, patents, letters, instructions, &c. relating to the
English navigations, which he could procure either in print
or ms.; and towards the end of 1589 he published these
collections in one volume folio, with a dedication to sir
Francis Walsingham, who was a principal patron and promoter of the work. About 1594 he entered into the state
of matrimony, which did not divert him from going on
with his collections of English voyages, till he had increased them to three volumes folio: and, as he was perpetually employed himself, he did not cease to invite
others to the same useful labours. Thus, Mr. John Pory,
whom he calls his honest, industrious, and learned friend,
undertook, at his instigation, and probably under his inspection, to translate from the Spanish “Leo’s Geographical History of Africa,
” which was published at London,
ies of foreign adventurers. This, and the spirit with which he also animated those of his countrymen who were engaged in naval eriterprizes, by his useful communications,
In 1605 he was made a prebendary of Westminster;
which, with the rectory of Wetheringset in Suffolk, is all
the ecclesiastical promotion we find he obtained. About
this time the translation of Peter Martyr’s “History of the
West Indies
” was undertaken, and first published by Mr.
Lock, at the request and encouragement of our, author:
for, besides his own publications of naval history, far superior to any thing of the like kind that had ever appeared
in this kingdom, he was no less active in encouraging
others to translate and familiarize among us the conquests
and discoveries of foreign adventurers. This, and the
spirit with which he also animated those of his countrymen
who were engaged in naval eriterprizes, by his useful communications, gained the highest esteem and honour to his
name and memory, from mariners of all ranks, in the most
distant nations no less than his own. Of this there are
several instances; and particularly in those northern discoveries made at the charges of the Muscovy merchants in
1608, under captain W. Hudson: when among other
places there denominated, on the continent of Greenland,
which were formerly discovered, they distinguished an
eminent promontory, lying in 80 degrees northward, by
the name of Hakluyt’s Headland. In 1609 he published a
translation from the Portuguese of an history of Virginia,
entitled “Virginia richly valued, by the description of the
rpaine land of Florida, her next neighbour, &c.
” and dedicated to the right worshipful counsellors, and others the
chearful adventurers for the advancement of that Christian
and noble plantation of Virginia.
wever, he fell into many levitres and exr travagances, and was preparing to go along with his tutor, who went chaplain to lord Vere into the Low Countries, with a resolution
, a most learned lawyer, an$ upright judge, was born at Alderley, in Gloucestershire, November J, 1609. His father was a barrister of Lincoln’s Inn, a man of such tenderness of conscience, as to withdraw from his profession because unwilling to tamper with truth in giving that colour to pleadings which barristers call doing their best for their client;" and this, with some other practices, customary in those days, appearing unworthy of his character, he retired to his estate in the country, where he died in 1614, at which time his son was but five years old. His wife having died two years before, their son was committed to the guardianship of Anthony Kingscot, esq. to whom he was related, and by whom, for grammatical learning, he was placed under the care of Mr. Staunton, vicar of Wotton-under-Edge, a noted puritan. In 1626 he was admitted of Magdalen-hall, Oxford, under the* tuition of Obadiah Sedgwick, another puritan, where he laid the foundation of that learning and knowledge, on which he afterwards raised so vast a superstructure. Here, however, he fell into many levitres and exr travagances, and was preparing to go along with his tutor, who went chaplain to lord Vere into the Low Countries, with a resolution of entering himself into the prince of Orange’s army, when he was diverted from this design by being engaged in a law-suit with sir William Whitmore, who laid claim to part of his estate. Afterwards, by the persuasions of Serjeant Glanville, who happened to be his counsel in this case, and had an opportunity of observing his capacity, he resolved upon the study of the law, and was admitted of Lincoln’s Inn, November 8, 1629. Sensible of the time he had lost in frivolous pursuits, he nowstudied at the rate of sixteen hours a day, and threw aside all appearance of vanity in his apparel. He is said, indeed, to have neglected his dress so much, that, being a strong and well-built man, he was once taken by a pressgang, as a person very fit for sea-service; which pleasant mistake made him regard more decency in his cloaths for the future, though never to any degree of extravagant finery. What confirmed him still more in a serious and regular way of life, was an accident, which is related to have befallen one of his companions. Hale, with other young students of the inn, being invited out of town, one of the company called for so much wine, that, notwithstanding all Hale could do to prevent it, he went on in his excess till he fell down in a fit, seemingly dead, and was with some difficulty recovered. This particularly affected Hale, in whom the principles of religion had been early implanted, and therefore retiring into another room, and, falling down upon his knees, he prayed earnestly to God, both for his friend, that he might be restored to life again, and for himself, that he might be forgiven for being present and countenancing so much excess: and he vowed to God, that he would never again keep company in that manner, nor drink a health while he lived. His friend recovered; and from this time Mr. Hale forsook all his gay acquaintance, and divided his whole time between the duties of religion and the studies of his profession. Noy, the attorney-general, who was one of the most eminent men of his profession, took early notice of him, directed him in his studies, and discovered so much friendship for him, that Mr. Hale was sometimes called Young Noy.
istory and chronology. But above all, he seemed to have made divinity his chief study, so that those who read some of his works, might naturally think that he had studied
While pursuing his studies, he not only kept the hours of the hall constantly in term-time, but seldom put himself out of commons in vacation -time, and continued to pursue his studies with unwearied diligence. Not being satisfied with the law-books then published, he was very diligent in searching records; and with collections out of the books he read, together with his own learned observations, he made a most valuable common-place book. Selden soon found him out, and took such a liking to him, that he not only lived in great friendship with him, but left him at his death one of his executors. Selden also prescribed to him a more enlarged pursuit of learning, which he had before confined to his own profession; so that he arrived in time to a considerable knowledge in the civil law, in arithmetic, algebra, and other mathematical sciences, as well as in physic, anatomy, and surgery. He was also very conversant in experimental philosophy, and other branches of philosophical learning; and in ancient history and chronology. But above all, he seemed to have made divinity his chief study, so that those who read some of his works, might naturally think that he had studied nothing else.
e his integrity, and yet live securely, he resolved to follow those two maxims of Pomponius Atticus, who lived in similar times; viz. “To engage in no faction, nor meddle
Some time before the civil wars broke out, he was called
to the bar, and began to make a figure in the world; but,
observing how difficult it was to preserve his integrity, and
yet live securely, he resolved to follow those two maxims
of Pomponius Atticus, who lived in similar times; viz.
“To engage in no faction, nor meddle in public business,
and constantly to favour and relieve those that were lowest.
”
He often relieved the royalists in their necessities, which
so ingratiated him with them, that he became generally
employed by them in his profession. He was one of the
counsel to the earl of Strafford, archbishop Laud, and king
Charles himself 5 as also to the duke of Hamilton, the earl
of Holland, the lord Capel, and the lord Craven. Being
esteemed a plain honest man, and of great knowledge in
the law, he was equally acceptable to the presbyterians
and the loyalists. In 1643 he took the covenant, and appeared several times with other lay -persons among the
assembly of divines. He was then in great esteem with
the parliament, and employed by them in several affairs,
particularly in the reduction of the garrison at Oxford;
being as a lawyer added to the commissioners named by
the parliament to treat with those appointed by the king.
In that capacity he was instrumental in saving the university, by advising them, especially the general Fairfax, to
preserve that seat of learning from ruin. Afterwards,
though no man more lamented the murder of Charles I.
he took the oath called “The Engagement;
” and, January
on the crown side at the assizes, property.“against an order the protector had made, viz.” That none who had been of the king’s party should carry arms;“and so would
to sit on the crown side at the assizes, property.“against an order the protector had made, viz.
” That none
who had been of the king’s party should carry arms;“and
so would have forced the piece from him. But the other
not regarding the order, and being the stronger man, threw
down the soldier, and having beat him, left him. The
soldier went to the town, and telling a comrade how he
had been used, got him to go with him, and help him to
be revenged on his adversary. They both watched his
coming to town, and one of them went to him to demand
his gun; which he refusing, the soldier. struck at him as
they were struggling, the other came behind, and ran his
sword into his body, of which he presently died. It was
in the time of the assizes, so they were both tried. Against
the one there was no evidence of malice prepense, so he
was only found guilty of manslaughter, and burnt in the
hand; but the other was found guilty of murder: and
though colonel Whaley, who commanded the garrison,
came into the court, and urged that the man was killed
only for disobeying the protector’s order, and that the
soldier was but doing his duty; yet the judge regarded
both his reasonings and threatenings very little, and therefore not only gave sentence against him, but ordered the
execution to be so suddenly done, that it might not be
possible to procure a reprieve. On another occasion he
displayed both his justice and courage in a cause in which
the protector was deeply concerned, and had therefore
ordered a jury to be returned for the trial. On hearing
this, judge Hale examined the sheriff about it, and having
discovered the fact, shewed the statute which ordered all
juries to be returned by the sheriff or his lawful officer,
and this not being done, he dismissed the jury, and would
not try the cause. The protector was highly displeased
with him, and at his return from the circuit (for this happened in the country) told him in great anger, that
” he
wa not fit to be a judge.“Hale replied only, with inimitable aptness of expression, that
” it was very true."
any of his own causes.” Two other stories are told to prove his strict integrity, one of a gentleman who sent him a buck for his table, and the other of the dean and
He would never receive private addresses or recommendations from any persons of whatever rank, in any
matter in which justice was concerned. One of the first
peers in England went once to his chamber, and told him,
“that having a suit in law to be tried before him, he was
come to acquaint him with it, that he might the better understand it when it should be heard in court.
”
Judge Hale interrupted him, and said, “he did not deal
fairly to com-e to his chamber about such affairs, for he
never received any information of causes but in open court,
where both parties were to be beard alike,
” and therefore he
would not suffer him to go on. The nobleman complained of
this to the king, as a rudeness that was not to be endured; but
his majesty bid him “content himself that he was no worse
used,
” and added, “he verily believed Hale would have
used himself no better, if he had gone to solicit him in
any of his own causes.
” Two other stories are told to
prove his strict integrity, one of a gentleman who sent him
a buck for his table, and the other of the dean and chapter
of Salisbury, who made him a present of six sugar-loaves,
and as the gentleman and the dean and chapter had causes
pending before him, he insisted on paying for these articles before he would try them. Too much, however,
has been made of these stories, for it was proved that both
presents were compliments which the parties had been accustomed to pay to the judges for the time being on the
circuit. So many are the testimonies to judge Hale’s integrity, that it cannot stand in need of such petty supports
as these.
reatise in favour of the succession of the house of Suffolk to the crown on the demise of Elizabeth, who was so displeased with it, as to commit the author to the Tower.
, a learned Englishman,
was the younger son of Thomas Hales, of Hales’-place, at
Halden in Kent, and was liberally educated, although at
no university. He became an excellent scholar in the
Latin, Greek, and Hebrew tongues, and was well skilled
in the municipal laws and antiquities. In the reign of
Henry VIII. he was clerk of the ha,naper for several years^
and in 1548 was appointed a commissioner to inquire into
inclosures, decayed houses, and the unlawful converting
of arable land into pasture, for the counties of Oxfordj,
Berks, &c. On this occasion he made an excellent charge,
which is printed at length by Strype. He obtained a good
estate in Warwickshire and elsewhere, upon the dissolution
of the monasteries, and founded a free-school at Coventry.
For the use of the scholars there, he wrote “Introductiones ad Grammaticam,
” Latin and English. He was also
the author of the “High way to Nobility,
” Lond. 4to; and
translated into English “Plutarch’s Precepts for the preservation of good health,
” Lond. An Oration to Queen Elizabeth
at her first entrance to her reign,
” which was, however,
not spoken, but delivered in manuscript to the queen.
He also wrote a treatise in favour of the succession of the
house of Suffolk to the crown on the demise of Elizabeth,
who was so displeased with it, as to commit the author to
the Tower. It was answered by Lesley, bishop of Ross.
Mr. Hales, whose imprisonment was probably of no long
duration, died Jan. 28, 1572, and was buried in the church
of St. Peter le Poor, Broad-street, London. Some of his.
Mss. are in the Harleian collection.
r then resided, but according to his register at Corpus college, Oxford, at Highchurch. His parents, who are stated to have been of “genteel quality,” placed him to
, an eminent divine and critic, usually
distinguished by the appellation of The Ever Memorable,
was the fourth son of John Hales, of High Church, near
Bath, in Somersetshire, by Bridget his wife, one of the
Goldsburghs of Knahill, in Wiltshire. He was born April
19, 1584, at Bath, where his father then resided, but according to his register at Corpus college, Oxford, at Highchurch. His parents, who are stated to have been of
“genteel quality,
” placed him to school at Mells and Killmaston,'in Somersetshire, until fit for the university, in
which he was entered of Corpus college April 16, 1597,
but being then under age, was not sworn till April 17>
1599. He continued at this college until he toolc his bachelor’s degree in arts July 9, 1603, and had distinguished
himself in the interval by equal diligence and proficiency
in his studies. The reputation he thus acquired engaged
the attention of sir Henry Savile, then warden of Mertoncollege, who being always desirous of increasing the number of its learned members, persuaded him to remove;
and accordingly he was chosen probationer of Merton in
September, and admitted fellow Oct. 13, 1606. He proceeded to his master’s degree in 1609. He had not been
long in this station before the warden availed himself of
his assistance in preparing his edition of St. Chrysostom’s
works, and found him a very able coadjutor, as he was an
excellent Greek scholar. His reputation indeed for skill
in this language was such as to procure him the place of
lecturer in Greek in the college.
not properly a member. This indeed seems to have been his principal view in accompanying sir Dudley, who, besides his brother the bishop of Llandaff, first English
On May 24 of this year, Mr. Hales quitted his fellowship at Merton, and was admitted fellow of Eton college. He was then in orders, and had acquired fame as a
preacher. In 1616 he held a correspondence with Mr.
Oughtred, as appears by a letter of his to that excellent
mathematician, printed in the General Dictionary, hi
1618 he accompanied sir Dudley Carlton, ambassador to
the Hague, as his chaplain, by which means he procured
admission into the synod of Dort, though he was not properly a member. This indeed seems to have been his
principal view in accompanying sir Dudley, who, besides
his brother the bishop of Llandaff, first English commissioner, recommended him to Bogerman, president of the
synod, and some other leading men. Ail this afforded him
a favourable opportunity of collecting that information respecting the proceedings of the synod, which was afterwards published in his “Golden Remains.
” The effect of
these proceedings on his own mind was, that he became a
convert to Arminianism. His friend Mr. Faringdon. informs
us that “in his younger days he was a Calvinist, but that
some explanation given by Episcopius* of the text in St.
John iii. 16, induced him, as he said, to
” bid John
Calvin good night.“It does not appear, however, from
his sermons, that he became a decided anti-predestinarian,
although he pleads strongly for a toleration between the
two parties, and thinks they may remain in Christian
charity with each other. It is more remarkable that he
should be induced by the arguments advanced in this synod, to think with indifference of the divinity of Jesus
Christ as a necessary article of faith. This, however,
seems obvious from some passages in his
” Tract on
Schism;“and such was his free and open manner both of
talking and writing on these subjects, that he soon incurred
the suspicion of inclining to Socinianism. Dr. Heylin
went so far as to attribute two works to him, published with
fictitious names, which have been since printed in the
” Phoenix;" but it has been proved that they were written
by Socinian authors. His biographers, however, all allow
that he may be classed among those divines who were
afterwards called Latitudinarians. He returned from the
synod Feb. 8, 1619.
iced, he expresses his sentiments on liturgies, forms of worship, &c. in exact conformity with those who are for dispensing with all obligations of the kind in established
About 1636 he wrote his tract on “Schism
” for the use
of his friend Chilling-worth, in which, as already noticed,
he expresses his sentiments on liturgies, forms of worship,
&c. in exact conformity with those who are for dispensing
with all obligations of the kind in established churches.
Being informed that archbishop Laud was displeased with
it, he drew up a vindication of himself in a letter addressed
to his grace, who in 1638 sent for him to Lambeth, and
after a conference of several hours, appears to have been
reconciled to him. Of this conference we have a curious
account by Dr. Heylin, in his “Cyprianus Anglicus,
”
some particulars of which have been eagerly contested by
Des Maizeaux, in his Life of Hales. What seems most
clear is, that Hales made some kind of declaration to the^
archbishop, purporting that he was a true son of the church
of England, both in doctrine and discipline, which certainly implies a change or intended change of opinion,
unless we allow to the writer of his life in the Biographia
Britannica, that “a true son of the church,
” or an “or* Such is the story given by all his 87 and 92, we shall see more reasor.
biographers; but if we consult his to think that he was influenced by the
Letters in the
” Golden Remains,“p. opinions of Martinius.
thodox son of the church,
” were phrases used, not in opn ^ition to heretics, but to puritans. In either way, the
archbishop appears to have been satisfied, and informed
Mr. liuies that he might have any preferment he pleased.
Hales at this time modestly declined the offer, but the
year following was presented by the archbishop at a public
dinner, with a canonry of Windsor, in which he was installed June 27, 1639. With respect to the letter above-r
ttientioned, which he wrote to the archbishop, it is said to
have been first published by Dr. Hare in the seventh edition of his pampnlet entitled “Difficulties and Discouragements which attend the study of the Scriptures in the way
of private judgment.
” Des Maizeaux says it was probably
found among the papers of archbishop Laud, which after
the restoration were taken from Prynne; but this conjecture
is erroneous; it was found in the house of Mrs. Powney,
where Mr. Hales died, and there are even some reasons for
doubting whether it was ever sent to the archbishop, although this is certainly not improbable. The original is at
Eton, and appeared in print before it fell into the hands
of Dr. Hare, the author of “Difficulties and Discouragements,
” if indeed Dr. Hare was that author, which has
been questioned.
supposed, to be Richard Bishop, who worth reviving. forms us that he was bursar about the time when
supposed, to be Richard Bishop, who worth reviving.
forms us that he was bursar about the time when the contest began between the king and parliament, and when
both armies had sequestered the college rents, so that he
could not get any to pay wages to the servants, or to buy
victuals for the scholars. But after nine weeks hiding himself to preserve the college writings and keys, he was
forced to appear. The old woman that concealed him
demanded but six-pence a week for his brown bread and
beer, which was all his meat, and he would give her
twelve-pence. This concealment was so near the college
or highway, that he used to say, “those who searched for
him might have smelt him if he had eaten garlick.
”
liturgy of the church of England, in company with Dr. Henry King, the ejected bishop of Chichester, who was in the same house. But this retirement was soon disturbed
He continued in his fellowship at Eton, although he refused the covenant, but was ejected upon his refusal to take
the engagement “to be faithful to the Common-wealth of
England, as then established without a king, or a house
of lords.
” His successor, a Mr. Penwarn, or Penwarden,
kindly offered him half the profits of his fellowship; but
Mr. Hales refused to accept it, saying, if he had a right
to any part, he had a right to the whole. Both Wood and
Des Maizeaux have misrepresented this expression, which
we give on the authority of Mr. Montague, one of his
executors. About the same time he refused a liberal offer
from a gentleman of the Sedley family, in Kent, of 100l.
his board, and servants to attend him. In this spirit of independence he retired to the house of a Mrs. Salter, at
Rickings, near Colebrook, accepting of a smaller salary of
50l. with his diet, to instruct her son. Here he also officiated as chaplain, performing the service according-to
the liturgy of the church of England, in company with
Dr. Henry King, the ejected bishop of Chichester, who
was in the same house. But this retirement was soon disturbed by an order from the ruling powers, prohibiting all
persons from harbouring malignants, or royalists; and although Mrs. Salter assured Mr. Hales that she was prepared
to risk the consequences, he would not suffer her to incur
any danger upon his account, but retired to the house of
Hannah Dickenson, in Eton, whose husband had been his
servant, and who administered the humble comforts she
could afford with great care and respect. But being now
destitute of every means of supporting himself, ne was
obliged to sell (not the whole, as Wood says, but) a part
of his valuable library to Cornelius Bee, a bookseller in
London, for 700l. which, Walker informs us, and the fact
seems to be confirmed by Dr. Pearson in his preface to the
“Golden Remains,
” he shared with several ejected clergymen, scholars, and others.
nder of it, nor have I been a benefactor to it, nor shall I ever now be able to be Sq.'” Dr. Walker, who relates this story, informs us of the persons from whom he received
We shall now relate a story which has appeared in the
various accounts of his life, and which is at least interesting-,
but in most particulars questionable. It is thus related,:
“His friend Mr. Faringdon
” (See Faringdon) “coming
to see Hales some few months before his death, found him
in very mean lodgings at Eton, but in a temper gravely
ch earful, and well becoming a good man under such circumstances. After a slight and homely dinner, suitable
to their situation, some discourse passed between them
concerning their old friends, and the black and dismal
aspect of the times; and at last Hales asked Faringdon to
walk out with him into the church-yard. There this unhappy man’s necessities pressed him to tell his friend that
he had been forced to sell his whole library, save a few
books which he had given away, and six or eight little
books of devotion which lay in his chamber; and that for
money, he had no more than what he then shewed him,
which was about seven or eight shillings; and ‘ besides,’
says he, < I doubt I am indebted for my lodging.‘ Faringdon, it seems, did not imagine that it had been so very
low with him, and therefore was much surprised to hear it;
but said that ’ he had at present money to command, and
to-morrow would pay him fifty pounds, in part of the
many sums he and his wife had received of him in their
great necessities, and would pay him more as he shoukl
want it.‘ But Hales replied, < No, you don’t owe me a
penny; or if you do, I here forgive you; for you shall
never pay me a penny. I know you and yours will have
occasion for much more than what you have lately gotten;
but if you know any other friend that hath too full a purse,
and will spare me some of it, I will not refuse that.‘ To
this Hales added, ’ When I die, which I hope is not far
off, for I am weary of this uncharitable world, I desire you
to see me buried in that place in the church-yard,‘ pointing to the place. l But why not in the church-/ said Faringdon, * with the provost (sir Henry Savile), sir Henry
Wotton, and the rest of your friends and predecessors?’
‘ Because,’ says he, * I am neither the founder of it, nor
have I been a benefactor to it, nor shall I ever now be able
to be Sq.'
”
Dr. Walker, who relates this story, informs us of the
persons from whom he received it; but it is now unnecessary to trace a narrative so flatly contradicted by Mr.
Hales’s will, in which we find him bequeathing a very
considerable property, and a very considerable part of his
library, and indeed leaving such friendly legacies as are
wholly inconsistent with the circumstances of a man reduced to a few shillings, and in debt for his lodging.
of his character, all writers seem agreed. Whatever his errors, he was esteemed a good man by those who knew him, and an able writer, as appears by the testimonies
He died May 19, 1656, aged seventy-two, and was buried, according to his own desire, in Eton church-yard,
where a monument was erected over his grave by Mr. Peter
Curwen. In person, he was of an ingenuous and open
countenance, sanguine, cheerful, and vivacious; his body
was well proportioned, and his motion quick and sprightly.
As to the excellence of his character, all writers seem
agreed. Whatever his errors, he was esteemed a good
man by those who knew him, and an able writer, as appears by the testimonies of lord Clarendon, lord Say and
Sele, Dr. Pearson, bishop of Chester, Dr. Heylin, Andrew Marvel, Wood, Sailing-fleet, and others, quoted by
sir David Dalrymple lord Hailes, in his fine edition of
Hales’s works, and in the Biographia Britannica. “They,
”
says lord Hailes, “who are acquainted with the literary
and political history of England, will perceive that the
leading men of all parties, however different and discordant,
have, with a wonderful unanimity, concurred in praise of
the virtues and abilities of the ever memorable Mr. John
Hales of Eton.
”
here is no preface nor advertisement to this volume, which seems to have been put out by the editor, who was thought to be sir Robert Filmer, with caution: but it is
We do not find that Hales ever suffered any thing to be
published in his life-time, except his oration at the funeral
of sir Thomas Bodley. Bishop Pearson says, that “while
he lived, none was ever more solicited and urged to write,
and thereby truly teach the world, than he; but that none
was ever so resolved, pardon the expression, so obstinate
against it.
” In 1659, however, there appeared a collection of his works with this title, “Golden Remains of the
ever-memorable Mr. John Hales of Eton college, &c.
”
which was enlarged with additional pieces in a second
edition of 1673. This collection consists of sermons, miscellanies, and letters; all of them written upon particular
occasions. In 1677 there appeared another collection of
his works, entitled “Several Tracts by the ever-memorable Mr. John Hales, &c.
” The 1st of which is, “Concerning the. Sin against the Holy Ghost;
” 2. “Concerning the sacrament of the Lord’s Supper, and whether the
Church may err in Fundamentals;
” 3. “A Paraphrase on
the 12th chapter of the Gospel according to St. Matthew;
”
4. “Concerning the power of the Keys, and auricular
Confession;
” 5. “Concerning Schism and Schismatics;
”
and some short pieces entitled “Miscellanies.
” There is
no preface nor advertisement to this volume, which seems
to have been put out by the editor, who was thought to
be sir Robert Filmer, with caution: but it is finely and
correctly printed, with a portrait of Mr. Hales. To these
volumes of posthumous works we must add the letter to
archbishop Laud, mentioned before, which was printed in
1716. In 1765 lord Hailes edited a beautiful edition of
his whole works, 3 vols. 12mo, with a very few alterations
of obsolete words, and corrections in spelling, &c. Dr.
Johnson blamed him for taking these liberties. We are
more inclined to blame him for omitting bishop Pearson’s
preface to the “Golden Remains,
” with Faringdon’s Letter, which give a particular value to the edition of 1673.
On the other hand, lord Hailes has added some letters
and other articles which enhance the merit of his labours.
n his demise consigned to the care of Isaac Walton, by Mr. Fulman of Corpus Christi college, Oxford, who had proposed to finish the work, and on that occasion had applied
Mr. Faringdon had collected materials with a view to the
life of Mr. Hales, which, Mr. Zouch informs us, were on
his demise consigned to the care of Isaac Walton, by Mr.
Fulman of Corpus Christi college, Oxford, who had proposed to finish the work, and on that occasion had applied
for the assistance of Mr. Walton. Mr. Zouch adds, that
“the result of this application is not known.
” Having,
however, by the kindness of Henry Ellis, esq. of the British museum, had access to a transcript of Mr. Fulman’s
Mss. in Corpus college, as far as they regard the project
of writing Hales’s life, we are enabled to say that it was a
Mr. Milington, and not Mr. Fulman, who sent Faringdon’s
materials to Mr. Walton, and that the latter gave Fulman
every information in his power. By the same Mss. we have
been enabled to correct many mistakes in Des Maizeaux’s
life of Haiti, as well as in those in the General Dictionary,
and Biographia Britannica.
e prince of Wales, after whose death Dr. Hales was made clerk of the closet to the princess dowager, who always entertained a high respect for him, and after his decease
, an eminent natural philosopher, particularly distinguished by his experiments on the physiology of plants, was the sixth son of Thomas Hales, esq. of Beakeborn, or Beckesbourn, Kent, and grandson of sir Robert Hales, bart. of Beckesbourn, where he was born, Sept. 17, 1677, and was admitted a pensioner of Bene't college, Cambridge, under the tuition of Mr. Moss, June 19, 1696, where, after taking his first degree in arts, he was admitted a fellow, Fob. 25, 1702-3. He proceeded M. A. at the next commencement, and was admitted B. D. in 1711. The degree of D. D. was conferred on him by the university of Oxford in 1733. Botany and anatomy formed his studies of relaxation while at Cambridge, his companion in which was the celebrated antiquary Dr. Stukeley. He was advanced successively to the perpetual curacy of Teddington, Middlesex, and to the livings of Portlock, Somersetshire, and Farringdon, Hampshire. He married Mary, the daughter and heiress of Dr. Henry Newce of Much-Hadham, in the county of Hertford, and rector of Halisham in Sussex. This lady died at the end of two years, leaving no issue, nor did he ever marry strain. He resided to the end of his life at Teddington, wliere he was visited by persons of rank and taste, amongst others by Frederick late prince of Wales, after whose death Dr. Hales was made clerk of the closet to the princess dowager, who always entertained a high respect for him, and after his decease erected a handsome monument to his memory in Westminster-abbey, near that of Handel. On this is liis bust in a large medallion, supported by a female figure representing Botany, accompanied by Religion. The epitaph is in Latin. He refused a canonry 01 Windsor, that he migbt continue to devote himself to his parochial duties, and his favourite scientific pursuits; and as piety, truth, and virtue were the principles of his character, he lived in universal esteem to the age of eighty-four, dying at Teddington, January 4, 1761, where he was buried, under the church tower, which he had rebuilt at his own expence.
andy, and other spirituous liquors,” which has often been reprinted and distributed gratis, by those who consider the temporal and eternal interests of their fellow
Dr. Hales, having been elected a fellow of the royal society in 1717, communicated to that learned body his first
essay in Vegetable Physiology, containing an account of
some experiments concerning the effect of the sun’s heat
in raising the sap. In 1727 appeared the first edition of
his “Vegetable Staticks,
” in 8vo, illustrated by plates, of
which a second edition was published in 1731, followed
afterwards by several others. This work was translated
into French by Buffon in 1735, and into Italian by a Neapolitan lady named Ardinghelli, in 1756. There are also
German and Dutch editions. The original book was, in
fact, the first volume of a work entitled “Statical Essays,
”
of which the second, relating to the circulation of the
blood in animals, was called “Hemastaticks,
” and came out
in a friendly admonition to the drinkers of gin,
brandy, and other spirituous liquors,
” which has often
been reprinted and distributed gratis, by those who consider the temporal and eternal interests of their fellow subjects rather than the increase of the revenue. His invention of a ventilator for mines, prisons, hospitals, and the
holds of ships, laid before the royal society in 1741, and
applied also to the ventilation and consequent preservation
of corn in granaries, has proved one of the most extensively useful contrivances for the preservation of health
and human life. His philosophy was not a barren accumulation for the ignorant to wonder at, or for its professor
to repose on in sottish self-sufficiency and uselessness; but
an inexhaustible bank, on which his piety and his benevolence were continually drawing. Such philosophy and
such learning alone entitle their possessors to authority or
respect, and such are the best fruits of religion. In this
instance at least they were duly honoured, both at home
and abroad. The fame of Hales was widely diffused
throughout the learned world, of which he received a most
distinguished testimony, in being elected one of the eight
foreign members of the French academy of sciences, in
1753, in the place of sir Hans Sloane, who died that same
year. In 1732 he had been appointed, by the British government, a trustee for settling a colony in Georgia. He
was well acquainted with Mr. Ellis, and other naturalists of
his day, with whose views and pursuits of all kinds he ardently concurred; but it does not appear that his foreign
correspondence was extensive. His name does not occur
among the correspondents of Haller, who nevertheless held
him in the highest estimation, as a philosopher and a man.
As a vegetable physiologist, Dr. Hales is entitled to the
highest honour. His experiments and remarks led the
way to those of Du Hamel, Bonnet, and all that have followed. His accuracy of observation, and fidelity of relation, have never been impeached, and his ideas in physics,
in many instances, went before the knowledge of his day,
and anticipated future discoveries: such are his observations relative to airs, and to vegetable secretions. One of
his more able successors in the study of vegetable physiology has doubted the accuracy of one of his plates only,
tab. 11, in which three trees, having been united by engrafting their branches, the intermediate one, by the earth
being removed from its roots, is left hanging in the air,
but an experiment of the late Dr. Hope’s at Edinburgh,
upon three willows, of which Dr. Smith was an eye-witness,
and which was conducted with success in imitation of this
of Hales, puts his account beyond all doubt whatever.
Bobowski, was born a Christian;but, being taken by the Tartars while a child, was sold to the Turks, who educated him in their religion. He acquired the knowledge of
, a Polander, of the seventeenth century,
whose original name was Albert Bobowski, was born a
Christian;but, being taken by the Tartars while a child,
was sold to the Turks, who educated him in their religion.
He acquired the knowledge of seventeen languages, among
the rest, of the French, English, and German, having had
part of his education in these countries; and became interpreter to the grand seignior. He translated into the
Turkish language the catechism of the church of England,
and all the Bible. He composed a Turkish grammar and
dictionary, and other things which were never printed.
His principal work is, “A Treatise upon the Liturgy of
the Turks, their pilgrimages to Mecca, their circumcision,
and manner of visiting the sick,
” which he was induced to
write by Dr. Smith, chaplain to the English embassy at the
Porte, and who gave the ms. to Dr. Hyde, by whom it was
published in Latin, in the appendix of the “Itinera muncli ab Abrahamo Peritsol,
” Oxford, The State of the Ottoman Empire.
”
dding, and was descended from sir Francis Van Halle, knight of the garter in the time of Edward III. who was the son of Frederic Van Halle, of the Tyrol, in Germany,
, an English lawyer and historiographer, was the son of John Halle of Northall in Shropshire, by Catherine his wife, daughter and heir of Thomas Gedding, and was descended from sir Francis Van Halle, knight of the garter in the time of Edward III. who was the son of Frederic Van Halle, of the Tyrol, in Germany, natural son of Albert king of the Romans and archduke of Austria. He was born, probably about the last year of the fifteenth century, in the parish of St. Mildred’s, London. He was educated at Eton, whence in 1544 he was sent to King’s college, Cambridge, where he continued until he became a junior fellow. He afterwards studied at Gray’s-inn, and resided there until he was made a judge in the sheriffs’ court. Wood, however, says that he went to Oxford about 1518, when cardinal Wolsey founded certain lectures there; and adds that, that being the common mart of learning, no person of ingenuity or curiosity thought themselves complete until they had been there. But Mr. Baker of St. John’s, in a letter to Hearne, seems to think this doubtful, as he is not to be traced from Gray’s-inn to Oxford.
About the same time, according to Fox, he was a member of the house of commons, and was one of those who supported the bill for establishing the Six Articles by which
After he had been called to the bar, he became first one
of the common Serjeants, and then under-sheriff of the city
of London, in both which offices he gave much satisfaction.
In 1533 he was appointed summer reader of Gray’s-inn,
and in 1540 double reader in Lent, and one of the judges
of the sheriffs’ court. About the same time, according to
Fox, he was a member of the house of commons, and was
one of those who supported the bill for establishing the Six
Articles by which popery was in a great measure upheld.
He died in 1547, and was buried, but without any memorial, in the church of St. Bennet Sherehog, London. He
wrote “The Union of the Houses of York and Lancaster,
”
Lond.
. Jones. In that station he continued till the death of his patron in 1749; when archbishop Herring, who succeeded to the primacy, being sensible of his merit, not only
, a learned English divine, was born in
London in 1716. Of his parents little is known. His father is said to have occasionally resided at an old house at
Poplar, which had a large hanging garden and a building
at the bottom, and this, tradition reported, had been the
laboratory of sir Richard Steele. The subject of this memoir
was sent early to Eton, admitted on the foundation in 1729;
and elected to King’s college, Cambridge, in 1735, where
of course he became a fellow in 1738, and took the degrees
in arts. Being recommended by Dr. Chapman to archbishop Potter, his grace appointed him his librarian at
Lambeth in 1748, on the resignation of Mr. Jones. In
that station he continued till the death of his patron in
1749; when archbishop Herring, who succeeded to the
primacy, being sensible of his merit, not only continued
him in that office, but, on his taking orders, appointed
him one of his chaplains; and, in April 1750, collated him
to the rectory of Harbledown (vacant by the promotion of Mr, Thomas Herring to the rectory of Chevening); in
November 1752, the archbishop collated him also to the
vicarage of Herne, which he held by dispensation; to
which his grace afterwards added the sinecure rectory of
Orpington, in the deanery of Shoreham, one of his peculiars. In 1756, Mr. Hall vacated Herne, on being presented to the vicarage of East Peckham by the dean and
chapter of Canterbury, by whom he was much esteemed,
having greatly assisted their auditor in digesting many of
the records, charters, &c. preserved in their registry. In
return, the late Dr. Walwyn (one of the prebendaries, who vacated that vicarage) was called by the archbishop to the
rectory of Great Mongeham, void by the death of Mr.
Byrch. On the death of archbishop Herring in 1757, he
resigned the librarianship of Lambeth, and from that time
resided chiefly at Harbledown, in a large house, which he
hired, afterwards the seat of Robert Mead Wilmot, esq.
Soon after the death of archbishop Herring, Mr. Hall was
presented by his executors to the treasurership of the cathedral of Wells, one of his grace’s options. He was also at
first a competitor for the precentorship of Lincoln, an option of archbishop Potter (which Dr. Richardson gained in 1760 by a decree of the house of lords); but soon withdrew
his claim, well grounded as it seemed. His learning and
abilities were great, but not superior to his modesty; and
by his singular affability he obtained the love and esteem
of all who knew him. His charitable attention to his poor
parishioners, especially when they were ill, was constant
and exemplary. At archbishop Seeker’s primary visitation
at Canterbury, in 1758, Mr. Hall was “pitched upon
” (his grace’s official expression) to preach before him at St.
Margaret’s church, which he did from Acts xvii. 21. He
died a bachelor, at Harbledown, Nov. 2, 1763, in the fortyseventh year of his age, after a short illness, occasioned by
a violent swelling in the neck, which could not be accounted for by the eminent physicians who attended him.
He was buried under the communion-table, at Harbledown -church, without any epitaph.
e times, and writing on subjects favourable to the rebellion, he attracted the notice of parliament, who sent him into Scotland to attend Oliver Cromwell, and afterwards
, an English poet of some note, was born
at Durham, August 1627, and after one year spent at St.
John’s college, Cambridge, removed to Gray’s-inn, London, where he was called to the bar; but entering into
the politics of the times, and writing on subjects favourable to the rebellion, he attracted the notice of parliament,
who sent him into Scotland to attend Oliver Cromwell,
and afterwards distinguished him by other marks of favour:
but, being too much addicted to pleasure, he fell a sacrifice to its indulgence; and returning to his native city of
Durham, died there, August 1, 1656. In 1646 (during his short residence at Cambridge), being then but nineteen
years of age, he published “Horas Vacivse, or Essayes,
” a
sufficient proof of his abilities. His poems came out the
same year. He published the first English version of Longinus, which he entitled “The Height of Eloquence,
”
Lond. Hierocles upon the Golden Verses of Pythagoras;
” before which is an account of the ingenious translator and his works, by John Davis of Kidwelly, by whom
it was published in 1657, 8vo. Several of his poems are
preserved in Nichols’s “Select Collection,
” reprinted from
a little volume, entitled “Poems by John Hall, Cambridge,
printed by Roger Daniel, printer to the universitie, 1646,
for J. Rothwell at the Sun in St. Paul’s Churchyard,
” to
which in The Second Booke of Divine
Poems by J. H.
” which is now become exceedingly scarce.
Recommendatory verses are prefixed to it by Jo. Pawson
(his tutor), H. More, W. Dillingham, W. Harrington, Ja.
Windet, R. Marshall, T. Smithsby, and Edw. Holland.
dispute with his patron sir Robert Drury, whom we have noticed as the patron of the poet Donne, but who in Mr. Hall’s case does not appear to have acted with liberality
His errand to London was a dispute with his patron sir Robert Drury, whom we have noticed as the patron of the poet Donne, but who in Mr. Hall’s case does not appear to have acted with liberality or justice. He had detained about ten pounds per annum belonging to the living of
case, that of many thousands who have f Wood says that in 1611, Oct. 30,
case, that of many thousands who have f Wood says that in 1611, Oct. 30,
ms were Wood’s Ath. vpl. I. Fasti. 155. Halsted, notwithstanding the remonstrances of the incumbent, who assured him that with such a deduction it was an incompetent
and still fewer that his poems were Wood’s Ath. vpl. I. Fasti. 155. Halsted, notwithstanding the remonstrances of the incumbent, who assured him that with such a deduction it was an incompetent maintenance, and that he had been obliged to write books in order to be able to buy some. These arguments not prevailing, he was about to resign Halsted, when Edward lord Denny, afterwards earl of Norwich, gave him the donative of Waltham Holy Cross in Essex. About the same time (1612) he took the degree of doctor in divinity.
red upon that place (the bishopric) not without much prejudice and suspicion on some hands; for some who sat at the stern of the church, had me in great jealousy for
In 1624 he refused the bishopric of Gloucester, but in
1627 accepted that of Exeter, to which he was consecrated
Dec. 23, holding with it in commendam the rectory of St.
Breock in Cornwall. At this time he appears again to
have lain under the suspicion of being a favourer of the
puritans. What he says in his defence is worthy of notice. “I entered upon that place (the bishopric) not without much prejudice and suspicion on some hands; for some
who sat at the stern of the church, had me in great jealousy for too much favour of puritanism. I soon had intelligence who were set over me for spies; my ways were
curiously observed and scanned. Some persons of note in
the clergy, finding me ever ready to encourage those
whom I found conscionably forward and painful in their
places, and willingly giving way to orthodox and peaceable lecturers, in several parts of my diocese, opened
their mouths against me, both obliquely in the pulpits, and
directly at the court, complaining of my too much indulgence to persons disaffected, and my too much liberty of
frequent lecturings within my charge. The billows went
so high, that I was three several times upon my knees to
his majesty, to answer these great criminations; and what
contest I had with some graat lords concerning these particulars, it would be too long to report: only this, under
how dark a cloud I was here upon, I was so sensible, that
I plainly told the lord archbishop of Canterbury (Laud)
that rather than I would be obnoxious to these slanderous
tongues of his misinformers, I would cast off my rochet; I
knew I went right ways, and would not endure to live
under undeserved suspicion.
”
urch discipline; and was the powerful antagonist of Marshall, Calamy, Young, Newcomen, and Spurstow, who wrote a celebrated book called Smectymnuus (a title made up
It must be allowed that the religious principles which he inculcated from the pulpit and the press, were much more consonant to what the puritans maintained, than the lax Arminianism for which Laud contended, but at the same time bishop Hall’s zeal for episcopacy was not inferior to that of any supporter of the church. Few men, indeed, wrote more, or suffered more, in the cause. He published, even when publishing became hazardous, several able treatises in defence of the liturgy and church discipline; and was the powerful antagonist of Marshall, Calamy, Young, Newcomen, and Spurstow, who wrote a celebrated book called Smectymnuus (a title made up of their initials, Christian and surname), and all this he boldly ventured, when the republican party had possessed themselves of the fortresses of civil and ecclesiastical government, and were about to substitute power for argument; nor was it long before they made him experience the dangers of a high station in the church.
hile he remained in his palace, he was continually exposed to the insolence of the soldiery and mob, who were plundering and demolishing the windows and monuments of
While he remained in his palace, he was continually exposed to the insolence of the soldiery and mob, who were
plundering and demolishing the windows and monuments
of the cathedral. At length he was ordered to leave his
house, and would have been exposed to the utmost extremity, had not a neighbour offered him the shelter of his
humble roof. Some time after, but by what interest we
are not told, the sequestration was taken off a small estate
which he rented at Higham near Norwich, to which he retired. His sufferings had not damped his courage, as in
1644 we find him preaching in Norwich, wherever he
could obtain the use of a pulpit, and, with yet more boldness, in the same year he sent “A modest offer of some
meet considerations,
” in favour of episcopacy, addressed
to the assembly of divines. During the rest of his life he
appears to have remained at Higham unmolested, performing the duties of a faithful pastor, and exercising such
hospitality and charity as his scanty means permitted. He
died Sept. 8, 1656, in the eighty-second year of his age,
and was buried in the church-yard of Higham without any
memorial. In his will he says, “I leave my body to be
buried without any funeral pomp, at the discretion of my
executors, with this only monition, that I do not hold
God’s house a meet repository for the dead bodies of the
greatest saints.
” His wife died in
into the hands of Thomas Bailey, D. D. a son of Bailey, or Bayly, bishop of Bangor. This Dr. Bailey, who was a Roman catholic, sold it to a bookseller, by whom it was
, a Roman catholic writer, was educated at Christ’s college, Cambridge, which his principles
obliged him to leave about 1572. He then went to Doway,
and thence to Italy, where he resumed his studies and took
his degree of D. D. Returning afterwards to Doway, he
obtained a professorship and some preferment. He died
in 1604-. He wrote some books of controversy; but is
chiefly worthy of notice now, as the author of that “Life
of bishop Fisher
” which goes under the name of Bailey.
He left it in manuscript at his death, and it was long
preserved as a choice rarity in the library of the English Benedictines at Dieuward in Lorraine; but several transcripts
getting abroad, one fell into the hands of Thomas Bailey,
D. D. a son of Bailey, or Bayly, bishop of Bangor. This
Dr. Bailey, who was a Roman catholic, sold it to a bookseller, by whom it was printed at London in 1655, under
the editor’s name. In 1739 another edition was published
at London, 12mo, edited by Coxeter. It is valued as a
narrative of considerable interest and authenticity.
versity of Caen; and also applied himself to poetry, under the direction of his uncle Anthony Halle, who was a Latin poet of some note, with such success, that he gained
, professor of canon law in the university of Paris, was born at Bayeux in Normandy, September 8, 1611. He studied philosophy, law, and divinity,
for five years in the university of Caen; and also applied
himself to poetry, under the direction of his uncle Anthony
Halle, who was a Latin poet of some note, with such success, that he gained the prizes in the poetical exercises
that are performed every year in these two cities, “to the
honour of the immaculate conception of the Virgin Mary.
”
This procured him so much reputation, that, though he
was still very young, he was chosen professor of rhetoric
in the university of Caen. Some time afier, being rector
of the university, he made an oration to M. Seguier, chancellor of France, then in Normandy, to -suppress some
popular insurrections; which was so much approved by
that head of the law, that he received a doctor of law’s degree from him in 1640. He attended M. Seguier to Paris,
and gained such reputation by some pieces he published,
that they offered him the mastership of five different colleges; and he was incorporated in his absence (a very unusual thing) into the body of the university in 1641. He
was made king’s poet, and reader of the Latin and Greek
tongues in the royal college in 1646. His assiduous application to study having ruined his health, he was obliged to
rest for two years, in order to recover it. He afterwards
resolved to raise the glory of the faculty of the law, which
was miserably sunk; and in 1655 he obtained the post
of regius professor of the canon law, when he vigorously
began, and, though he met with great difficulties, successfully executed what he had resolved. Besides “Canonical Institutions,
” which he published in A Collection of Latin Poems and Orations.
” He died December 27, 1689.
08. He was the son of Nicholas de Haller, an advocate of considerable distinction in his profession, who had a numerous family. Albert was the youngest of five sons.
, one of the most eminent physicians and philosophers of the eighteenth century, was born at Berne, Oct. 16, 1708. He was the son of Nicholas de Haller, an advocate of considerable distinction in his profession, who had a numerous family. Albert was the youngest of five sons. From the commencement of his education, he discovered a great capacity for literature of every kind; to forward the progress of his studies, his father took into his family a private tutor, named Abraham Billodz; but such was the discipline employed by this pedagogue, that the accidental sight of him at any subsequent period of life, excited in Haller those painful recollections, of which all may have some idea who have been tutored with rigid severity. The progress of Haller’s studies, however, at the earliest periods of life, was rapid almost beyond belief. When other children were beginning only to read, he was studying Bayle and Moreri, and at nine years of age he was able to translate Greek, and was beginning to learn Hebrew. Not long after this, however, the course of his education was somewhat interrupted by the death of his father, which happened when he was in the thirteenth year of his age. After this he was sent to the public school at Berne, where he exhibited many specimens of early and uncommon genius. He was distinguished for his knowledge in the Greek and Latin languages, but principally for his poetical genius; and his essays of this kind, which were published in the German language, were read and admired throughout the whole empire.
d permission from the regency of Hanover to return to his native city of Berne. His fellow-citizens, who might at first have fixed inm among themselves, with no less
Thus honoured by sovereigns, revered by men of literature, and esteemed by all Europe, he had it in his power
to have held the highest rank in the republic of letters.
Yet, declining all the tempting offers which were made to
him, he continued at Gottingen, anxiously endeavouring
to extend the rising fame of that medical school. But
after seventeen years residence there, an ill state of health
rendering him less fit for the duties of the important office which he held, he solicited and obtained permission
from the regency of Hanover to return to his native city of
Berne. His fellow-citizens, who might at first have fixed
inm among themselves, with no less honour than advantage
to their city, were now as sensible as others of his superior
merit. A pension was settled upon him for life, and he
was nominated at different times to fill the most important
offices in the state. These occupations, however, did not
diminish his ardour for useful improvements. He was the
first president, as well as the greatest promoter, of the
economical society at Bern; and may he considered as the
father and founder of the orphan hospital of that city.
Declining health at length restrained his exertions in the
more active scenes of life, and for many years he was
confined entirely to his own house. But even this could
not put a period to his studies; he continued his favourite
employment of writing till within a few days of his death,
and preserved his senses and composure to the last moment, meeting death with the calmness of a philosopher,
and what is transcendently superior, the lively faith of a
Christian. His last words were addressed to the physician
who attended him. “My friend,
” said he to M. Rosselet,
u the artery no longer beats," and immediately he expired, at the age of sixty-nine years, on the 12th of December, 1777.
de that his particular study. His profound erudition in every branch of science is well known to all who are conversant with his works: but the variety of his information,
In person Haller was tall and majestic, and of a serious
and expressive countenance; he had at times an open
smile, always a pleasing tone of voice, usually low, and
seldom elevated, even when he was most agitated. He
was fond of unbending himself in society, and was on those
occasions remarkably cheerful, polite, and attentive; he
would converse with the ladies on fashions, modes of dress,
and other trifles, with as much ease as if he had never
secluded himself from the world. Mr. Bonnet informed
Mr. Coxe that Haller wrote with equal facility the German,
French, and Latin tongues; that he was so well acquainted
with all the European languages, except the Russian, Polish, and Hungarian, as to speak with the natives in their
respective idioms. When he conversed on any science or
subject of literature, his knowledge was so extensive, that
he seemed to have made that his particular study. His
profound erudition in every branch of science is well
known to all who are conversant with his works: but the
variety of his information, and the versatility of his talents,
are thus delineated by Tscharner Lobrede, who was his
particular friend “He possessed a fundamental knowledge
of natural history was well read in history, both ancient
and modern, universal and particular; and uncommonly
versed in the state of agriculture, manufactures, trade,
population, literature, and languages of the respective
nations of Europe he had read with attention the most
remarkable voyages and travels and was particularly
conversantin the late discoveries which tend to illustrate the
geography of the globe. He had even perused many
thousand novels and plays; and possessed such an astonishing memory, that he could detail their contents with the
utmost precision. As it was his custom to make extracts,
and to give his opinion of every book which came into his
hands, as well for his own private use, as for the Gottingen Review (in which his department embraced history, medicine, anatomy, natural history, and several miscellaneous works, especially those which appeared in Italy),
he read most new publications; and so eager was he usually
in the perusal, that he laid them upon the table even when
he was at dinner, occasionally looking into them, and
marking those parts with a pencil which he afterward extracted or commented upon. He was accustomed to make
his remarks on small pieces of paper, of different sizes,
which he placed in order and fastened together; a method
he learned from Leibnitz.
” It may be added, as one
weakness in this great character, that he was always impatient under sickness, as well from his extreme susceptibility of pain, as because he was precluded in that situation from his literary occupations. He was fond, therefore,
of taking violent remedies, more calculated to remove the
immediate effects of pain, and to check his disorder, than
to cure it radically. In his latter years he accustomed himself to opium, which, Zimmerman informs us, he took in
so large a dose as eight grains, and which operated as a
temporary palliative, but increased his natural impatience.
This restlessness of temper, which occasionally disturbed
his tranquillity even in his younger clays, and in the full
flow of his health and spirits, was considerably heightened
by the advances of age, and the disorders which shattered
his frame toward the close of his days.
Haller was three times married first to Marianne Wytsen, in 1731, who died in 1736; secondly to Elizabeth Buchers, in 1738, who died
Haller was three times married first to Marianne Wytsen, in 1731, who died in 1736; secondly to Elizabeth
Buchers, in 1738, who died in childbed the same or the
following year; both natives of Berne; and lastly in 1739,
to Amelia Frederica Teichmeyer, a German lady, who survived him. He left eight children, four sons and four
daughters, all of whom he lived to see established. His
eldest son, Gotlieb Emmanuel, who was born in 1735,
followed his father’s example in dedicating himself to the
service of his country, and to the pursuits of literature,
He was elected member of the great council, and obtained
various employments under government, particularly the
baillage of Nyon, in which situation he died in 1786. He
distinguished himself as an author by various publications
tending to illustrate the history and literature of Swisserland, and particularly by his “Swiss Library,
” in 6 vols.
8vo, of which he lived to publish only the first Another
valuable work of his was entitled " Cabinet of Swiss Coins
and Medals.
, a dissenting clergyman, was born at Exeter in 1692, and educated under the care of Mr. Pierce, who was assistant to his father Mr. Hallet, minister of a congregation
, a dissenting clergyman, was born
at Exeter in 1692, and educated under the care of Mr.
Pierce, who was assistant to his father Mr. Hallet, minister
of a congregation of protestant dissentars in that city. Joseph was ordained in 1713, and in 1722 he succeeded his
father as joint-minister with Mdf. Pierce. Prior to this
event he had engaged in the controversy, then warmly
carried on in the west of England, concerning the Trinity;
and in 1720, adopted the principles of Dr. Clarke, which
he demonstrated in a treatise entitled “The Unity of God
not inconsistent with the Divinity of Christ; being remarks
upon Dr. Waterland’s Vindication, relating to the Unity of
God, and the Object of Worship.
” He published other
pieces on the same subject; but his reputation is chiefly
founded on his work entitled “A free and impartial Study
of the Holy Scriptures recommended, being notes on some
peculiar texts, with discourses and observations,
” Discourse of the nature, kinds, and numbers of our Saviour’s Miracles
” his
“Immorality of the Moral Philosopher,
” and his “Consistent Christian,
” against the infidel writers, Woolston,
Morgan, and Chubb. Mr. Hallet died in 1744.
under the learned Dr. Thomas Gale, but his h'rst tutor is said to have been his father’s apprentice, who taught him writing and arithmetic at nine years old. At school
, an eminent English philosopher and astronomer, was born at Haggerston, in the parish of St. Leonard, Shoreditch, near London, October 29, 1656. His father, a wealthy soap-boiler in Winchester-street, put him to St. Paul’s school, under the learned Dr. Thomas Gale, but his h'rst tutor is said to have been his father’s apprentice, who taught him writing and arithmetic at nine years old. At school he not only excelled in all parts of classical learning, but made such uncommon progress in mathematics, that, as Wood says, he had perfectly learnt the use of the celestial globe, and could make a complete dial; and we are informed by Halley himself, that he observed the change of the variation of the magnetic needle at London, in 1672, that is, one year before he left school. In 1673 he was entered a commoner of Queers-college, in Oxford, where he applied himself to practical and geometrical astronomy, in which he was greatly assisted by a curious apparatus of instruments which his father, willing to encourage his son’s genius, had purchased for him. At nineteen he began to publish new observations and discoveries, and continued to do so to the end of a very long life; nor did he distinguish himself less in the practical part of the science. Several observations made by him concerning a spot in the sun, seen at Oxford in July and August 1676, were published, with others by Flamsteed upon the same subject, in the Philosophical Transactions. By these the motion of the sun round its own axis, a phenomenon till then not well ascertained, was finally determined. The same year he likewise observed there, on Aug. 21, a.n occultation of Mars by the Moon, which he made use of afterwards, with others, in settling the longitude of the Cape of Good Hope against the objections of the French astronomers.
etary of state, and to sir Jonas Moore, surveyor of the ordnance, both encouragers of these studies; who, applauding his purpose, mentioned it to Charles II. The king
He had from his first admission into college, pursued a
general scheme for ascertaining the true places of the fixed
stars, and thereby correcting the errors of Tycho Brahe.
His original view was to carry on the design of that first
restorer of astronomy, by completing the catalogue of
those stars from his own observations; but upon farther
inquiry, finding this province taken up by Hevelius and
Flamsteed, he dropped that pursuit, and formed another;
which was, to perfect the whole scheme of the heavens by
the addition of the stars which lie so near the south pole
that they could not be observed by those astronomers, as
never rising above the horizon either at Dantzick or Greenwich. With this view he left the university, before he had
taken a degree, and applied himself to sir Joseph Williamson, then secretary of state, and to sir Jonas Moore, surveyor of the ordnance, both encouragers of these studies;
who, applauding his purpose, mentioned it to Charles II.
The king was much pleased with the plan, and immediately
recommended him to the East India Company, who readily
promised to supply him with every convenience, and to
carry him to St. Helena, then in their possession by a grant
from the crown, which he had been told was a proper situation for his design. Accordingly he embarked for that island
November 1676, and arriving there safely in three months,
began his task; but the frequent fogs which hover over the
island made it much more difficult than he expected, and
it was only by embracing every opportunity which offered
during his abode on the island, that he was enabled to execute his purpose. He ascertained the position of 350
Stars, and published an account of his labours in 1676,
under the title of “Catalogus Stellarum Australian.
” In
honour of his royal patron, he formed a new southern constellation, to which he gave the name of “Kobur Carolinum,
”
or the “Royal Oak.
” During his stay at St. Helena, he
had an opportunity of observing the transit of Mercury
over the sun’s disk; an observation of some importance,
because it could not be completely made in Europe, the
sun not being risen in that country at the beginning of the
transit. Having returned to England November 1678, the
king, greatly satisfied, gave him, at his own request, a letter of mandamus to the university of Oxford for the degree
of M. A. the words of which are, that “his majesty has
received a good account of his learning as to the mathematics and astronomy, whereof he has gotten a good testimony by the observations he has made during his abode
in the island of St. Helena.
” This letter was dated November 18, and the same month he was also chosen fellow
of the royal society. Indeed his catalogue of these southern stars merited particular honour; it was an entirely
new acquisition to the astronomical world, and might not
unaptly be called “Ccelum Australe eo usque incognitum;
” and thence he acquired a just claim to the title,
which by Flamsteed was not long after given him, the
Southern Tycho.
hen he set out upon what is usually called the grand tour, accompanied by the celebrated Mr. Nelson, who had been his school-fellow, and was his friend. They crossed
In 1679 he was appointed by the royal society to go to Dantzick, for the satisfaction of Hevelius the consul, to adjust a dispute between him and our Hooke, about the preference of plain or glass sights in astroscopical instruments. He set out May 14 of this year, with a letter recommendatory from the society, and arrived at that city on the 26th. He waited on the consul immediately, and after some conversation, agreed to enter upon the business of his visit that same night; on which, and every night afterwards, when the sky permitted, the two astronomers made their observations together till July 18, when Halley left Dantzick, and returned to England. Here he continued till the latter end of the following year, 1680; when he set out upon what is usually called the grand tour, accompanied by the celebrated Mr. Nelson, who had been his school-fellow, and was his friend. They crossed the water in December to Calais; and in the mid-way thence to Paris, Haliey had, first of any one, a sight of the remarkable comet as it then appeared a second time that year in its return from the sun. He had the November before seen it in its descent, and now hastened to complete his observations upon it, in viewing it from the royal observatory of France. That building had been finished not many years before; and Halley’s design in this part of his tour was to settle a friendly correspondence between the two royal astronomers of Greenwich and Paris; embracing in the mean time every opportunity of improving himself under so great a master as Cassini, as he had done before under Hevelius. From Paris he went with his fellow-traveller, by the way of Lyons, to Italy, where he spent a great part of the year 1681; but his affairs then calling him home, he left Mr. Nelson at Rome, and returned to England, after making some stay a second time at Paris.
s motion. His pursuits are said to have been interrupted about this time by the death of his father, who having suffered greatly by the fire of London, as well as by
Soon after his return to England, he married the daughter of Mr. Tooke, auditor of the Exchequer; and took a
house at Islington, where he immediately set up his tube
and sextant, and eagerly pursued his favourite study. In
1683 he published his “Theory of the Variation of the
Magnetical Compass,
” in which he supposes the whole
globe of the earth to be one great magnet, having four
rnagnetical poles or points of attraction, two near the north
and two near the south pole. The same year also he entered early upon a new method of finding out the longitude
by a most accurate observation of the moon’s motion. His
pursuits are said to have been interrupted about this time
by the death of his father, who having suffered greatly by
the fire of London, as well as by a second marriage, into
which he had imprudently entered, was found to have
wasted his fortune. He soon, however, resumed his usual
occupations; for, January 1684, he turned his thoughts to
the theory of the planetary motions; and gravity occurred
to him, as it bad done to Dr. Hooke, as the probable cause.
But he could not satisfy himself as to the law according to
which this power diminishes, and therefore first applied to
Dr. Hooke and sir Christopher Wren; who not affording him
any assistance, he went to Cambridge to Newton, who
supplied him fully with what he had so ardently sought.
But Halley having now found an immense treasure, could
not rest till he had prevailed with the owner to enrich the
public with it, and to this interview the world is in some
measure indebted for the celebrated “Principia
” of Newton, which were published in Principia.
”
e for the Savilian professorship at Oxford, but lost it by the intervention of bishop Stillingtteet, who refused to recommend him, on account of his opinions, which
In 1685 he became clerk to the royal society, and seems,
for several years about that period, to have been the principal person employed in drawing up the “Philosophical
Transactions.
” In
to it, he could possibly come at. To this end he procured an application to be made to king William, who appointed him commander of the Paramour Pink, August 19, 169S;
* Whiston, in the Memoirs of his ley should talk with him about it, which
own Life, tells us from Dr. Bentlev, he did. But Halley was so sincere in
that Halley “being thought of for sue-his infidelity, that he would not so
cessor to the mathematical chair at Ox-much as pretend to believe the Chrisford, bishop Stilling&eet was desired tiau religiou, though he thereby was
to recommend him at courti; but, hear-likely to lose a professorship; which
ing that he was a sceptic and a ban-he did accordingly, and it was the
terer of religion, the bishop scrupled given to Dr. Gregory.
”
fco be concerned, till his chaplain Bent.
which, though it was well received both at home and
abroad, he found upon a review liable to great and insuperable objections. Yet the phenomena of the variation
of the needle, upon which it is raised, being so many certain and indisputed facts, he spared no pains to possess
himself of all the observations relating to it, he could possibly come at. To this end he procured an application to
be made to king William, who appointed him commander
of the Paramour Pink, August 19, 169S; with express
orders to seek by observations the discovery of the rule of
the variations, and, as the words of his commission run,
“to call at his majesty’s settlements in America, and make
such farther observations as are necessary for the better
laying down the longitude and latitude of those places, and
to attempt the discovery of what land lies to the south of
the Western ocean.
” He set out on this attempt November 24th following, and proceeded so far as to cross the
line; but his men growing sickly and untractable, and his
first lieutenant mutinying, he returned home in June 1699.
After getting his lieutenant tried and cashiered, he sailed
September following, a second time, having the same ship
with another of less bulk, of which he had also the command. He traversed the vast Atlantic Ocean from one
hemisphere to another, as far as the ice would permit him
to go; and, in his way back touched at St. Helena, the
coast of Brazil, Cape Verd, Barbadoes, Madeiras, the Canaries, the coast of Barbary, and many other latitudes,
arriving in England in September 1700. Having thus furnished himself with a competent number of observations,
he published in 1701, “A General Chart, shewing at one
view the Variation of the Compass in all those seas where
the English navigators were acquainted;
” and was the first
who laid a sure foundation for the discovery of the law or
rule whereby the said variation changes all over the world.
In 1775 the original journals of Dr. Halley’s two voyages
were published by Mr. Alexander Dalrymple, in a thin
quarto volume, but they are not of much value, and were
obviously never intended for publication by Dr. Halley
himself.
through Osnaburgh and Hanover, arrived at Vienna, and was presented the same evening to the emperor, who directly sent his chief engineer to attend him to Istria.
Halley had been at home little more than half a year, en he went in the same ship with another express commission from the king, to observe the course of the tides in cry part of the British channel at home, and to take the wigitude and latitude of the principal head-lands, in order to lay down the coast truly. These orders were executed with his usual expedition and accuracy; and soon after his return he published, in 1702, a large map of the Britisli channel. The emperor of Germany having resolved to make a convenient and safe harbour for shipping in that part of his dominions which borders upon the Adriatic, Halley was sent this year by queen Anne to view the two ports on the Dalmatian coast, lying to that sea. He embarked November 27, went over to Holland, and passing thence through Germany to Vienna, proceeded to Istria, with a view of entering upon the execution of the emperor’s design; but, some opposition being given to it by the Dutch, it was laid aside. The emperor, however, presented him with a rich diamond ring from his finger, and gave him a letter of high commendation, written with his own hand, to queen Anne. He was likewise received with great respect by the king of the Romans, by prince Eugene, and the principal officers of that court. Presently after his arrival in England, he was dispatched again upon the same business; and, passing through Osnaburgh and Hanover, arrived at Vienna, and was presented the same evening to the emperor, who directly sent his chief engineer to attend him to Istria.
. It must, however, be deeply regretted that he cannot be numbered with those illustrious characters who thought it not beneath them to be Christians, with Bacon and
Dr. Halley was of a middle stature, inclining to tallness,
of a thin habit of body, and fair complexion, and always
spoke and acted with an uncommon degree of sprightliness
and vivacity. He was of an ardent and glowing temper, of
a generous and friendly disposition, and of great candour,
He retained his good spirits to the last, and used to say
“that a studious life generally contributes to make a long
one, by keeping a man out of harm’s way.
” That he was,
with all his learning and amiable qualifications, an infidel
in religions matters, seems as generally allowed as it appears unaccountable. It must, however, be deeply regretted that he cannot be numbered with those illustrious
characters who thought it not beneath them to be Christians, with Bacon and Milton, Boyle, Locke, and Newton.
en years of age. He married one of the daughters of Dr. Cooke, provost of King’s college, Cambridge, who wrote the elegant epitaph on his monument in the church of Warsop,
, a learned English prelate, was born at Mansfield in Derbyshire, Jan. 18, 1733. He was the eldest son of Mr. Samuel Hallifax, apothecary, by Hannah, daughter of Mr. Jebb, of Mansfield, by which alliance our author became first cousin of the late sir Richard, and Dr. John Jebb. He was admitted of Jesus college, Cambridge, where he distinguished himself in his academical exercises, and he was in the list of wranglers, as they are called, and obtained the chancellor’s gold medal forclassical learning, and some prize dissertations. He proceeded A. B. in 1744, and A.M. in 1747, and afterwards removed to Trinity Hall (where are only two fellowships in divinity), and proceeded LL.D. in 1761. In Nov. 1765 he was presented to the rectory of Chaddington, in Buckinghamshire, and in 1768 was elected professor of Arabic in the university of Cambridge, which he resigned in 1770 on being made regius professor of civil law. In February 1774 he was appointed chaplain in ordinary to his majesty; in 1775 was created D. D. by royal mandate, and on the death of Dr. Topham succeeded him as master of the faculties in Doctors Commons. From Mrs. Galley, relict of Dr. Galley, prebendary of Gloucester, he received, without any solicitation on his part, but merely as a reward for his eminent services in the cause of religion, the valuable rectory of Warsop, in Nottinghamshire, in 1778. In 1781 he was advanced to the see of Gloucester, and thence was translated to the see of St. Asaph in 1787, being the first English bishop that was translated to that see, and the second that was translated to a bishopric in North Wales. He died of the stone, March 4, 1790, when only fifty-seven years of age. He married one of the daughters of Dr. Cooke, provost of King’s college, Cambridge, who wrote the elegant epitaph on his monument in the church of Warsop, where bishop Hallifax was buried at his own desire, near a favourite son who was interred there. By his wife he left another son and six daughters.
, for no other purpose than to pay him a visit. He introduced himself as a gentleman on his travels, who wished in haste to have his portrait painted. Hals was hurried
, a portrait painter of great celebrity, was born at Mechlin in 1584. He was a pupil of C. Van Mander, and by a careful observation of nature obtained that accurate knowledge of the structure of the human frame, which is so useful in his art. No man ever set the features of a face together with more truth than Frank Hals, or with a readier pencil; and he did it with great truth and spirit also of colour, as well as of execution. He avoided the laboured mode of finish so much admired among his countrymen at the time, and gave his portraits much expression and animation of countenance, particularly of a gay and humourous nature. A decided character of individual nature is remarkable in his portraits, and is not found in an equal degree in any other painter. If he had joined to this most difficult part of the art, a patience in finishing what he had so correctly planned, he might justly have claimed the place which Vandyke, all things considered, so justly holds as the first of portrait painters. This last mentioned artist was so delighted with his works, that he went to Haerlem, where he resided, for no other purpose than to pay him a visit. He introduced himself as a gentleman on his travels, who wished in haste to have his portrait painted. Hals was hurried from the tavern, where he usually passed his leisure time, seized the first canvas he could find, and began his labour. In a short time he had proceeded so far, that he asked Vandyke to look at what he had done, who expressed himself as very well pleased with it, at the same time saying that he thought such work so easy, he was persuaded he could do it himself. Taking the palette and pencils, he desired F. Hals to sit down, and in a quarter of an hour shewed him the portrait. The moment he saw it he recognized his visitor, and embraced him with transport. Vandyke endeavoured to prevail upon Hals to accompany him to England, engaging to enrich him but he was not able to succeed Hals declaring that his happiness consisted in the enjoyment of his friends and his bottle, and while he possessed these he was satisfied with his condition. For his treatment of Brouwer, see our account of that artist. He died in 1666, at the age of eighty-two. He had a brother, Dirk Hals, a painter of animals, merry-makings, conversations, feasts, and subjects of drollery, to whom, however, as an artist, he was far superior in all the better qualities of art: yet Dirk’s works gained him much reputation, and he practised with great success till he was sixty-seven years old, when he died in 1656.
r the restoration, for nonconformity. He died in 1682, and as the country was still unsafe for those who professed the presbyterian religion, his mother went over to
, a pious Scotch divine, and
professor of divinity in the university of St. Andrew’s, was
born at Duplin in the parish of Aberdalgy, near Perth,
Dec. 25, 1674. His father had been minister of that
parish, from which he was ejected after the restoration, for
nonconformity. He died in 1682, and as the country was
still unsafe for those who professed the presbyterian religion, his mother went over to Holland with her son, then
about eight years old. During their stay there, he was
educated at Erasmus’s school, and made great proficiency
in classical literature. On his return to Scotland in 1687,
he resumed his studies, and was also sent to the university.
When he had finished his philosophical course there, he
entered upon the study of divinity; and being, in June
1699, licensed to preach, he was in May 1700, appointed
minister of the parish of Ceres, in which he performed the
part of a zealous and pious pastor; but his labours proving
too many for his health, the latter became gradually impaired. In April 1710, he was appointed by patent from
queen Anne, professor of divinity in the college of St.
Leonard at St. Andrew’s, through the mediation of the
synod of Fife. On this occasion he entered on his office
an inaugural oration, in qua, post exhibitam
rationem suscepti muneris, examinatur schedula nupera, cui
titulus ' Epistola Archimedis ad Regem Gelonem Albae
Graecae reperta anno serae Christianas 1688, A. Pitcarnio,
M. D. ut vulgo creditur, auctoreV Pitcairn’s reputation
as a deist was at that time very common in Scotland, however justly he may have deserved it; and Mr. Halyburton’s
attention had been much called to the subject of deism as
revived in the preceding century. He did not, however,
enjoy his professorship long, dying Sept. 23, 1712, aged
only thirty-eight. It does not appear that he published
any thing in his life-time; but soon after his death two
works were published, which still preserve his memory in
Scotland. 1. “The Great Concern of Salvation,
” Ten Sermons preached before and after the
celebration of the Lord’s Supper,
” Natural Religion insufficient; and
Revealed necessary to man’s happiness,
” Edinburgh, whosoever
carefully examines what this learned and pious author has
offered on these several heads, will find many excellent
things; though the narrowness of his notions in some points
has prejudiced some persons against his work, and hindered them from regarding and considering it so much as
it deserves.
”
s, intermixed with physiological remarks, as in the preceding performances of this excellent writer, who published also in 1764, upon the art of refining sugar, in folio,
In 1760 he published another valuable practical volume
in 4to, with plates, entitled “Des Semis et Plantations
des Arbres, et de leur Culture.
” This had an especial
view to the great national object of improving the forests
of the kingdom, highly important in a country where so
much wood is continually used for fuel, and so little, in
proportion to some other countries, naturally produced.
The author laudably takes advantage of the panic with
which his countrymen are every now and then seized, of
a scarcity of fuel, to excite their attention to the means he
would recommend for the prevention of so dreadful an
evil, and his book is a mine of practical information for
the woodman, the planter, and the gardener, of the first
authority and value. The same subject is followed up in
2 vols. 4to, published in 1764, under the title of “De
l'exploitation des Bois, ou moyen de tirer parti des taillis
demi futayes et hautes futayes;
” and in Du transport, de la conservation,
et de la force du Bois,
” full of practical information relative to the properties, qualities, and uses of different
woods, intermixed with physiological remarks, as in the
preceding performances of this excellent writer, who published also in 1764, upon the art of refining sugar, in folio,
and in 1765, on the preservation of grain, in 12mo. His
most splendid work was printed at Paris in 1768, in 2 vols.
4to, with fine coloured plates. Its title is “Traite des
Arbres fruitiers.
” In this the varieties of fruit-trees are elegantly distinguished by figures and descriptions, and their
treatment illustrated with the usual science of the author.
form are to be subordinate to the superior ones of Venus. He would rank with the first names in art, who from such a combination should escape without having provoked
, an excellent painter, descended from the ancient family of the Hamiltons of Murdieston, originally of Fife, but now of Lanarkshire, in Scotland, was born at Lanark, and having discovered from his infancy a great predilection for historic painting, went young to Rome, where he became the scholar of Augustine Massuchi. With the exception of a few occasional visits to Britain, he resided the whole of his life at Rome, where he died in 1797. He had not perhaps the genius of an inventor; but the advantages of liberal education, and of a classic taste in the choice of his subjects, and the style at which he always, and often successfully, aimed, made him at least equal to his most celebrated contemporaries. Some of the subjects which he painted from the Iliad bear ample evidence of this. Achilles grasping the body of Patroclus, and rejecting the consolation of the Grecian chiefs, and Hector tied to his chariot, have something of Homeric sublimity and pathos; the moment chosen is the crisis of the fact, and the test of the hero’s character. But in this last he is not always happy, as in Achilles dismissing Briseis, where the gesticulation of an actor supplants the expression of the man. Of his women the Briseis in the same subject is the most attractive. Neither his Andromache mourning over Hector, nor the Helen in the same, or the scene with Paris, reach our ideas of the former’s dignity and anguish, or the form and graces of the latter. Indeed, what idea can be supposed to reach that beauty, which, in the confession of age itself, deserved the ten years’ struggle of two nations And yet, in the subject of Paris, those graces and that form are to be subordinate to the superior ones of Venus. He would rank with the first names in art, who from such a combination should escape without having provoked the indignation, contempt, or pity of disappointed expectation.
a peer of Scotland, by the title of earl of Orkney. His lady, likewise, whom he married in 1695, and who was the daughter of sir Edward Villiers, knight-marshal, and
, earl of Orkney, a brave officer, was the fifth son of William earl of Selkirk, and very early embraced the profession of arms. In March 1689-90 he was made a colonel, and distinguished himself with particular bravery at the battle of the Boyne, under king William, July 1, 1690; and those of Aghrim, July 12, 1691; of Steinkirk, Aug. 3, 1692, and of Lauden, July 19, 1693. Nor did he appear to less advantage at the sieges of Athlone, Limerick, and Namur. His eminent services in Ireland and Flanders through the whole course of the war, recommended him so highly to the favour of William III. that on Jan. 10, 1695-6, he was advanced to the dignity of a peer of Scotland, by the title of earl of Orkney. His lady, likewise, whom he married in 1695, and who was the daughter of sir Edward Villiers, knight-marshal, and a special favourite with the king, received a grant under the great seal of Ireland, of almost all the private estates of the abdicated king James, of very considerable value. Upon the accession of queen Anne, the earl of Orkney was promoted to the rank of majorgeneral March 9, 1701-2, to that of lieutenant-general Jan. 1, 1703-4, and in February following was made knight of the thistle. In 1704 his lordship was at the battle of Blenheim, which was crowned with so important a victory in favour of the allies; and he made prisoners of war a body of 1300 French officers and 12,000 common soldiers, who had been posted in the village of Blenheim. In July 1705, he was detached with 1200 men to march before the main body of the army, and to observe the march of a great detachment of the enemy, which marshal Villars had sent off to the Netherlands, as soon as he found the march of the allies was directed thither; and his lordship used such expedition, that he seasonably reinforced the Dutch, and prevented marshal Villeroy’s taking the citadel of Liege, about which his troops were then formed. The next month his lordship marched with fourteen battalionsof foot, and twenty-four squadrons of horse, to support the passage over the Dyle, which was immediately effected. In July 1706, he assisted at the siege of Menin; and on Feb. 12, 1706-7, was elected one of the sixteen peers for Scotland, to sit in the first parliament of Great Britain after the union. The same year he again served under the duke of Marlborough in Flanders; being in the latter end of May detached with seven battalions of foot from Meldart to the pass of Louvain, in order to preserve the communication with it, and on that side of Flanders; which his lordship did, and abode there during the time of the allied army’s encamping at Meldart. When they decamped on Aug. 1, to Nivelle, within two leagues of the French army, and a battle was expected, the earl, with twelve battalions of foot, and thirty squadrons of horse and dragoons, and all the grenadiers of the army, advanced a little out of the front of it, and lay all night within cannon-shot of the enemy; and the next morning charged their rear in their retreat for above a league and a half, and killed, disabled, and caused to desert, above 4000 of them. In the beginning of September following his lordship was again detached with another considerable body of troops to Turquony, under a pretence of foraging by the Scheld, but really with the design of drawing the enemy thither from Tournay to battle, and getting between them and the city. In November 1708, the earl commanded the van of the army at the passing of the Scheld; and in June the year following, assisted at the siege of Tournay, and took St. Amand and St. Martin’s Sconce; and on Aug. 20, was detached from the camp at Orchies towards St. Guilliampass, on the river Heine, towards the northward of Moms, in order to attack and take it, for the better passage of the army to Mons; and on the 30th of that month, was present at the battle of Malplaquet. In 1710 he was sworn of the privy-council; and made general of foot in Flanders, and in 1712 colonel of the royal regiment of foot-guards called the fuzileers, and served in Flanders under the duke of Ormond. In October, 1714, his lordship was appointed gentleman extraordinary of the bed-chamber to king George I. and on Dec. 17 following, governor of Virginia. He was likewise afterwards constable, governor and captain of Edinburgh castle, lord-lieutenant of the county of Clydesdale, and field-marshal. He died in London, at his house in Albemarle-street, Jan, 29, 1736-7.
ilton, earl of Arran, and by his mother, nephew to John Stewart, duke of Albany: Mackenzie, however, who cannot be suspected of any wish to degrade his countryman, maintains
, usually reckoned the first Scotch reformer, is said by all the Scotch ecclesiastical writers to have been of royal descent, as by his father, he was nephew to James Hamilton, earl of Arran, and by his mother, nephew to John Stewart, duke of Albany: Mackenzie, however, who cannot be suspected of any wish to degrade his countryman, maintains that his father was only a bastard brother of the earl of Arran, and his mother a bastard sister of the duke of Albany. Whatever truth there may be in this, it appears that he had great family interest, and being possessed of uncommon abilities, was intended for the higher offices in the church, had he not become its decided enemy. He was born in 1503, and after completing the usual course of studies at the university of St. Andrew’s, went to Germany, where he was, according to Dempster, made a professor in the university of Marpurg, which was newly erected by Philip, Landgrave of Hesse. During his residence abroad he imbibed the opinions of Luther, Melanchthon, and other reformers; and on his return to his own country, where he had been made abbot of Ferme, or Feme, in Ross-shire, he spared no pains in exposing what he considered as the corruptions of the Church of Rome, and the many errors, both in doctrine and practice, that had crept into the Christian religion.
reat learning, of a courteous disposition, and unblameable in private life. This alarmed the clergy, who, under pretence of conferring with him, enticed him to St. Andrew’s,
In this employment he was both zealous and successful^ for he was a young man of great learning, of a courteous disposition, and unblameable in private life. This alarmed the clergy, who, under pretence of conferring with him, enticed him to St. Andrew’s, at that time the principal seat of the dignified clergy, where after repeated disputation, in which some of the clergy appeared to lean to his opinions, he was one night suddenly apprehended in his bed, and carried prisoner to the castle. The next day he was presented before the archbishop of St. Andrew’s, James Beton, assisted by the archbishop of Glasgow, the bishops of Brechin, Dunkeld, and Dumblaine, with a number of abbots, priors, and doctors, before whom he was accused of the following articles: 1. That the corruption of sin remains in children after baptism. 2. That no man by the power of his free-will can do any thing that is truly good. 3. That no man is without sin altogether, so long as he liveth. 4. That every true Christian may know himself to be in a state of grace. 5. That a man is not justified by works, but by faith only. 6. That good works make not a good man, but that a good man doeth good works, as it is the good tree which bringeth forth good fruit, not the fruit that maketh the tree good. 7. That faith, hope, and charity, are so linked together, that he who hath one hath all, and he who lacketh one lacketh all. 8, That remission of sin is not purchased by any actual penance.
rcumstance accompanied his execution which made a deep impression on the people. One friar Campbell, who had often conferred with him, and appeared to be convinced by
A circumstance accompanied his execution which made
a deep impression on the people. One friar Campbell,
who had often conferred with him, and appeared to be
convinced by his arguments, now molested him much when
tied to the stake. Hamilton exclaimed “Wicked man,
thou knowest that I am not an heretic, and that it is the
truth of God for which I suffer. So much thou didst confess to me in private, and thereupon I appeal thee to answer before the judgment-seat of Christ.
” This Campbell
died raving mad a short time after, when the people began to compare his end with that of the martyr’s, and
upon inquiring more closely into the cause of the latter’s
death, became many of them converts to his doctrines.
One Lindsay, an intimate friend of the archbishop, said,
“My lord, if ye burn any more, except ye follow my
counsel, ye will utterly destroy yourselves if ye will burn
them, let them be burned in hollow cellars, for the smoke
of Mr. Patrick Hamilton hath infected as many as it blew
upon.
” It is certain that his unjust and precipitate execution raised a general clamour against the churchmen,
for condemning such a man because he maintained doctrines some of which they could not prove to be heretical,
and others of them were proposed only as theological
problems to be disputed among divines. He was only
twenty-three years of age when he suffered, and his youth
and excellent character undoubtedly weighed much with
the people.
and is published in Fox’s “Acts and Monuments.
” It is
a very ingenious explanation and defence of the doctrines
of justification, free-will, election, &c. and has not in
closeness of reasoning and aptness of quotation been exceeded by any divines of the Calvinistic persuasion in later
times. If we consider his extreme youth and the age in
which he wrote, it will yet appear a more extraordinary
composition.
degree of M. D. from the university of St. Andrew’s, he succeeded to the practice of Dr. Lidderdale, who died about that time. In this situation he continued to the
, “a skilful physician, was born
at Edinburgh, Dec. 6, 1721, and educated at the high
school there. He was afterwards apprenticed to Mr. William Edmonston, a surgeon and apothecary at Leith, and
after continuing in that station three years, studied* medicine at the university of Edinburgh. In 1741, he went as
surgeon’s mate on board the Somerset, and for some time
had the care of the military hospital at Port Mahon. In
1744, he was appointed surgeon to the Wolf sloop of war.
The four following years were divided between his occupations at sea, and his attendance upon the lectures of
Drs. Hunter and Smellie in London. In 1748, he went
to Lynn in Norfolk, invited thither by his brother, a merchant in that town. He afterwards accepted an offer of
settling at Lynn; and in 1766, having received the degree
of M. D. from the university of St. Andrew’s, he succeeded
to the practice of Dr. Lidderdale, who died about that time.
In this situation he continued to the time of his death,
which happened Nov. 9, 1793. As he was of an inquisitive and industrious turn of mind, the time that could be
spared from his practice he employed in endeavouring to
make improvements in his profession, and of his success
several valuable monuments remain. He was a frequent,
correspondent of the royal societies of London and Edinburgh. In 1791, he published a
” Treatise on the Scrofula,“which has been well received. He invented a machine for reducing dislocated shoulders, and an apparatus
for keepiug the ends of fractured bones together, to prevent lameness and deformity from those accidents. In
1801, was published a posthumous work, entitled
” Observations on the marsh remittent fever; also on the water
canker, or cancer aquaticus of Van Swieten, with some remarks on the leprosy," 8vo. Prefixed to this volume is an
account of the author, from which we have extracted the
preceding sketch.
milton of Bangour, whose amiable manners were long remembered with the tenderest recollection by all who knew him, Mr. Home (lord Kames) lived in the closest habits
Among the revivers of his fame, professor Richardson,
and lord Woodhouslee, are entitled to the highest respect.
The latter, in his elaborate life of lord Kames, says, “With
the elegant and accomplished William Hamilton of Bangour, whose amiable manners were long remembered with
the tenderest recollection by all who knew him, Mr. Home
(lord Kames) lived in the closest habits of friendship. The
writer of these memoirs has heard him dwell with delight
on the scenes of their youthful days; and he has to regret,
that many an anecdote to which he listened with pleasure,
was not committed to a better record than a treacherous
memory. Hamilton’s mind is pictured in his verses. They
are the easy and careless effusions of an elegant, fancy and
a chastened taste; and the sentiments they convey are the
genuine feelings of a tender and susceptible heart, which
perpetually owned the dominion of some favourite mistress;
but whose passion generally evaporated in song, and made
no serious or permanent impression. His poems had an
additional charm to his contemporaries, from being commonly addressed to his familiar friends of either sex, by
name.
”
d sent the piece entitled “Contemplation*” one of the most laboured of his productions, to Mr. Home, who suggested some alterations. In a letter from Hamilton, in July
It appears from Hamilton’s letters, that he communicated his poems to his friends for their critical remarks, and
was easily induced to alter or amend them by their advice.
He had sent the piece entitled “Contemplation*
” one of
the most laboured of his productions, to Mr. Home, who
suggested some alterations. In a letter from Hamilton, in
July 1739, he says, “I have made the corrections on the
moral part of Contemplation, and in a post will send it to
Will. Crawford, who has the rest, and will transmit it to
you. I shall write to him fully on the subject.
” It is
pleasing ^to remark, that the Will. Crawford here mentioned, was the author of the beautiful pastoral ballad of
Tweed-side, which, with the aid of its charming melody,
will probably live as long as the language is understood.
Hamilton may be reckoned among the earliest of the Scotch
poets who wrote English verse with propriety and taste,
and with any considerable portion of the poetic spirit.
Thomson, Mallet, and he, were contemporaries. “The
poems of Hamilton,
” says professor Richardson, “display
regular design, just sentiments, fanciful invention, pleasing sensibility, elegant diction, and smooth versification,
His genius was aided by taste, and his taste was improved
by knowledge. He was not only well acquainted with the
most elegant modern writers, but with those of antiquity.
Of these remarks, his poem entitled c Contemplation, or
the Triumph of Love,' affords sufficient illustration.
”
tice of distant strangers. Prejudice, however, is now at an end, and the friends of Scottish genius, who have lately called the attention of the puhlic to this writer,
Some of Hamilton’s poems were first published at Glasgow in 1748, and afterwards reprinted, not only without
the author’s name, but without his consent, and even without his knowledge. He corrected, however, many errors
of that copy, and enlarged some of the poems, though he
did not live to make a new and complete publication. The
improvements he made were carefully inserted in the edition published at Edinburgh in 1760, with the addition of
many pieces taken from his original manuscripts. Since
that time, although they have been inserted in the new
edition of the English Poets, there has been no demand
for a separate edition. It would be of importance, but it
is seldom easy, to account for the various fates of poets.
Hamilton, if not of the first class, and in whom we find only
those secondary qualities which professor Richardson has
so ably pointed out in the “Lounger,
” surely excels some
whose works are better known and more current. The
neglect which he has experienced naay be partly attributed
to his political principles, and partly to the local interest
which his effusions excited, and to which they were long
confined. Verses of compliment and personal addresses
tnust have extraordinary merit, if they attract the notice of
distant strangers. Prejudice, however, is now at an end,
and the friends of Scottish genius, who have lately called
the attention of the puhlic to this writer, have proved that
he deserves a higher rank than has yet been assigned to
him. He is perhaps very unequal, and the blemishes in
his verse and diction to which professor Richardson has
alluded are frequent, yet it is no inconsiderable merit to
have been one of the first of his countrymen who cultivated the purity and harmony of the English language,
and exhibited a variety of composition and fertility of sentiment that are rarely to be found in the writings of those
whose poetical genius is of the second degree.
me note, was the only son of William Hamilton, esq. an advocate of the court of session in Scotland, who after the union came to London, and was admitted to the English
, a statesman of some
note, was the only son of William Hamilton, esq. an advocate of the court of session in Scotland, who after the union
came to London, and was admitted to the English bar.
His son was born in Lincoln’s-inn Jan. 28, 1728-9, and
was educated at Winchester school, and at Oriel college,
Oxford, where he was admitted a gentleman commoner,
March 1, 1744-5. During his residence at Oxford, it is
supposed he wrote those poems which were printed in
1750, 4to> for private distribution only, but have lately
been published by Mr. Malone. On leaving Oxford, he
became a member of Lincoln’s-inn, with a view to study
the law; but on his father’s death in 1754, he betook hifnself to a political life, and in the same year was chosen,
member of parliament for Petersfield in Hampshire. His
first effort at parliamentary eloquence was made Nov. 13,
1755, when, to use the words of Waller respecting Denham, “he broke out, like the Irish rebellion, threescore
thousand strong-, when nobody was aware, or in the least
suspected it.
” Certainly no first speech in parliament
ever produced such an effect, or acquired such eulogies,
both within and without the house of commons. Of this
speech, however, no copy remains. For many years it was
supposed to have been his only attempt, and hence the
familiar name of Single-speech was fixed upon him; but he
spoke a second time, Feb. 1756, and such was the admiration which followed this display of his talents, that Mr,
P\>jc, then one of the principal secretaries of state, procured him to be appointed, in April of the same year, one
of the lords of trade. At this board he sat five years without ever exerting his oratorical talents; and in 1761 accepted the office of principal secretary to George earl of
Halifax, then appointed lord-lieutenant of Ireland. In the
Irish parliament, as he filled an office of responsibility, it
was necessary for him to support the measures of administration; and accordingly in 1761 and 1762, he made five
speeches on various occasions, which fully gratified the
expectations of his auditors. Mr. Hamilton continued secretary to the succeeding lord lieutenant, Hugh earl of
Northumberland, in 1763, but it is believed his exertions
in that session were less splendid and less frequent; and
before it concluded, on some disgust he resigned his office.
On his return to England, and for a long time afterwards, he meditated taking an active part in the political
warfare of the house of commons, but he never again addressed the chair, though he was chosen into every new
parliament that was summoned from that time till May 1796,
a little before his death. In this period, the only office hg
filled was that of chancellor of the exchequer in Ireland,
which he held from Sept. 1763 to April 1784. During
this interval he was one of those on whom common rumour
bestowed the authorship of Junius’s letters, and perhaps
never was any rumour so completely devoid of a probable
foundation. He died at his house in Upper Brook-street,
July 16, 1796, and was buried in the chancel vault of the
church of St. Martin in the Fields. In 1803, Mr. Malona
published his works under the title of “Parliamentary
Logic; to which are subjoined two Speeches delivered in
the House of Commons in Ireland, and other pieces,
” 8vo f
with a life of the author prefixed. These speeches give
us but a faint idea of the splendid abilities which once so
enraptured his hearers, nor does his poetry entitle him to
rank above the elegant versifiers of his time. His Parliamentary Logic“is a performance of a more singular cast.
It consists of a string of maxims, or rules, for managing a
debate in parliament, in which the author appears serious,
else we should have supposed parliamentary logic
” to
imply a ridicule on the language of that house. These
maxims, however, seem admirably qualified to make a partizan; although we much doubt whether they have a tendency to make that more valuable character, an honest man.
fferent spots around Naples affected by volcanic eruptions; and it was universally remarked by those who had the pleasure, to accompany him in these excursions, that
Mr. Hamilton was appointed ambassador to the court of
Naples in 1764; and from that time to 1800, in which he
was recalled, it may be said, with the strictest justice, that
he did much more for the advancementof the fine arts, natural
history, and antiquities, than any individual or corporation
in that metropolis; perhaps, or even the government itself. In Naples the state of those branches of knowledge,
which constituted Mr. Hamilton’s pursuits, was at this time
very low, and as far as early and intense application may
be considered proofs of a predominant passion, it appears
that the objects of natural history chiefly engaged his attention. In a short period from his arrival, he had already
collected a vast number of articles connected with this
science, and had thus formed a valuable cabinet, of which,
according to the expression of one of his friends, “he
could be himself the ablest demonstrator.
” Between 1764,
and the middle of 1767, he visited Vesuvius no less than
twenty-two times, and had as often observed the different
spots around Naples affected by volcanic eruptions; and
it was universally remarked by those who had the pleasure,
to accompany him in these excursions, that he was the
best and most instructive “Cicerone
” that could possibly
be found for such occasions. He also visited Mount Etna,
and the Eolian islands, places which had not been examined with such attention before. The phenomena which
their surface presented to his view did not satisfy his
curiosity: he observed the interior parts of the soil, and every
minute circumstance that attended the operations of nature: not one of the different substances which had ever
issued from these volcanoes was left unnoticed. In all his
excursions he was constantly accompanied by an artist of
great merit, Mr. Fabris, who drew plans and delineated
such objects as were most interesting and striking.
o in the Annual Register, these letters are preserved; the perusal of which will amply gratify those who are fond of curious incidents, and personal anecdotes relating
These observations, though since reduced to systematic,
works, were first communicated in partial letters to the
royal society, from 1766 to 1779; in whose Transactions
for the above years, and also in the Annual Register, these
letters are preserved; the perusal of which will amply
gratify those who are fond of curious incidents, and personal anecdotes relating to the subject of this memoir,
The works themselves were two: viz. “Observations on
Mount Vesuvius, Mount Etna, and other Volcanoes of the
Two Sicilies,
” which appeared in Campi PhJegraei,
” published at Naples in that
volcanoes lie dormant for several years, nay even for centuries.
” “When 1 arrived,
” says he, “at Naples, Vesuvius was quiet, very seldom was smoke visible on its top; in
the year 1766, it seemed to take fire, and has never since been,
three months without either throwing up red hot stones, or
disgorging streams of lava; nor has its crater been ever
free from smoke. At Naples, when a lava appears, and
not till then, it is styled an eruption; whereas I look upon
the five nominal eruptions I have been witness to, from
March 1766 to May 1771, as in effect but one continued
eruption. It is certain, that by constant attention to the
smoke that issues from the crater, a very good guess may
be given as to the degree of fermentation within the volcano. By this alone 1 foretold the two last eruptions; and
by another very simple observation, I pointed out, some
time before, the very spot from whence the lava has issued. When the cone of Vesuvius was covered with snow,
I remarked a spot on which it would not lie.
”
to assign the exact measures of their proportion; and to establish certain principles for the artist who would perform something in the same way. It was, in short, a
In the science of antiquities, so early as 1765, he had
promoted the publication of the magnificent and elegant
ttrork, “Antiquites Etrusques, Grecques,etRomaines, tire*es
du Cabinet de Mr. Hamilton;
” a fine collection of designs
from Etruscan, Greek, and Roman vases, which was received
with the greatest satisfaction by the lovers of antiquity and
the arts. The design of this work was professedly the advancement of the arts. It was intended to shew on what
system the ancients gave their vases that elegance so generally acknowledged and admired, and how they were able
to assign the exact measures of their proportion; and to
establish certain principles for the artist who would perform something in the same way. It was, in short, a most
valuable present to the learned and to artists, and above
all to manufacturers of earthen ware and china, and of vase
in silver, glass, &c. who found here an infinite variety of
beautiful models, most of which had been until then unknown; and indeed it may be observed, that since that
period our articles of the above description are universally
formed with more beauty, taste, and elegance; qualities in
which we as yet remain unequalled by any other country.
which is given of them by the books of Caylus, or Montfaucon. There are few antiquaries and scholars who have not entertained a wish to see such a collection executed
We are informed in the abbe Winkelman’s Letters, that
the above-mentioned work was intended to be comprised
in four large folio volumes. Of these, the two former only
appeared at the stated time. The two latter volumes (as we are informed by a note in the last edition of the Letters of Winkelnian) were published in Naples in 1775; but the
writer of this article has never been able to procure a sight
of them, or even to gain the least information on the subject. The two former volumes were reduced to a smaller
size, and republished at Paris, by Mr. David, in 1787, in
five 8vo volumes. The adventurer D‘Hancarville, editor
of the work, as we are told by Winkelman, expected, by
that publication, to acquire a fortune of twenty thousand
pounds. It is not probable that he ever realized this expectation, but we know from D’Hancarville himself, that
Mr. Hamilton allowed him to reap the emolument which
might arise from the work. Of the particulars of which,
he himself says, that “long since Mr. Hamilton had taken
pleasure in collecting those precious monuments, and had
afterwards trusted them to him for publication, requiring
only some elegance in the execution; and the condition,
that the work should appear under the auspices of his Britannic majesty.
” “It answers no purpose to have of the
ancient vases that general and vague idea which is given
of them by the books of Caylus, or Montfaucon. There
are few antiquaries and scholars who have not entertained
a wish to see such a collection executed with care and
precision. They can now compare the present with that
of cardinal Gualtieri, reported by Montfaucon, and with
all the others which have hitherto appeared. Mr. Hamilton, justly apprehensive that the vases, already destined
for England, might be damaged in their way, has resolved
to have them engraved at Naples.
”
arts in London and the greatest part of the views were inscribed to some individuals of our nobility who then happened to be in Naples. Ever since the year 1770, Mr.
Among the several persons whom Mr. Hamilton honoured with his patronage at Naples, we shall only mention the celebrated engraver, Morghen; as it was owing to his encouragement that this eminent artist, in 1769, published that elegant collection of views at Pozzuoli and other spots in the neighbourhood of Naples. It is pleasing to say that Mr. Morghen soon evinced his gratitude towards his patron, and the nation to which the latter belonged the collection was dedicated to the Society of arts in London and the greatest part of the views were inscribed to some individuals of our nobility who then happened to be in Naples. Ever since the year 1770, Mr. Hamilton had established a regular correspondence with various intelligent persons 4n the several provinces of the kingdom, concerning such monuments of arts or antiquities as might happen to be found near their respective residences, and which might answer his further purposes. This correspondence was carried on with a peculiar activity in the province of Campania, that province being indeed the spot in which the greatest number of ancient vaseshas been found, and which for this reason is thought to have possessed the chief manufactures of that article.
fe. The lady, mistress of a considerable fortune, enjoys the pleasure of making that of her husband, who had nothing of his own but an illustrious name. The gentleman,
Whilst at this period Mr. Hamilton so successfully indulged in scientific and literary pursuits, he had no opportunity of exerting himself to any advantage in his public and diplomatic capacity, nothing of importance being
then in agitation in the political world; and, with regard
to private connexions, it is still in the remembrance of his
old friends, that, till he became acquainted with some congenial characters, he found himself, in the midst of an
immense metropolis, as insulated as if he had been in a
village. Of his domestic life, about this period, we fortunately have an account from the celebrated secretary of
the French academy, Duclos, from which we shall here
give an extract, the more properly, as, with the alteration
of time and place, it is his characteristic picture in every
part of his life. “Mr. Hamilton,
” says he, “was in the
habit of taking his dinner at home with a select number of
friends, among whom I had the honour of being admitted.
He had also a weekly party of the most distinguished persons of Naples. In these parties, a concert was sometimes
given, in which Miss Hamilton played on the harpsichord
so eminently, that her talents were acknowledged in a town
decidedly superior in musical science to the rest of Italy.
Mr. and Mrs. Hamilton are the happiest couple I ever saw.
Both still in the vigour of youth, with good hearts and
cultivated minds, and tenderly attached to each other, they
presented to me the image of a patriarchal life. The lady,
mistress of a considerable fortune, enjoys the pleasure of
making that of her husband, who had nothing of his own
but an illustrious name. The gentleman, duly sensible of
what he owes to a beloved wife, is highly pleased to acknowledge it, and the sentiment of his gratitude increases
the happiness of his situation.
”
n had recommended an able, industrious, and indefatigable Piarist monk, named Father Anthony Piaggi, who possessed the art of completely unfolding the'deca3ed manuscripts.
His most truly meritorious labours, however, at the close of the above mentioned period, were those which had in view the unrivalled museum of Portici; an object which lad not yet been accessible to his researches. The history of the discovery of Herculaneum, and of the Royal museum to which it gave rise, is too well known to require any detailed notice in this place: it is equally alien to our purpose to relate the several tardy and unsuccessful measures which the government took to illustrate that unrivalled establishment; and we shall only notice the ancient manuscripts in the Museum, which are immediately connected with our subject. It is known that about eight hundred objects of this kind had been found in the several excavations of Herculaneum; and that on application being made to Mr. Assemanni of the Vatican, on the subject, this learned man had recommended an able, industrious, and indefatigable Piarist monk, named Father Anthony Piaggi, who possessed the art of completely unfolding the'deca3ed manuscripts. Some successful trials were made: a work on the philosophy of Epicurus, another on morals, a third on rhetoric, and a fourth on music, were brought to light: and of the last, the author of which was a Greek named Philodemus, thirty-eight full columns were happily copied. Father Anthony’s services were still more beneficial; he instructed in his art a pupil named Merli, afterwards as able as himself. Neither of them, however, persevered in their tasks: they complained of the supineness of the ministry, and of their own scanty allowance.
Museum. The propriety of accepting this offer may be questioned. It was considered, however, by one who was not particularly acquainted with the administration of the
Among the papers left by sir William at his death, are found more than fifty memoirs directed by Father Anthony to the marquis of Sambuca, soliciting his patronage for the great work of the manuscripts, to which solicitations that minister seemed to be deaf. Numberless other memoirs of the kind were also presented to several persons in the royal service, and they met with no better success. The consequence was, that Father Anthony at last put himself under the protection of sir William, and tendered his services for any information which the latter might wish concerning the Museum. The propriety of accepting this offer may be questioned. It was considered, however, by one who was not particularly acquainted with the administration of the establishment, as too important not to meet with an immediate compliance: a treaty was concluded, that sir William should grant to Father Anthony a pension of 600 ducats a year (100l.), and the latter should regularly send to him every week a sheet of original information; and in order to elude any ministerial inquisition, it was also agreed that the correspondence should be carried on in cyphers. This correspondence lasted till the death of Father Anthony in 1798; and, if we except a want of delicacy, and perhaps also a breach of trust in the monk, we may presume that, in the main object, it proved satisfactory to both parties: sir William was indeed so satisfied, that, some years after the commencement of the treaty, he procured for Father Anthony an additional pension, of the same sum of 600 ducats a year (100l.), from his royal highness the Prince of Wales; and Father Anthony, on his side, seemed also so sensible of the favours he had received, that on his death, he bequeathed all his manuscripts and papers of every kind to his patron.
ions, which, in 1772, he had with the first minister, marquis Tanucci, on account of Michael Torcia, who, in his performance, “The Political Sketch of Europe,” had used
With regard to his diplomatic exertions, which naturally
constituted the immediate duties of his station, we may
notice, 1. the explanations, which, in 1772, he had with
the first minister, marquis Tanucci, on account of Michael
Torcia, who, in his performance, “The Political Sketch
of Europe,
” had used some improper expressions 2. the
negotiations which he successfully concluded for the neutrality of his Sicilian majesty in the American war: 3. his
excellent conduct during the family misunderstanding between Spain and Naples, from 1784 to 1786: but these
are matters which belong to political history. The fame
of sir William Hamilton will ultimately rest on his talents,
learning, and patriotic spirit.
, an historical painter, the son of a Scotch gentleman who resided many years at Chelsea, as deputy to Mr. Robert Adams,
, an historical painter, the son
of a Scotch gentleman who resided many years at Chelsea,
as deputy to Mr. Robert Adams, the celebrated architect,
when clerk of the works to that college, was born in 1750,
and sent to Italy, when very young, under the patronage
of Mr. Adams. He was there some time under the tuition
of Zucchi, the painter of arabesque ornaments at Rome,
and although Mr. Edwards thinks he was then too young to
receive any material benefit from this tour, it served at
least to increase his early taste for the art, and he caught
a pleasant manner of painting, much in the style of his
master. When he returned to England he became a pupil
in the royal academy, and by attention to his studies, acquired considerable employment. He practised in many
different ways, mostly history, and frequently arabesque,
of which latter kind he executed some decorations at the
seat of the late earl of Bute at High Cliff, Hampshire. He
sometimes painted portraits, but his manner was not well
adapted to that branch, yet his portrait of Mrs. Siddons in
the character of lady Randolph (now in the possession of Samuel Whitbread, esq.) was allowed to have great merit.
He was much employed by the late alderman Boydell, for
his Shakspeare, and by Macklin for his edition of the Bible
and of the Poets. In the former his “Woman of Samaria 7 '
deserves much praise. One of his most capital works was
a picture of the
” Queen of Sheba entertained at a banquet
by Solomon," a design for a window in Arundel castle.
His manner of painting was light, airy, and pleasant, and
he excelled in ornaments to which he gave a propriety,
richness, and a classic air. His coloured drawings imitate
the fulness of his oil-paintings with more freshness, and,
without much labour, are finished with taste. He was
elected associate of the royal academy Nov. 8, 1784, and
royal academician, February 10, 1789. He died in the
vigour though not in the bloom of life, Dec. 2, 1801, of a
violent fever of only three days 1 duration, deeply lamented
by his friends, and regretted by the public. He was a
man of great affability and gentle manners; his politeness
covered no insincerity, nor his emulation envy. He was
one of the few artists we have personally known who spoke
with high respect of his brethren, and was equally respected by them for his amiable temper.
a near relation. In 1741 he was chosen into parliament for Truro in Cornwall, probably one of those who were elected by the prince’s influence; and died June 2, 1742,
, well remembered as a man
esteemed and caressed by the elegant and great, was the
second son of Anthony Hammond mentioned above: he was
born about 1710, and educated at Westminster-school;
but it does not appear that he was of any university,
although Mr. Cole claims him for Cambridge, but without
specifying his college. When about eighteen, he was introduced to the earl of Chesterfield, and from a conformity of character, manners, and inclinations, soon became particularly attached to his lordship. He was equerry
to the prince of Wales, and seems to have come very early
into public notice, and to have been distinguished by those
whose patronage and friendship prejudiced mankind at that
time in favour of those on whom they were bestowed; for
he was the companion of Cobham, Lyttelton, and Chesterfield. He is said to have divided his life between pleasure
and books; in his retirement forgetting the town, and in
his gaiety losing the student. Of his literary hours all the
effects are exhibited in his memorable “Love Elegies,
”
which were written very early, and his “Prologue
” not
long before his death. In Elegies
” were
published after his death; and while the writer’s name was
remembered with fondness, they were read with a resolution to admire them. The recommendatory preface of the
editor, who was then believed, and is affirmed by Dr.
Maty, to be the earl of Chesterfield, raised strong prejudices in their favour; but Dr. Johnson is of opinion that
they have neither passion, nature, nor manners, and Dr.
Beattie was informed on very good authority that Hammond
was not in love when he wrote his “Elegies.
”
. In December of the same year he attended as chaplain the duke of Richmond and earl of Southampton; who were sent to London by Charles I. with terms of peace and a
In the beginning of the national troubles he continued
undisturbed at his living till the middle of July 1643; but,
joining in the fruitless attempt then made atTunbridge in
favour of the king, and a reward of 100l. being soon after
promised to the person that should produce him, he was
forced to retire privily and in disguise to Oxford. Having
procured an apartment in his own college, he sought that
peace in retirement and study which was no where else to
be found. Among the few friends he conversed with was
Dr. Christopher Potter, provost of Queen’s college; by
whose persuasion it was, that he published his “Practical
Catechism,
” in
n the house of commons against the king, he took up arms in the same cause, and was one of the first who opened the war by an action at a place called Brill, a garrison
, of Hamden, in Buckinghamshire, a celebrated political character in the reign of Charles
I. was born at London in 1594. He was of as ancient
(Whitlocke says the ancientest) extraction as any gentleman in his county; and cousin-german to Oliver Cromwell, his father having married the protector’s aunt. In
1609 he was sent to Magdalen college in Oxford whence,
without taking any degree, be removed to the inns of
court, and made a considerable progress in the study of the
law. Sir Philip Warwick observes, that “he had great
knowledge both in scholarship and the law.
” In his entrance into the world, he is said to have indulged himself
in all the licence of sports, and exercises, and company,
such as were used by men of the most jovial conversation;
but afterwards to have retired to a more reserved and
austere society, preserving, however, his natural cheerfulness and vivacity. In the second parliament of king
Charles, which met at Westminster, February 1625-6, he
obtained a seat in the house of commons, as he also did in
two succeeding parliaments; but made no figure till 1636,
when he became universally known, by a solemn trial at
the king’s bench, on his refusing to pay the ship-money.
He carried himself, as Clarendon tells us, through this
whole suit with such singular temper and modesty, that he
obtained more credit and advantage by losing it, than the
king did service by gaining it. From this time he soon
grew to be one of the most popular men in the nation, and
a leading member in the long parliament. “The eyes of
all men,
” says the same writer, “were fixed upon him as
their pater patrite, and the pilot that must steer the vessel
through the tempests and rocks which threatened it.
”
After he had held the chief direction of his party in the
house of commons against the king, he took up arms in
the same cause, and was one of the first who opened the
war by an action at a place called Brill, a garrison of the
king’s, on the edge of Buckinghamshire, about five miles
from Oxford. He took the command of a regiment of foot
under the earl of Essex, and shewed such skill and bravery,
that, had he lived, he would; probably, soon have been
raised to the post of a general. But he was cut off early
by a mortal wound, which he received in a skirmish with
prince Rupert, at Chalgrove-field, in Oxfordshire, where,
it is generally reported, he was shot in the shoulder with a
brace of bullets, which broke the bone, June 18, 1643;
and, after suffering much pain and misery, he died the
24th, an event which affected his party nearly as much as
if their whole army had been defeated . “Many men
observed,
” says Clarendon, “that the field in which this
skirmish was, and upon which Hampden received his deathwound, namely, Chalgrove-field, was the same place in
which he had first executed the ordinance of the militia,
and engaged that county, in which his reputation was very
great, in this rebellion: and it was confessed by the prisoners that were taken that day, and acknowledged by all,
that upon the alarm that morning, after their quarters were
beaten up, he was exceeding solicitous to draw forces together to pursue the enemy; and, being a colonel of foot,
put himself amongst those horse as a volunteer, who were
first ready, and that, when the prince made a stand, all
the officers were of opinion to stay till their body came up,
and he alone persuaded and prevailed with them to advance: so violently did his fate carry him to pay the mulct
in the place where he had committed the transgression
about a year before. This was an observation made at that
time;
” but lord Clarendon does not adopt it as an opinion
of his own.
Hampden, if we form our judgment of him only from the account of those who were engaged in the opposite party to him, was, perhaps, one
Hampden, if we form our judgment of him only from
the account of those who were engaged in the opposite
party to him, was, perhaps, one of the most extraordinary
men that ever lived; and is thus delineated by the noble
historian already quoted. “He was a man of much greater
cunning, and it may be of the most discerning spirit, and
of the greatest address and insinuation to bring any thing
to pass which he desired, of any man of that time, and who
laid the design deepest. He was not a man of many words,
and rarely began the discourse, or made the first entrance
upon any business that was assumed, but a very weighty
speaker; and after he had heard a full debate, and observed how the house was like to be inclined, took up the
argument, and shortly, and clearly, and craftily, so stated
it, that he commonly conducted it to the conclusion he
desired. He was of that rare affability and temper in debate, and of thatseeming humility and submission of judgment, as if he brought no opinion of his own with him,
but a desire of information and instruction; yet he had so
subtle a way, and under the notion of doubts insinuating
his objections, that he infused his own opinions into those
from whom he pretended to learn and receive them. And
even with them who were able to preserve themselves from
his infusions, and discerned those opinions to be fixed in
him with which they could not comply, he always left the
character of an ingenuous and conscientious person. He
was, indeed, a very wise man, and of great parts, and
possessed with the most absolute spirit of popularity, and
the most absolute faculties to govern the people, of any
man I ever knew. For the first year of the parliament he
seemed rather to moderate and soften the violent and
distempered humours than to inflame them. But wise and
dispassionate men plainly discerned, that that moderation
proceeded from prudence, and observation that the season
was not ripe, rather than that he approved of the moderation and that he begot many opinions and notions, the
education whereof he committed to other men so far disguising his own designs, that he seemed seldom to wish
more than was concluded. And in many gross conclusions,
which would hereafter contribute to designs not yet set on
foot, when he found them sufficiently backed by a majority of voices, he would withdraw himself before the question, that he might seem not to consent to so much visible
unreasonableness; which produced as great a doubt in
some as it did approbation in others of his integrity. After
he was among those members accused by the king of high
treason, he was much altered; his nature and carriage
seeming much fiercer than it did before: and without
question, when he first drew his sword, he threw away the
scabbard. He was very temperate in diet, and a supreme
governor over all his passions and affections; and had
thereby a great power over other men’s. He was of an
industry and vigilance not to be tired out or wearied by
the most laborious and of parts not to be imposed upon
by the most subtle and sharp and of a personal courage
equal to his best parts so that he was an enemy not to be
wished wherever he might have been made a friend and
as much to be apprehended where he was so, as any man
could deserve to be. And therefore his death was no less
pleasing to the one party than it was condoled in the other.
In a word, what was said of Cinna might well be applied to
him: he had ahead to contrive, a tongue to persuade, and
a hand to execute, any mischief, or,‘-’ as the historian says
elsewhere,
” any good." Thus is Hampden described by
Clarendon, agreeably to the notions usually formed of his
character after the restoration; which was that of a great,
rather than a good man. But as the characters of statesmen, commanders, or men acting in a public capacity,
always vary with the times and fashions of politics, at the
revolution, and since, he has been esteemed a good man
as well as a great.
ry, was born at Halle, in the duchy of Magdeburgh, February 4, 1684, by a second wife of his father, who was an eminent physician and surgeon of the same place, and
, the greatest musical composer of his time, or perhaps of any time or country, was born at Halle, in the duchy of Magdeburgh, February 4, 1684, by a second wife of his father, who was an eminent physician and surgeon of the same place, and then above sixty years of age. From his very childhood he discovered such a propensity to music, that his father, who always intended him for the civil law, took every method to oppose this inclination, by keeping him out of the way of, and strictly forbidding him to meddle with, musical instruments of any kind. The son, however, found means to get a little clavicord privately conveyed to a room at the top of the house; and with this he used to amuse himself when the family was asleep. While he was yet under seven years of age, he went with his father to the duke of Saxe Weisenfels, where it was impossible to keep him from harpsichords, and other musical instruments. One morning, while he was playing on the organ, after the service was over, the duke was in the church; and something in his manner of playing affected his highness so strongly, that he asked his valet-de-chambre (who was Handel’s brother-in-law) who it was that he heard at the organ? The valet replied, that it was his brother. The duke demanded to see him; and after making proper inquiries about him, expostulated very seriously with his father, who still retained his prepossessions in favour of the civil law. He allowed that every father had certainly a right to dispose of his children as he should think most expedient; but that in the present instance he could not but consider it as a sort of crime against the public and posterity to rob the world of such a rising genius. The issue of this conversation was, not only a toleration for music, but consent also that a master should be called in to forward and assist him.
andel pleased him so much, that he never thought he could do enough for him. He was proud of a pupil who already began to attract the attention of the public; and glad
The first thing his father did at his return to Halle, was to place him under one Zackau, organist to the cathedral church, a person of great abilities in his profession, and not more qualified than inclined to do justice to any pupil of promising hopes. Handel pleased him so much, that he never thought he could do enough for him. He was proud of a pupil who already began to attract the attention of the public; and glad of an assistant who by his extraordinary talents was capable of supplying his place whenever he had a mind to be absent. If it seem strange to talk of an assistant at seven years of age, it will appear stranger that at nine Handel began to compose the church service for voices and instruments, and from that time was accustomed to compose a service every week for three years successively. Having far surpassed his master, the master himself confessing it, and made all the improvement he could at Halle, it was agreed he should go to Berlin in 1698, where the opera was in a flourishing condition under the encouragement of the elector of Brandenburg, afterwards king of Prussia. Handel had not been long at this court before his abilities became known to the sovereign, who frequently sent for him, and made him large presents. He farther offered to send him to Italy, where he might be formed under the best masters, and have opportunities of hearing and seeing all that was excellent in the kind; but his father refused this offer from a spirit of independence. During his stay at Berlin, he became acquainted with two Italian composers, Buononcini and Attilio; the same who afterwards came to England while Handel was here, and were at the head of a formidable opposition against him.
h many persons of note, among whom was the prince of Tuscany, brother to the grand duke. The prince, who was a great lover of the art for which his country was famous,
From conducting the performance he became composer
to the Chouse; and “Almeria,
” his first opera, was composed when he was not much above fourteen years of age.
The success of it was so great, that it ran for thirty nights
without interruption; and this encouraged him to
compose others, as he did also a considerable number of sonatas during his stay at Hamburgh, which was about four
or five years. He contracted an acquaintance at this place
with many persons of note, among whom was the prince
of Tuscany, brother to the grand duke. The prince, who
was a great lover of the art for which his country was famous, would often lament Handel’s not being acquainted
with the Italian music; shewed him a large collection of
it,; and was very desirous he should return with him to
Florence. Handel plainly answered, that he could see
nothing in the music answerable to the prince’s character
of it; but, on the contrary, thought it so very indifferent,
that the singers, he said, must be angels to recommend it.
The prince smiled at the severity of his censure, yet
pressed him to return with him, and intimated that no convenience should be wanting. Handel thanked him for
the offer of a favour which he did not chuse to accept; for
he resolved to go to Italy on a speculation of his own, as
soon as he could raise a sum sufficient for the purpose.
He had in him from his childhood a strong spirit of independence, which was never known to forsake him in the
most distressful seasons of his life; and it is remarkable
that he refused the greatest offers from persons of the first
distinction, because he would not be cramped or confined
by particular attachments.
rdingly visited Hanover, where he met with Steffani, with whom he had been acquainted at Venice; and who was then master of the chapel to George I. when elector of Hanover.
He now returned to his native country, but could not prevail on himself to settle while there was any musical court which he had not seen. He accordingly visited Hanover, where he met with Steffani, with whom he had been acquainted at Venice; and who was then master of the chapel to George I. when elector of Hanover. There also was a nobleman who had taken notice of him in Italy, and who afterwards did him great service when he came to Kngland for the second time, baron Kilmansegge, who now introduced him at court, and so well recommended him to his electoral highness, that he immediately offered him a pension of 1500 crowns per annum, as an inducement to stay. Handel excused his not accepting this high favour, because he had promised the court of the elector palatine, and had also thoughts of going to England, whither he had received strong invitations from the duke of Manchester. On this he obtained leave to be absent for a twelvemonth or more at a time, and to go whithersoever he pleased; and on these conditions he thankfully accepted the pension.
After paying a visit to his mother, who was now extremely old and blind, and to his old master Zackau,
After paying a visit to his mother, who was now extremely old and blind, and to his old master Zackau, he
set out for Dusseldorp. The elector was highly pleased
with him, and at parting made him a present of a fine set
of wrought plate for a dessert. From Dusseldorp he made
the best of his way through Holland; and embarking for
England, he arrived at London in the winter of 1710,
where he was soon introduced at court, and honoured with
marks of the queen’s favour. Many of the nobility were
impatient for an opera from him on which he composed
“Rinaldo,
” which succeeded so wonderfully, that his
engagements at Hanover became the subject of much
concern. He returned however thither in about a twelvemonth; for besides his pension, Steffani had resigned to
him the mastership of the chapel; but in 17 12 he obtained
leave of the elector to visit England again, on condition
that he returned within a reasonable time. The poor state
of music here, and the wretched proceedings at the Haymarket, made the nobility desirous that he might be employed in composing for the theatre. To their applications the queen added her own authority; and as an encouragement, settled on him for life a pension of 20O/,
per annum. All this induced Handel to forget his obligations to Hanover; so that when George I. came over at
the death of the queen, in 1714, conscious how ill he had
deserved at his hands, he durst not appear at court. It
happened, however, that his noble friend baron Kilmansegge was here; and he, with others of the nobility, contrived the following scheme for reinstating him in his majesty’s favour. The king was persuaded to form a party
on the water; and Handel was desired to prepare some
music for that occasion. This, which has since been so
justly celebrated under the title of the “Water Music,
”
was performed and conducted by himself, unknown to his
majesty, whose pleasure on hearing it was equal to hig
surprize. Upon his inquiring whose it was, the baron
produced the delinquent, and presented him to his majesty, as one that was too conscious of his fault to attempt
an excuse for it. Thus Handel was restored to favour,
and his music honoured with the highest approbation; and
as a token of it, the king was pleased* to add a pension foe
life of 200l. a year to that which queen Anne had before
given him. Some years after, when he was employed to
teach the young princesses, another pension was added to
the former by her late majesty.
edge'in music he had an high idea, what was his real opinion of Handel, as a master of that science? who re-, plied, “Conceive the highest you can of his abilities,
Handel was now settled in England, and well provided
for. The first three years he was chiefly, if not constantly,
at the earl of Burlington’s, where he frequently met Pope.
The poet one day asked his friend Arbuthnot, of whose
knowledge'in music he had an high idea, what was his real
opinion of Handel, as a master of that science? who re-,
plied, “Conceive the highest you can of his abilities, and
they are much beyond any thing that you can conceive.
”
Pope nevertheless declared, that Handel’s finest things,
so untoward were his ears, gave him no more pleasure
than the airs of a common ballad. The two next years
Handel spent at Cannons, then in its glory, and composed
music for the chapel there. About this time a project was
formed by the nobility for erecting an academy in the
Haymarket; the intention of which was to secure a constant supply of operas, to be composed by Handel, and
to be performed under his direction. For this purpose
the sum of 50,000^. was subscribed, the king subscribing
lOOOl. and a society was formed called “the Royal Academy.
” Handel immediately was commissioned to go to
Dresden in quest of singers, whence he brought Senesino
and Duristanti. At this time Buononcini and Attilto,
whom we have mentioned before, composed for the opera,
and had a strong party in their favour, which produced
a violent opposition, ridiculed by Swift and the other wits
of the time, although of great importance to the fashionable world; but at last the rival composers and performers
were all united, and each was to have his particular part.
and boldness of his style, the richness of his harmony, and complication of parts, to every composer who has been most admired for such excellencies, cannot be disputed;
As a composer, it would be affectation to attempt any
character of Handel after what Dr. Burney has given.
“That Handel was superior in the strength and boldness
of his style, the richness of his harmony, and complication
of parts, to every composer who has been most admired
for such excellencies, cannot be disputed; and while
fugue, contrivance, and a full score were more generallyreverenced than at present, he remained wholly unrivalled.
We know it has been said that Handel was not the original
3-nd immediate inventor of several species of music for which
his name has been celebrated; but with respect to originality, it is a term to which proper limits should be set
before it is applied to the productions of any artist. Every
invention is clumsy in its beginning; and Shakspeare was
not the first writer of plays, or Corelli the first composer
of violin solos, sonatas, and concertos, though those which
he produced were the best of his time; nor was Milton the
inventor of epic poetry. The scale, harmony, and cadence of music being settled, it is impossible for any composer to invent a genus of composition that is wholly and
rigorously new, any more than for a poet to form a language, idiom, and phraseology for himself. All that the
o-reatest and boldest musical inventor can do, is to avail
himself of the best effusions, combinations, and effects of
his predecessors; to arrange and apply them in a new
manner; and to add from his own source, whatever he can
draw, that is grand, graceful, gay, pathetic, or in any
other way pleasing. This Handel did in a most ample and
superior manner; being possessed in his middle age and
full vigour, of every refinement and perfection of his time;
uniting the depth and elaborate contrivance of his own
country with Italian elegance and facility; as he seems
while he resided south of the Alps, to have listened attentively in the church, theatre, and chamber, to the most
exquisite compositions and performers of every kind that
were then existing. We will not assert that his vocal meTodies were more polished and graceful than those of his
countryman and contemporary Hasse; or his recitatives or
musical declamation, superior to that of his rivals Buononcini and Porpora. But in his instrumental compositions
there is a vigour, a spirit, a variety, a learning, and invention,
superior to every other composer that can be named; and
in his organ fugues and organ playing, there is learning
always free from pedantry; and in his choruses a grandeur
and sublimity which we believe has never been equalled
since the invention of counterpoint.
”
e” “Irenicum Catholico Evangelicum” “De Justificatione Hominis,” &c. His son, Philip Lewis Hanneken, who died professor of divinity at Wittemberg, June 16, 1706, has
, a celebrated Lutheran divine,
was born March 1, 1595, at Blaxen in the county of Oldenburg, into which county, and Delmenhorst, his ancestors
had introduced Lutheranism. He was professor of morality, afterwards of divinity and oriental languages at Marpurg, and, lastly^ superintendant of the churches of Lubec, where he died February 17, 1671. His principal
works are, “Scutum Catholic veritatis,
” against the Jesuit Thomas Henrici an “Examination of the Jesuit Becan’s Manual
” a “Hebrew Grammar
” “Expositio Epistolse Pauli ad Ephesios,
” Marpurg, Synopsis
Theologiae
” “Irenicum Catholico Evangelicum
” “De
Justificatione Hominis,
” &c. His son, Philip Lewis
Hanneken, who died professor of divinity at Wittemberg,
June 16, 1706, has also left several works on the Scriptures.
, a Carthaginian general, who was employed to sail round Africa, entered the ocean by what
, a Carthaginian general, who was employed
to sail round Africa, entered the ocean by what is now
called the Strait of Gibraltar; discovered several countries,
and would have continued his voyage, had he not been in
want of provisions. The “Periplus of Hanno,
” ascribed
to him, was published in Greek by Gelenius, 1533, and
there is a good edition of it in Greek and Latin, with notes,
Leyden, 1674, 12mo. It is also inserted in the “Geographi Veteres,
” Oxford, 4 vols. 8vo, but some suppose this
work is of much later date than the time of Hanno, there
being reason to suppose he was the famous Carthaginian
general who carried on the war against Agathocles, when
Carthage was in its most flourishing state. It has been
translated into Italian by Romusio, into Spanish by Campomanes, into French by Bougainville, and in I7U7 into
English by the learned Mr. Falconer of Corpus college,
Oxford, who has ably defended the authenticity of the
work against Dodwell and other writers.
atin poem in nine books, dedicated to Walter bishop of Rouen, entitled “Architrenius,” which Warton, who has given a long specimen of it, pronounces a learned, ingenious,
, a monk of St. Alban’s, and a Latin
poet of the twelfth century, was a native of this country,
and educated at Oxford, where he took a master’s degree.
He is said to have travelled through a great part of Europe,
and during a long residence at Paris, studied rhetoric, and
was distinguished for his taste even among the numerous
and polite scholars of that flourishing seminary. On his
return to England, he became a Benedictine monk in the
abbey of St. Alban’s, where he died about the beginning
of the thirteenth century. He wrote a long Latin poem in
nine books, dedicated to Walter bishop of Rouen, entitled
“Architrenius,
” which Warton, who has given a long specimen of it, pronounces a learned, ingenious, and very entertaining performance, containing a mixture of satire and
panegyric on public vice and virtue, with some historical
digressions, but not enough to justify Simlerus’s blunder
in the epitome of Gesner’s Bibliotheca, where he says the
subject is *' de antiquitatibus Britannise." This work was
printed at Paris, 1517, 4to, and is scarce; but there are
two manuscripts of it in the Bodleian library, with some
epistles, epigrams, and other poems by the same hand.
on the earl of Bute, when prime minister, and represented to him that an individual like Mr. Hanway, who had done so much public good to the injury of his private fortune,
, a benevolent and amiable character, was born at Portsmouth in 1712. He was at a very early age bound apprentice to a merchant at Lisbon, and afterwards connected himself with a mercantile house at Petersburgh, in consequence of which he was induced to travel into Persia. On leaving Russia with an independent fortune, he returned to his own country, and passed the remainder of his life as a private gentleman, honourably to himself and useful to the world. In 1753, he published an account of his travels through Russia into Persia, and back again through Russia, Germany, and Holland. To this work also was added an account of the revolutions of Persia during the present century. His other publications are very numerous; most of them were well received, and all of them calculated to prove him an excellent citizen and liberal-minded man. The institution of the Marine Society, justly attributed to his activity and benevolence, was the favourite object of Mr. Han way’s care; and in 1758, he was also particularly instrumental in the establishment of the Magdalen charity. His public spirit, and, above all, his disinterestedness, were so conspicuous, that a deputation of the principal merchants in London waited upon the earl of Bute, when prime minister, and represented to him that an individual like Mr. Hanway, who had done so much public good to the injury of his private fortune, was deserving of some signal mark of the public esteem. He was accordingly made a commissioner of the navy, a situation which he held more than twenty years, and, when he resigned, he was allowed to retain the salary for life, on account of his known exertions in the cause of universal chanty. To enumerate the various instances in which the benevolent character of his heart was successfully exerted, would be no easy task. Sunday-schools in a great measure may look upon' Mr. Hanway as their father; the chimney-sweepers’ boys are much indebted to his humanity; and perhaps there never was any public calamity in any part of the British empire which he did not endeavour to alleviate. So greatly and so universally was he respected, that when he died, in 1786, a subscription of many hundred pounds was raised to erect a monument to his memory. The great character of his numerous works is a strong masculine spirit of good sense, and a very chaste simplicity. In his private life he was remarkable for the strictest integrity of conduct, and for a frankness and candour which naturally inspired confidence. The number of his publications amounted to almost seventy, a catalogue of which is annexed to his Life by Mr. Pugh, a work highly edifying and entertaining.
Douay, and travelled afterwards into Germany, Italy, and Muscovy. He accompanied father Pousse vin, who was sent there by the pope as nuncio. On his return, he was
, a learned Dutch catholic divine,
and called in that language Van der Haer, was born at
Utrecht in 1550, and after the usual course of academical
instruction, taught rhetoric at Douay, and travelled afterwards into Germany, Italy, and Muscovy. He accompanied father Pousse vin, who was sent there by the pope as
nuncio. On his return, he was made canon of Bois-Ie-duc,
then of Namur, and Louvain, at which last place he died,
January 12, 1632. His principal works are, “Biblia sacra
expositionibus priscorum Patrum litteralibus *t mysticis
illustrata,
” Antwerp, Catena aurea in IV
Evangelia,
” 1625, 8vo; “Annales Ducum Brabantiae, ac
tumultuum Belgicorum
” an abridgment of the “Lives of
the Saints,
” taken chiefly from Surius, 8vo and “A Chronology,
” Antwerp,
compelled to write against time, his abilities had not fair scope. He was the first French dramatist who introduced the custom of being paid for his pieces. He died
, a French dramatist of the seventeenth century, remarkable for the fertility of his pen,
wrote an incredible number of pieces for the theatre, som
say six hundred, and some even more. Of these, however,
no more remain than thirty-four, which were published by
himself in six volumes, 8vo, Paris, 1625 1628. Among
these the only tolerable piece is “Marianne,
” so good, indeed, that his readers will wonder how it came there. All
his boast was a remarkable facility in writing; it was said
that he would write two thousand lines in twenty-four
hours: in three days his play was composed, and acted.
He certainly had considerable talents, but, as he was very
necessitous, and compelled to write against time, his abilities had not fair scope. He was the first French dramatist
who introduced the custom of being paid for his pieces.
He died at Paris in 1630.
cy, he enlisted under the banners of sir Robert Umfravile, with whom he had fought at Horoildon, and who was connected with the Percies by the ties of affinity as well
, one of our old
English historians, descended from a reputable northern
family, was born in 1373, and at the age of twelve was admitted into the family of sir Henry Percy, eldest son to
the earl of Northumberland, familiarly known by the name
of Harry Hotspur, on account of his impatient spirit. He
was one of the most esteemed warriors of his time, active
and enterprising, had a large vassalry, numerous partizans,
and unlimited authority. His household, as lord of the
east march of England, was constantly held at Berwick^
upon-Tweed. Harding, it appears, was with his patron,
as a volunteer, in the battles of Homildon and Cokelawe.
After the death of Percy, he enlisted under the banners
of sir Robert Umfravile, with whom he had fought at Horoildon, and who was connected with the Percies by the
ties of affinity as well as those of arms. In 1405, when
king Henry IV. reduced the fortresses of lord Bardolph
and the earl of Northumberland, sir Robert Umfravile’s
services in the expedition were rewarded with the castle
of Warkworth, under whom Harding became the constable.
How long he remained at Warkworth does not appear, but
his knowledge of Scottish geography seems soon to have
engaged him in the secret service of his country, In 1415
we find him attendant on the king at Harfleur, and his
journal of the march which preceded the memorable battle
of Agincourt forms one of the most curious passages among
the additions to the late reprint of his Chronicle. In 1416
he appears to have accompanied the duke of Bedford to
the sea-fight at the mouth of the Seine. In 1424 he was
at Rome, and employed partly in inspecting “the great
Chronicle of Trogus Pompeius;
” but soon after he was
again employed in collecting documents for ascertaining
the fealty due from the Scottish kings, which seems to
have been attended with some personal danger. He has
even been accused of forging deeds to answer his royal
master’s purpose; but the truth of this charge cannot now
be ascertained.
he minority of king Henry VI. The Lansdowne manuscript closes with the life of sir Robert Umfravile, who died, according to Dugdale, Jan. 27, 1436, and under whom Harding
Actively as Harding was engaged in public life, he
found time to gather materials lor his “Chronicle,
”, and
appears to have finished the first composition of it toward
the latter en4 of the minority of king Henry VI. The
Lansdowne manuscript closes with the life of sir Robert
Umfravile, who died, according to Dugdale, Jan. 27, 1436,
and under whom Harding seems to have lived in his latter
years as constable of Kyme castle in Lincolnshire. Of
the rewards which he received for his services, we find only
a grant for life often pounds per annum out of the manor
or alien preceptory of Wyloughton in the county of Lincoln, in the eighteenth year of Henry VI.; and in 1457 he
had a pension of twenty pounds a year for life by letters
patent, charged upon the revenues of the county of Lin.,
coin. During his latter days he appears to have re-composed his “Chronicle
” for Richard duke of York, father
to king Edward IV. who was slain in the battle of Wakefield, Dec. 31, 1460. It was afterwards presented to king
Edward IV. himself. The history comes no lower than
the flight of Henry VI. to Scotland, but from “the excusacion
” touching his “defaultes,
” in which the q‘ueen’is
mentioned, it is evident that Harding could not have
finished his work before 1465. How long he survived its
completion is unknown, but he must then have been at
least eighty-seven years of age. His “Chronicle of England unto the reign of king Edward IV.
” is in verse, and as
a metrical composition is beneath criticism, but, as a record of facts, is highly interesting to the English historian
and antiquary. It was first printed by Grafton in 1543,
with a continuation by the same, to the thirty-fourth year
of Henry VIII. This has been long ranked among the most
rare and expensive of our Chronicles, but those who prefer use to mere antiquity, will set a higher value on the
edition printed in 1812 by the booksellers of London,
Henry Ellis, esq. the learned editor of this edition, has
prefixed a biographical and literary preface, to which the
preceding account is much indebted, and has carefully
collated Harding' s part of the “Chronicle
” with two manuscripts of the author’s own time, the Lansdowne and the
Harleian, both which are in the British Museum; and
Grafton’s addition has been collated with his duplicate
edition.^ It is noticed by Mr. Ellis as a very singular fact,
that there should be two editions of Harding, both printed
by Grafton in the month of January 1543, differing in
almost every page, and one, in Grafton’s own portion of
the work, containing (in the reign of Henry VIII.) no less
than twenty-nine pages more than the other.
n of sir Robert Hardinge, of King’s Newton, a small hamlet in the parish of Melbourne in Derbyshire, who was knighted in the civil wars. He was born in 1700, and educated
, a polite and ingenious scholar, was the younger son of the rev. Gideon Hardinge, and grandson of sir Robert Hardinge, of King’s Newton, a small hamlet in the parish of Melbourne in Derbyshire, who was knighted in the civil wars. He was born in 1700, and educated at Eton school, which he left in 17 Is for King’s college, Cambridge, where he took his degree of B. A. in 1722, and that of M. A. in 1726. When he left the university, he studied law, and was called to the bar; but obtained in 1731 the office of chief clerk of the house of commons, which he held until 1752, when he was appointed joint secretary of the treasury, in which post he died April 9, 1758.
ead of the whig party, which happened to prevail in a contest respecting the expulsion of a student, who, in one of the college exercises had offended the tories. In
At Eton and Cambridge, he had the fame of the most
eminent scholar of his time, and wrote Latin verse with
great elegance. When at Cambridge he was at the head
of the whig party, which happened to prevail in a contest
respecting the expulsion of a student, who, in one of the
college exercises had offended the tories. In this contest
he made himself master of the law and custom of visitatorial power, which he discussed in a very masterly essay;
but this, although intended for publication, has not yet
appeared. He was a very profound and judicious antiquary, particularly in what concerned English law and history. At the request of William duke of Cumberland (to whom he had been appointed, in Dec. 1732, law-reader, and was afterwards his attorney-general), he wrote a very
learned memorial upon the regency (when that subject was agitated in the last reign), which lord Hardwicke called
“an invaluable work.
” It was by Mr. Hardinge' s advice
and encouragement that Mr. Stuart undertook his journey
to Athens, with a view of illustrating the history of that
city. His diligence, accuracy, knowledge, and skill, in the
office of clerk to the House of commons, were never exceeded. He put the “Journals
” into their present form;
and drew up a very able report of the condition in which
he found them. In his office of secretary he was laborious,
able, and zealous; and so honest, that he had many enemies. He was chosen representative for the borough of
Eye in parliament in 1748 and 1754, and was a very useful
member; but had no talents or courage for eloquence,
though his taste in estimating it was exquisite.
ersonal character was not less admired, as a man of integrity whom a court-life had not spoiled, and who preserved the dignity of the literary character amidst the cabals
, a polite French writer, was born
at Tours in 1686, and coming to Paris in 1704, devoted
his time to the study of the belles lettres, and at the same
time cultivated a critical knowledge of the Greek language
under Boivin and Massieu, professors in the royal college.
In 1711, he was admitted as a pupil into the academy of
inscriptions, became an associate in 1715, and a pensionary
in 172S. For their Memoirs he wrote a great many curious
and interesting papers, and his general knowledge and reputation procured him at length the office of keeper of the
library and antiquities in the royal cabinet. In 1730 he
was chosen a member of the French academy, and the
following year began his “Histoire de l'origine et des progres de la Rhetorique dans la Grece.
” He had published
twelve dissertations on this subject, when, in 1748, the king
honoured him with the appointment of preceptor in history
and geography to madame Victoire, one of the princesses,
and he afterwards taught other illustrious females of that
family. It was for their use that he wrote his “Histoire
Poetique,
” with two treatises, one on French poetry, and
the other on rhetoric, Paris, 1751, 3 vols. 12mo, and his
universal history, “Histoire Universelle,
” 18 vols. 12mo,
to which Linguet added two others. All his works are
valued for elegance of style and the accuracy of his researches, and his personal character was not less admired,
as a man of integrity whom a court-life had not spoiled,
and who preserved the dignity of the literary character
amidst the cabals arrd intrigues by which he was surrounded.
Hardion died at Paris in September 1766. His dissertations in the Memoirs of the academy of inscriptions display
a profound knowledge of classical antiquities.
t of those writings which are considered as ancient, were forged by monks of the thirteenth century, who gave to them the several names of Homer, Plato, Aristotle, Plutarch,
In 1693, he printed at Paris, in 2 vols, 4to, “Chronologize ex nummis antiquis restitute prolusio, de nummis
Herodiadum:
” in which he opened more fully that strange
paradoxical system, of which he had yet done little more
than give hints. He undertakes to prove from medals,
that the greater part of those writings which are considered
as ancient, were forged by monks of the thirteenth century, who gave to them the several names of Homer,
Plato, Aristotle, Plutarch, &c. Tertullian, Origen, Basil,
Augustin, &c. He excepts only out of this monkish manufacture the works of Cicero, Pliny’s “Natural History,
”
Virgil’s “Georgics,
” and Horace’s “Satires and Epistles/'
These he supposes the only genuine monuments of antiquity remaining, except some few inscriptions and fasti:
and with the assistance of these, he is of opinion that these
monks drew np and published all the other ancient writings,
as Terence’s
” Plays,“Livy’s and Tacitus’s
” Histories,“Virgil’s
” Eneid,“Horace’s
” Odes,“&c. Nay, he carried this whim so far, that he fancied he could see plainly
enough that Æneas in Virgil was designed for Jesus Christ,
and Horace’s mistress Lalage for the Christian religion.
Absurd as all this may seem, he appears to have seriously
believed k himself, and was persuaded that his reasons for
it were clear and evident; though he would not publish
them to the world, nor explain his system, which he was
frequently called upon to do. This work was suppressed
by public authority at Paris. He afterwards published
” A
Letter upon three Samaritan Medals;“” An Essay towards
the restoring Chronology by Medals of Constantino’s age,' 7
and “A Chronology of the Old Testament, conformable to
the vulgar translation, illustrated by ancient Medals;
” all
which were likewise suppressed, on account of the paradoxes contained in them.
ught proper in the works he had already published; and then put them into the hands of a bookseller, who undertook to print them faithfully from the copy he had received.
Still persisting in his opinion, in some letters, written to
Mons. Ballanfaux, and printed at Luxemburg in 1700, he
speaks of “an impious faction begun a long while ago,
which still subsists, and which by forging an infinite number of writings, that seem to breathe nothing but piety,
appears to have no other design than to remove God out
of the hearts of mankind, and to overturn all religion.
”
Mr. La Croze refuted his notion concerning the forgery of
the ancient writings, in a Dissertations historiques sur
divers sujets, Rot. 1707;“and in
” Vindiciae veterum
Scriptorum contra J. Harduinum.“La Croze imagined,
that Hardouin advanced his notions in concert with the society of Jesuits, or at least with his superiors, in order to
set aside the ancient Greek and Latin sacred and profane
writers, and so leave all clear to infallibility and tradition
only; but Le Clerc was of opinion, that there was no ground
for this supposition. In 1700 there was published at 4sterdam a volume in folio, entitled
” Joannis Harduini
opera selecta,“consisting of his
” Nummi antiqui populorum et urbium illustrati;“” De Baptismo quaestio triplex;“edition of
” St. Chrysostom’s Letter to Caesarius,“with the dissertation
” De Sacramento Altaris;“” De nummis Herodiadum;“his
” Discourse on the Last Supper,“which had been printed in 1693 a treatise in which he
explains the medals of the age of Constantine
” Chronology of the Old Testament, adjusted by the Vulgate translation, and illustrated by Medals“” Letters to M. de
Ballanfaux“and other pieces. This volume made a great
deal of noise before it was published. The author had
corrected what he thought proper in the works he had already published; and then put them into the hands of a
bookseller, who undertook to print them faithfully from
the copy he had received. He began the impression with
the author’s consent, and was considerably advanced in it,
when the clamour raised against the paradoxes in those
works obliged Hardouin to send an order to the bookseller
to retrench the obnoxious passages. But the bookseller
refused to do it, and wrote an answer to him, alleging the
reasons of his refusal. This immediately produced
” A
Declaration of the father provincial of the Jesuits, and of
the superiors of their houses at Paris, concerning a new
edition of some works of father John Hardouin of the same
society, which has been actually made contrary to their
will hy the Sieur de Lorme, bookseller at Amsterdam,“&c.
At the bottom of this was Hardouin’s recantation, which
runs in these curious terms
” I subscribe sincerely to
every thing contained in the preceding declaration I
heartily condemn in my writings what it condemns in them,
and particularly what I have said concerning an impious
faction, which had forged some ages ago the greatest part
of the ecclesiastical or profane writings, which have hitherto been considered as ancient. I am extremely sorry
that I did not open my eyes before in this point. I think
myself greatly obliged to my superiors in this society, who
have assisted me in divesting myself of my prejudices. I
promise never to advance in word or writing any thing
directly or indirectly contrary to my present recantation.
And if hereafter I shall call in question the antiquity of any
writing, either ecclesiastical or profane, which no person
before shall have charged as supposititious, I will only do
it by proposing my reasons in a writing published under
my name, with the permission of my superiors, and the
approbation of the public censors. In testimony of which
I have signed, this 27th of December, 1708, J. Hardouin,
of the society of Jesus.' 5
in 12 vols. folio, at the royal printing-house; but the sale of it was prohibited by the parliament, who commissioned some doctors, among whom was the celebrated Dupin,
But notwithstanding this solemn protestation, nothing
can be more certain than that Hardouin industriously cherished and propagated his opinions to the last moment of
his life. Thus, in 1723, when he reprinted his edition of
Pliny in three volumes folio, he greatly augmented it with
notes, in which were dispersed many paradoxical conceits,
tending to support his general system, which Mr. Crevier
and father Desmolets of the oratory thought themselves
obliged to point out and refute. Yet, notwithstanding
all these circumstances, and the clamour raised against
him and his writings, he maintained his credit so well with
the clergy of France, that they engaged him to undertake
a new edition of“The Councils,
” and gave him a pension
for that purpose. It was printed, 1715, in 12 vols. folio,
at the royal printing-house; but the sale of it was prohibited by the parliament, who commissioned some
doctors, among whom was the celebrated Dupin, to examin^
it. These doctors gave in their report, that the edition!
should either be suppressed, or at least corrected in a
great number of places; because it contained many maxims injurious to the doctrines and discipline of the church
in general, and to those of the Gallican church in particular; and because some very essential things were omitted,
while others that were spurious were inserted.
in the college, and in that capacity superintended the education of the celebrated Anthony Collins, who was fellow-commoner there. He had also the tuition of the marquis
, an English bishop, was born in
London, and educated at Eton, whence he was admitted
of King’s college, Cambridge, in 1688, and took his degree of A. B. in 1692, and of A. M. 1696. He afterwards
became tutor in the college, and in that capacity superintended the education of the celebrated Anthony Collins,
who was fellow-commoner there. He had also the tuition
of the marquis of Blandford, only son of the illustrious
duke of Marlborough, who appointed him chaplain-general
to the army; but this promising young nobleman died in
1702, and was buried in King’s college chapel. The inscription on his monument is by our author. In 1708 Mr.
Hare took his degree of D. D. obtained the deanery of
Worcester, and in 1726 the deanery of St. Paul’s. In
Dec. 1727, he was consecrated bishop of St. Asaph, where
he sat about four years, and was translated, Nov. 25, 1731,
to the bishopric of Chichester, which he held with the
deanery of St. Paul’s to his death. He was dismissed from
being chaplain to George I. in 1718, by the strength of
party prejudices, in company with Dr. Moss and Dr. Sher-r
lock, persons of distinguished rank for parts and learning.
About the latter end of queen Anne’s reign he published
a remarkable pamphlet, entitled “The difficulties and
discouragements which attend the Study of the Scriptures,
in the way of private judgment;
” in order to shew, that
since such a study of the scriptures is an indispensable
duty, it concerns all Christian societies to remove, as much
as possible, those discouragements. This work was thought
to have such a direct tendency to promote scepticism, and
a loose way of thinking in matters of religious concern,
that the convocation judged it right to pass a severe censure
on it; and Whiston says, that, finding this piece likely to
hinder preferment, he aimed to conceal his being the author. The same writer charges him with being strongly
inclined to scepticism that he talked ludicrously of sacred
matters and that he would offer to lay wagers about the
fulfilling of scripture prophecies. The principal ground
for these invidious insinuations some suppose to be, that,
though he never denied the genuineness of the apostolical
constitutions (of which he procured for Whiston the collation of two Vienna Mss.), yet “he was not firm believer
enough, nor serious enough in Christianity, to hazard any
thing in this world for their reception.
” He published
many pieces against bishop Hoadly, in the Bangorian controversy; and also other learned works, which were collected after his death, and published in four volumes, 8yo.
2. An edition of “Terence,
” with notes, in 4to. 3. “The
Book of Psalms, in the Hebrew, put into the original poetical metre,
” 4to. In this last work he pretends to have
Discovered the Hebrew metre, which was supposed to be
irretrievably lost. But his hypothesis, though defended
by some, yet has been confuted by several learned men,
particularly by Dr. Lowth in his “Metrics Hareaue brevis
confutatio,
” annexed to his lectures “De Sacra Poesi Hebreeorum.
” He was yet more unfortunate in the abovementioned edition of Terence, which sunk under the reputation of that of Dr. Bentley, of whom he was once the
warm admirer, and afterwards the equally warm opponent.
During their friendship the emendations on Menander and
Philemon were transmitted through Hare, who was then
chaplain-general to the army, to Burman, in 1710; and
Bentley’s “Remarks on the Essay on Freethinking
” (supposed to be written by Collins) were inscribed to him in
1713. As soon as the first part of these were published,
Hare formally thanked Dr. Bentley by name for them, in
a most flattering letter called “The Clergyman’s Thanks
to Phileleutherus,
” printed the same year; but, in consequence of the rupture between them, not inserted in the
collection of Hare’s works. This rupture took place soon
after the above-mentioned date, and Bentley in the subsequent editions of his “Remarks
” withdrew the inscription. Hare was excessively piqued at the utter annihilation of his Terence and Phoedrus, the one soon after its
birth, the other before its birth, by Bentley’s edition of
both together in 1726, who never once names Hare.
n Norfolk) was born at Blechingley, in Surrey, May 10, 1693; educated at Enfield, under Dr. Uvedale, who had also the honour of educating, among many other eminent men,
, third and last baron
of that name and family, descended from John, younger
brother to sir Nicholas Hare, baronet, master of the rolls,
and privy-counsellor to Henry VIII. (both sons to Nicholas Hare of Homersfield, in the county of Suffolk, the elder branch being seated at Stow Bardolph, in Norfolk)
was born at Blechingley, in Surrey, May 10, 1693; educated at Enfield, under Dr. Uvedale, who had also the
honour of educating, among many other eminent men, the
late earl of Huntingdon, and sir Jeremy Sambrooke, bart.
After the death of his grandfather, Hugh lord Colerane,
in 1708, he succeeded to the title, and was admitted a
gentleman commoner of Corpus Christi college, Oxford,
under the tuition of Dr. Rogers, who afterwards married
Lydia, one of his lordship’s sisters . A lyric poem by
lord Colerane appeared in the “Academiae Oxoniensis
Comitia Philologica, 1713,
” and in the “Musaj Anglicanae,
” vol. III. p. 303, under the title of “Musaruin
oblatio ad reginam.
” Dr. Basil Kennet, who succeeded
Dr. Turner in the presidency of that society, inscribed
to his lordship an epistolary poem on his predecessor’s
death. He was a great proficient in the learned languages, particularly the Greek; and eminently versed
in history, both civil and ecclesiastical. He was grand
master of the society of free-masons, and had made the
tour of Italy three times; the second time with Dr.
Con yers Middle ton, about 1723, in which he made a noble collection of prints and drawings of all the antiquities,
buildings, and pictures in Italy; given after his decease
to Corpus Christi college. The esteem in which he was
held by the literati procured him admittance into the Republica Literaria di Arcadia, and the particular intimacy
of the marquis Scipio Maffei; who afterwards visited him
at his ancient manor and seat at Tottenham, in Middlesex.
His lordship died at Bath, Aug. 4, 1749; and was buried
in the family vault at Tottenham, built, with the vestrv,
by his grandfather. His very valuable collection of prints
relative to English antiquities, with a portrait of him when
a young man, by Richardson, were obtained after his
death by Mr. Henry Baker for the Society of Antiquaries.
His books were sold to T. Osborne, who detained some of
the family papers, which were with difficulty recovered
from him. The pictures, bronzes, marble, tables, urns,
vases, and other antiquities, were sold by auction, March
13 and 14, 1754, for 904l. 135. 6d. The coins, it is supposed, were disposed of privately. His lordship married
in 1717, Anne, only daughter of John Hanger, esq. by
whom he had a fortune of 100,000l. but she, having unaccountably left him within three years, and resisted every
effort of his to recall her, after twenty more years he
formed a connexion with a foreign lady, Miss Duplessis, by
whom he had a natural daughter, Henrietta Rosa Pevegrina, born in Italy, and afterwards naturalized. She was
married in 1764 to James Townsend, esq. alderman of
Bishopsgate ward, who in her right -enjoyed the extensive manor of Tottenham, and repaired the family seat,
commonly called Bruce-castle, from having anciently belonged to theBruces earls of Huntingdon, which had been
considerably modernized in the close of the seventeenth
century. It is now the property of William Curtis, esq.
son to sir William Curtis, bart.
a lord chief justice of the common pleas, viz. lord Trevor and ten members of the house of commops, who were all contemporaries, as well at school as in parliament.
, afterwards earl of Oxford and earl
Mortimer, and lord high treasurer in the reign of queen
Anne, was eldest son of sir Edward Harley, and born at
London, in Bow-street, Covent Garden, December 5, 1661.
He was educated under the rev. Mr. Birch, at Shilton, near
Burford, Oxfordshire, which, though a private school, was
remarkable for producing at the same time, a lord high
treasurer, viz. lord Oxford a lord high chancellor, viz.
lord Harcourt a lord chief justice of the common pleas,
viz. lord Trevor and ten members of the house of commops, who were all contemporaries, as well at school as
in parliament. Here he laid the foundation of that extensive knowledge and learning, which rendered him afterwards so conspicuous in the world. At the revolution, sir
Edward Harley, and this his eldest son, raised a troop of
horse at their own expence; and, after the accession of king
William and queen Mary, he was first chosen member of
parliament for Tregony in Cornwall, and afterwards served
for the town of Radnor till he was called to the house of
lords. In 1690 he was chosen by ballot one of the nine
members of the house of commons, commissioners for
stating the public accounts; and also one of the arbitrators
for uniting the two India companies. In 1694 the house
of commons ordered Mr. Harley, November 19, to prepare and bring in a bill “For the frequent meeting and
calling of parliaments;
” which he accordingly did upon the
22d, and it was received and agreed to by both houses,
without any alteration or amendment. On February 11,
1701-2, he was chosen speaker of the house of commons;
and that parliament being dissolved the same year by king
William, and a new one called, he was again chosen
speaker, December 31st following, as he was in the first
parliament called by queen Anne.
lor in the execution of his office; and a clause was inserted “To justify and indemnify all persons, who in assisting in defence of Mr. Harley, chancellor of the exchequer,
On April 17, 1704, he was sworn of her majesty’s privy
council; and, May 18th following, sworn in council one
of the principal secretaries of state, being also speaker of
the house of commons at the same time. In 1706 he was
appointed one of the commissioners for the treaty of union
with Scotland, which took effect; and resigned his place
of principal secretary of state in February 1707-8. August
10, 1710, he was constituted one of the commissioners of
the treasury, also chancellor and under-treasurer of the
exchequer. On the 8th of March following he was in great
danger of his life; the marquis of Guiscard, a French papist, then under examination of a committee of the privy
council at Whitehall, stabbing him with a penknife, which
he took up in the clerk’s room, where he waited before he
was examined. Guiscard was imprisoned, and died in
Newgate the 17th of the same month: and an act of parliament passed, making it felony, without benefit of clergy,
to attempt the life of a privy counsellor in the execution of
his office; and a clause was inserted “To justify and indemnify all persons, who in assisting in defence of Mr.
Harley, chancellor of the exchequer, when he was stabbed
by the sieur de Guiscard, and in securing him, did give
any wound or bruise to the said sieur de Guiscard, whereby
he received his death.
” The wound Mr. Harley had received confined him some weeks; but the house being informed that it was almost healed, and that he would in a
few days come abroad, resolved to congratulate his escape
and recovery; and accordingly, upon his attending the
house on the 26th of April, the speaker addressed him in
a very respectful speech, to which Mr. Harley returned as
respectful an answer. They had before addressed the
queen on this alarming occasion.
, a learned Greek scholar and teacher, was the son of a father of the same name, who was warden of Winchester, and died in 1613. He was also an able
, a learned Greek scholar and teacher,
was the son of a father of the same name, who was warden
of Winchester, and died in 1613. He was also an able
Greek scholar, was employed on the translation of the Bible,
and published some of Chrysostom’s homilies from Mss. in
the library of New-college, Oxford. His son was born
about 1594, at Churchdowne, near Gloucester, and educated at Winchester-school. In 1611 he entered as a
demy of Magdalen-college, Oxford, and completed his
master’s degree in 1617, the highest Wood says he took,
“although he was in his latter days called Dr. Harmar.
”
His first employment as a teacher was in Magdalen school,
about which time he took orders. He was afterwards in
succession chief master of the free-school at St. Alban’s, and
under-master of Westminster-school. In 1650, when the
committee for reforming the university had ejected all the
old professors, he was appointed by their authority, Greek
professor, and in 1659 was presented to the rectory of
Ewhurst, in Hampshire. On account of his connexions
with the usurping powers, he was deprived of his professorship and rectory at the restoration, and retired to Steventon, in Hampshire,where he subsisted on his wife’s
jointure. He died there Nov. 1, 1670. As a nonconformist
Calamy has nothing to say for him, and Neal says “he was
an honest, weak man.
” He wrote Latin and Greek panegyrics on the leading men of all parties, and complimented
Charles II. with as much sincerity as he had Cromwell,
and Richard his successor. In the facility of Greek
composition he appears to have excelled, and he translated
some part of Butler’s Hudibras into Latin, retaining much
of the spirit of the original. While engaged as a teacher,
he published a “Praxis Grammatica,
” Lond. Janua Linguarum,
” of which there were six
or seven editions before J 63 1 He published also a “Lexicon Etymologicon Graccum,
” which Wood says is “junctim
cum Scapula,
” Lond. 1637, fol. His other principal works
are, 1. “Eclogse sententiarum et similitudinum, e D.
Chrysostomo decerptae,
” Gr. & Lah with notes, Lond.
Protomartyr Britannus; seu Elogia sacra
in conversionem et rnartyrium S. Albani,
” ibid. Epistola ad D. Lambertum Osbaldestonum, cui intexitur Apologia pro honoratissimo &c. D. Johanne Williams Arch. Eborac.
” ibid. M. T. Ciceronis vita, ex optimis quibusque scriptoribus delibata,
”
Ox. Mirror of Humility;
” from English
into Greek and Latin, the Assembly’s “Shorter Catechism,
” ibid. Treatise concerning Ambassadors.
”
, a great astronomer, who flourished about 480 years before Christ, corrected the cycle
, a great astronomer, who flourished about
480 years before Christ, corrected the cycle of eight years
invented by Cleostratus, and in its stead proposed a new
one of nine years, in which he supposed that the sun and
moon returned to the same point; but this cycle of Harpalus was afterwards altered by Meton, about the year 444
B. C. who added ten years to it, which cycle is still in use,
and called “The Golden Number.
”
in poverty. He obtained, however, the patronage of M. Asselin, principal of the college of Harcourt, who conceived an affection for him, received him among his pupils,
, one of the ablest French
writers of the last century, was born at Paris, Nov. 20,
1739. His father, an officer of the artillery, died when
he was very young, and left him in poverty. He obtained,
however, the patronage of M. Asselin, principal of the
college of Harcourt, who conceived an affection for him,
received him among his pupils, and soon after obtained a
pension for him. During his education he displayed a
turn for poetry and satire, and was accused of writing a
satirical poem on his benefactor. He protested his innocence and his reverence for M. Asselin; but this not appearing satisfactory, he was confined for some months in a
house of correction. One of his biographers says in the
Bastille; but, wherever it was, we are told that it made a
deep impression on him. His first poetical productions
after this affair, were of a species then very fashionable,
and called Heroides, in which Colordeau, Ranee, and
Dorat had distinguished themselves, and La Harpe was
thought little inferior to Dorat. In 1763, when only in
his twenty-fourth year, he wrote his tragedy of “Warwick,
” which met with deserved success, and still preserves its popularity on the stage. “Timoleon,
” which
he produced in Pharmond,
” in Warwick
” within so short a space of time.
ability of the most lively and sound criticism. That which distinguishes La Harpe from other moderns who have treated of literature is, that he always assumes the tone
About 1779 he undertook an abridgment of the abbe“Prevost’s Histoire des Voyages,
” an employment so much
beneath his talents, that it was generally considered rather
as a bookseller’s job than an effort of literary ambition. In
the same year he printed his “Tangu et Felime,
” in four
cantos, which was reckoned one of the best productions of
the voluptuous kind. But that on which his fame is more
honourably and solidly established, was his “Cour de
Litterature, ancienne et moderne,
” which justly entitles
him to the appellation of the French Quintilian. Being
appointed a professor of literature in the Lyceum, the lectures he had delivered in it during many years were
collected and properly arranged by him, and soon after published under the title of “Lyceum; or, Course of Literature,
” in 12 vols. 8vo. M. Petitot says of this work, that
“he not only labours to give to persons of no great knowledge competent information on the topics of his work, but
arrests the attention of the most learned. In his plans,
the outline of which alone announces an immense stock of
science and learning, he embraces all ages in which literature has flourished. Every celebrated work is analyzed
and discussed. The beauties of the several writers are
happily displayed, and their faults pointed out with all the
ability of the most lively and sound criticism. That which
distinguishes La Harpe from other moderns who have
treated of literature is, that he always assumes the tone of
the work he criticises, a merit which we find in none of the
ancients except Cicero, Quintilian, and Longinus. If
he speaks of the Iliad, we behold him borrow all the rich
colours of the father of poetry to decorate his discourse.
If he treats of Demosthenes and Cicero, all the great interests of Athens and Rome are re-produced under his pen.
If Tacitus is his theme, we are instantly transported to the
age of the emperors; we enter into all the mystery of the
dark policy of Tiberius, and tremble at the sight of Nero.
”
The only regret on this subject is that the author did not
live to finish his course of instruction; only some fragments
have been left of what he purposed as a continuation.
of his criticisms. From the first essay of his talents he was patronized by Voltaire and D'Alembert, who were at the head of literature and sciences; and it is well
Notwithstanding the multiplicity of his labours, La Harpe was much in company, and his visits were eagerly courted. Doubtless he owed the favour in which he was with polite circles to his early and brilliant success in letters, which at once balanced the prejudices created by the resentment often excited by the severity of his criticisms. From the first essay of his talents he was patronized by Voltaire and D'Alembert, who were at the head of literature and sciences; and it is well known what influence those two celebrated men possessed over the public opinion. VoUaire accorded him the title of his favourite pupil. Married while yet very young, to a woman of wit and beauty, madame de la Harpe and he mutually shone with unusual brilliancy in the most fashionable assemblies. They had been formed in the art of speaking and declamation under the eyes of Voltaire during a long stay they made at Ferney, where they were accustomed to perform the principal parts in the tragedies of that great poet, got up by his direction at his own theatre. This practice was also of great importance to M. de la Harpe in the art of reading, which he possessed in a very superior manner. The mode was still at the height of attending in crowds at the readings given by authors of their works previous to publication; and M. de Ja Harpe, whose various productions succeeded each other so rapidly, was invited to make his readings in so many circles, that he was soon compelled to be select in his choice of the circles he honoured with this gratification.
was the cause of M. La Harpe’s conversion, brought about by the advice of the bishop of St. Brieux, who happened to be his fellow-prisoner La Harpe soon after proved
At the beginning of the revolution he professed himself
an advocate for the new order of things; and most likely
he continued in the same principles till the downfall of
royalty, and till he himself fell a prey to the terrorism of
Robespierre. It appears from the report of Gregoire to
the national convention, that he was imprisoned from November 1793 to August 1794; and this confinement was the
cause of M. La Harpe’s conversion, brought about by the advice of the bishop of St. Brieux, who happened to be his fellow-prisoner La Harpe soon after proved one of the greatest
champions of the attempted counter-revolution; and from
the latter part of 1794, he devoted almost his whole time
to royalist publications, among which were his dissertation
on the war declared by the republican tyranny against good
sense and morals, his Fanaticism of the Revolutionary
Language, his Confutation of Helvetius, and his journal
Le Memorial, which he edited conjointly with his friend
Fontanes. This Memorial, however, involved La Harpe
in the directorial proscription of the 14th September 1797,
and he narrowly escaped being transported to Cayenne;
it was a twelvemonth before he was restored to his station
in Paris. But confinement had injured his health, and he
died in Feb. 1803, in the sixty-fifth year of his age. On
the evening preceding his death, M. Fontanes called to
see him; he was listening to the Prayers for the Sick; and
as soon as they were concluded, he stretched his hand to
M. Fontanes, and said, “I am grateful to divine mercy
for having left me sufficient recollection to feel how consoling these prayers are to the dying.
” His funeral was
attended by his friends, and most of the distinguished literary characters in France. A deputation from the institute
, an ancient rhetorician of Alexandria, who flourished about the year 360, has left us an excellent “Lexicon
, an ancient rhetorician
of Alexandria, who flourished about the year 360, has left
us an excellent “Lexicon upon the ten Orators of Greece,
”
for that is the title usually given to it, though Meursius
will have it, that the author inscribed it only λεξεις; and he
is followed in this opinion by James Gronovius. Harpocration speaks in this work, with much seeming exactness,
of magistrates, pleadings at the bar, places in Attica, names
of men who had the chief management of affairs in the republic, and of every thing, in short, which has been said to
the glory of this people by their orators. Aldus first published this Lexicon in Greek at Venice, 1603, in folio, and
many other learned men, as Meursius, Maussac, Valesius,
have laboured upon it; James Gronovius published an edition of it at Leyden, 1696, in 4to.
d on the site of Jesus college. In 1546 he was appointed regius professor of Greek. He was the first who read this lecture before it was fully established by Henry VIII.
, brother to the preceding,
was born in London, and educated at Winchester school,
after which he studied civil law at New college, Oxford, of
which he was admitted a fellow in 1536. In 1543 he took
the degree of bachelor of laws, and the year following was
chosen principal of White-hall, which stood on the site of
Jesus college. In 1546 he was appointed regius professor
of Greek. He was the first who read this lecture before it
was fully established by Henry VIII. and Leland characterizes him as “Atticae linguae interpres facilis, disertus,
aptus.
” He appears to have resigned this office in
tted in 1629 a gentleman-commoner of Trinity college, in Oxford, and placed under Mr. Chillingworth, who had lately been elected fellow of that college; from whom he
, an eminent political writer,
was born in January 1611, being the eldest son of sir Sapcote Harrington, and Jane the daughter of sir William
Samuel of Upton, in Northamptonshire, the place of his
nativity. When he had made a progress in classical learning, he was admitted in 1629 a gentleman-commoner of
Trinity college, in Oxford, and placed under Mr. Chillingworth, who had lately been elected fellow of that college;
from whom he might possibly acquire some portion of that
spirit of reasoning and thinking for himself, which afterwards shone forth so conspicuously in his writings.
About three years after, his father died; upon which he
left the university, and commenced travelling, having previously furnished himself with the knowledge of several
foreign languages. His first step was into Holland, then
the principal school of martial discipline; and, what may
be supposed to have affected him more sensibly, a country
wonderfully flourishing, under the auspices of liberty,
commerce, strength, and grandeur. Here it is probable
that he began to make government the subject of his meditations; for, he was often heard to say, that, “before he
left England, he knew no more of anarchy, monarchy, aristocracy, democracy, oligarchy, or the like, than as hard
words, whose signification he found in his dictionary.
” On
coming into the Netherlands, he entered a volunteer, and
remained in that capacity some months, in lord Craven’s
regiment; during which time, being much at the Hague,
he had the farther opportunity of accomplishing himself in
two courts, those of the prince of Orange, and of the queen
of Bohemia, daughter of our James I. who was then a fugitive in Holland. He was taken into great favour by this
princess, and also by the prince elector, whom he attended
to Copenhagen, when his highness paid a visit to the king
of Denmark; and, after his return from travelling, was
entrusted by him with the affairs of the Palatinate, so far
as they were transacted at the British court.
ndlemas-day. When his holiness had sanctified these torches, they were distributed among the people, who fought for them very eagerly. Harrington was desirous to have
He stayed, however, but a short time in Holland; no
temptations or offers could divert or restrain him from the
resolution he had formed to pursue his travels, and therefore, taking Flanders in his way, he set out on a tour
through part of Germany, France, and Italy. While he
was at Rome, the pope performed the ceremony of consecrating wax-lights on Candlemas-day. When his holiness
had sanctified these torches, they were distributed among
the people, who fought for them very eagerly. Harrington was desirous to have one of them; but, perceiving that
it was not to be obtained without kissing the pope’s toe,
he declined to accept it on such a condition. His companions were not so scrupulous, and when they came home
spoke of his squeamishness to the king. The king told
him, “he might have done it only as a piece of respect to
a temporal prince;
” but Harrington replied, that “since
he had the honour to kiss his majesty’s hand, he thought it
beneath him to kiss any other prince’s foot.
” He is said
to have preferred Venice to all other places in Italy, as he
did its government to that of the whole world; it being, in
his opinion, immutable by any external or internal causes,
and to finish only with mankind. Here he cultivated an
acquaintance with all the men of letters, and furnished
himself with the most valuable books in the Italian tongue,
such especially as were written upon politics and government.
d make were not able to retrieve his papers, till he bethought himself of applying to lady Claypole, who was a good-natured woman, and Oliver’s favourite daughter; and
After the king’s death, he was observed to keep much
in his library, and more retired than usual, which his
friends attributed to discontent and melancholy. But, to
convince them that this was not the cause of his retirement, he produced a copy of his “Oceana;
” which “he
had been writing,
” he said, “not only because it was
agreeable to the studies which he pursued, but because, if
ever it should be the fate of England to be, like Italy of
old, overrun by a barbarous people, or to have its government and records destroyed by some merciless conqueror,
they might not be then left to their own invention in,
framing a new government.
” This “Oceana
” is a kind of
political romance, in imitation of Plato’s “Atlantic Story,
”
where, by Oceana, Harrington means England; exhibiting
a plan of republican government, which he would have had
erected here, in case these kingdoms had formed themselves into a genuine commonwealth. This work,
however, pleased no party, and as it reflected severely upon
Oliver’s usurpation, met with many difficulties in the publishing; for, it being known to some of the courtiers that
it was printing, they hunted it from one press to another,
till at last they found it, and carried it to Whitehall. Ah
the solicitations he could make were not able to retrieve
his papers, till he bethought himself of applying to lady
Claypole, who was a good-natured woman, and Oliver’s
favourite daughter; and who, upon his declaring that they
contained nothing prejudicial to her father’s government,
got them restored to him. He printed it in 1656, and dedicated it, as he promised lady Claypole, to her father;
who, it is said, perused it, but declared, agreeable to his
principles of policy, that “the gentleman must not think
to cheat him of his power and authority; for that what he
had won by the sword, he would not suffer himself to be
scribbled out of.
”
e was enthusiastically enamoured, he formed a society of gentlemen, agreeing with him in principles, who met nightly at Miles’s coffee-house, in New Palace-yard, Westminster,
This work was no sooner published, than many undertook a refutation of it. This occasioned him to reply, and
to explain his scheme, in several successive pieces, which
may be easily seen in the collection of his works. In the mean
time, he not only endeavoured to propagate his republican'
notions by writing, but, for the more effectually advancing
a cause, of which he was enthusiastically enamoured, he
formed a society of gentlemen, agreeing with him in principles, who met nightly at Miles’s coffee-house, in New
Palace-yard, Westminster, and were called the Rota.
Wood has given a very particular account of this association, or gang, as he calls them. “Their discourses about
government,
” says he, “and of ordering a commonwealth,
were the most ingenious and smart that ever were heard;
for the arguments in the parliament-house were but flat to
those. This gang had a balloting-box, and balloted how
things should be carried by way of essay, which not being
used, or known in England before on this account, the
room was every evening very full. The doctrine there inculcated was very taking; and the more, because as to
human foresight there was no possibility of the king’s return. The greatest part of the parliament-men hated this
rotation and balloting, as being against their power: eight
or ten were for it, who proposed it to the house, and made
it out to the members, that, except they embraced that
sort of government, they must be ruined. The model of
it was, that the third part of the senate or house should
rote out by ballot every year, not capable of being elected
again for three years to come; so that every ninth year
the senate would be wholly altered. No magistrate was to
continue above three years, and all to be chosen by the
ballot, than which nothing could be invented more fair and
impartial, as it was then thought, though opposed by many
for several reasons. This club of commonwealthsmen,
which began about Michaelmas 1659, lasted till about Feb.
21 following; at which time, the secluded members being
restored by general Monk, all their models vanished .
”
n, he lived more privately than he had done before, but still was looked upon as a dangerous person, who maintained and propagated principles which could never be reconciled
After the restoration, he lived more privately than he
had done before, but still was looked upon as a dangerous
person, who maintained and propagated principles which
could never be reconciled to monarchical government. He
employed himself now in reducing his politics into short
and easy aphorisms methodically digested, and freely communicated his papers to all who visited him. While he
was putting the last hand to his system, he was, by an
order from the king, seized December 28, 1661, and committed to the Tower of London for treasonable designs and
practices. He was charged by lord chancellor Hyde, at a
conference of the lords and commons, with being concerned in a plot, of which twenty-one persons were the
chief managers “that they all met in Bow-street, Coventgarden, and in other places that they were of seven different parties or interests, as three for the commonwealth,
three for the long-parliament, three for the city, three for
the purchasers, three for the disbanded army, three for the
independents, and three for the fifth-monarchy men; that
their first consideration was how to agree on the choice of
parliament-men against the ensuing session; and that a
special care ought to be had about the members for the
city of London, as a precedent for the rest of the kingdom
to follow; whereupon they nominated the four members
after chosen, and then sitting in parliament. Their next
care was to frame a petition to the parliament for a preaching ministry; and liberty of conscience; then they were to divide and subdivide themselves into several councils and committees, for the better carrying on their business by themselves or their agents and accomplices all over the
kingdom. In these meetings Harrington was said to be often
in the chair;. that they had taken an oath of secrecy, and
concerted measures for levying men and money.
” The
chancellor added, that though he had certain information
of the times and places of their meetings, and particularly
those of Harrington and Wildman, they were nevertheless
so fixed in their nefarious design, that none of those they
had taken would confess any thing, not so much as that
they had seen and spoken to one another at those times or
places.
a bond of 5000l. for his safe imprisonment. At this place he became acquainted with one Dr. Dunstan, who advised him to take a preparation of guiacum in coffee, as a
But, notwithstanding these declarations of the chancellor,
it is certain, that this plot was never proved, and was probahly imaginary. It is at least easy to account upon political principles, for Harrington’s confinement, and the severe usage he met with, when we consider not only his notions of government, which he every where enforced with
the greatest zeal; but also how obnoxious he made himself to the powers then in being, by his treatment of the
Stuart family. Nothing can be viler than the picture he
has drawn of Mary queen of Scotland; he has also painted
her son James I. in the most odious colours, suggesting at
the same time, that he was not born of the queen, but was
a supposititious impostor, and of course had no right to
the crown he inherited. His portrait of Charles I. is an
abominable figure t “never was man,
” says he, “so resolute and obstinate in tyranny. He was one of the most
consummate in the arts of tyranny that ever was; and it
could be no other than God’s hand, that arrested him in
the height of his designs and greatness, and cut off him
and his family.
” Such a character very ill accorded with
what he had himself observed of that unhappy monarch,
and with the grief he felt at his death; but Harrington
seems in the latter end of his life to have grown fanatic in
politics, and his keeping within no bounds might make
it the more expedient to put him under confinement.
From the Tower he was conveyed very privately to St.
Nicholas’s island opposite to Plymouth; and thence, upon
petition, to Plymouth, some relations-obliging themselves
in a bond of 5000l. for his safe imprisonment. At this
place he became acquainted with one Dr. Dunstan, who
advised him to take a preparation of guiacum in coffee, as
a certain cure for the scurvy, with whi<& he was then troubled. He drank of this liquor in great quantities, which
had probably a very pernicious effect, for he soon grew
delirious; upon which a rumour prevailed at Plymouth,
that he had taken some drink which would make any man
mad in a month; and other circumstances made his relations suspect, that he had foul play shewn him, lest he
should write any more “Oceanas.
” It was near a month
before he was able to bear the journey to London, whither,
as nothing appeared against him, he had leave from the
king to go. Here he was put under the care of physicians,
who could afford little help to the weakness of his body,
and none at all to the disorders of his mind. He would discourse of other things rationally enough; but, when his
own distemper was touched upon, he would fancy and
utter strange things about the operation of his animal spirits, which transpired from him, he said, in the shape of
birds, flies, bees, or the like. He talked so much of good
and evil spirits, that he even terrified those about him;
and to those who objected to him that these chimeras were
the fruits of a disordered imagination, he would reply, that
11 he was like Democritus, who, for his admirable discoveries in anatomy, was reckoned distracted by his fellowcitizens." In this crazy condition he married the daughter
of sir Marmaduke Dprrel, in Buckinghamshire, a lady to
whom he was formerly suitor, and with whom he spent the
remainder of his life. Towards his latter end, he was subject to the gout, and enjoyed little ease; but, after drooping
and languishing for some time, he was at last seized with a
palsy, and died at Westminster, September 11, 1677, and
lies buried there in St. Margaret’s church, on the south
side of the altar, next the grave of sir Walter Raleigh.
, an ingenious English poet, was the son of John Harrington, esq. who was imprisoned in the Tower, under queen Mary, for holding a
, an ingenious English poet,
was the son of John Harrington, esq. who was imprisoned
in the Tower, under queen Mary, for holding a correspondence with the lady Elizabeth, with whom he continued
in great favour to the time of his death. He also was
somewhat of a poet and a translator. Sir John was born at
Kelston, near Bath, in Somersetshire, in 1561, and had
queen Elizabeth for his godmother. He was instructed in
classical learning at Eton-school, and from thence removed
to Cambridge, where he took the degree of M. A. In his
thirtieth year, 159J, he published a translation of Ariosto’s
“Orlando Furioso,
” by which he gained a considerable
reputation, and for which he is now principally known.
Warton says, that although executed without spirit or accuracy, unanimated and incorrect, it enriched our poetryby a communication of new stores of fiction and
imagination, both of the romantic and comic species, of gothic
machinery and familiar manners. Mr. Harrington was
knighted in the field by the earl of Essex, which gave
much offence to the queen, who was sparing of such
honours, and chose to confer them herself. In the reign
of James, he was created knight of the Bath; and, being
a courtier, presented a ms. to prince Henry, levelled
chiefly against the married bishops, which was intended
only for the private use of his royal highness; but, being
published afterwards, created great clamour, and made
several of the clergy say, that his conduct was of a piece
with his doctrines; since he, together with Robert earl of
Leicester, supported sir Walter Raleigh in his suit to
queen Elizabeth for the manor of Banwell, belonging to
the bishopric of Bath and Wells; on a presumption that
the right rev. incumbent bad incurred a pr&munire, by
marrying a second wife. Wood’s account of it is this
"That sir John Harrington, being minded to obtain the
favour of prince Henry, wrote a discourse for his private
use, entitled * A brief View of the State of the Church
of England, as it stood in queen Elizabeth’s and king
James’s reign, to the year 1608.' This book is no more
than a character and history of the bishops of those times,
and was written to the said prince Henry, as an additional
supply to the catalogue of bishops of Dr. Francis Godwin,
upon occasion of that proverb,
turn to England, he was introduced by his patron to the acquaintance of Henry earl of Northumberland who, “finding him,” says Wood, “to be a gentleman of an affable
, an eminent mathematician, was
born at Oxford, or, as Anthony Wood expresses it, “turn-;
bled out of his mother’s womb in the lap of the Oxonian
Muses,
” in 1560. Having been instructed in grammarlearning in that city, he became a commoner of St. Maryhall, where he took the degree of B. A. in 1579. He had
then so distinguished himself, by his uncommon skill in
mathematics, as to be recommended soon after to sir Walter Raleigh as a proper preceptor to him in that science.
Accordingly, that noble knight became his first patron,
took him into his family, and allowed him a handsome pension. In 1585 he was sent over by sir Walter with his
first colony to Virginia; where, being settled, he was employed in discovering and surveying that country, in observing what commodities it produced, together with the
manners and customs of its inhabitants. He published an
account of it under this title, “A brief and true Report of
the Newfoundland of Virginia;
” which was reprinted in
the third voyage of Hakluyt’s “Voyages.
” Upon his return to England, he was introduced by his patron to the
acquaintance of Henry earl of Northumberland who,
“finding him,
” says Wood, “to be a gentleman of an
affable and peaceable nature, and well read in the obscure
pan of learning,
” allowed him a yearly pension of 120l.
About the same time, Robert Hues, well known by his
' Treatise upon the Globes,“and Walter Warner, who is
said to have communicated to the famous Harvey the first
hint concerning the circulation of the blood, being both of
them mathematicians, received pensions from him of less
value, ^o that in 1606, when the earl was committed to
the Tower for life, Harriot, Hues, and Warner, were his
constant companions, and were usually called the earl of
Northumberland’s Magi. They had a table at the earl’s
charge, who did constantly converse with them, to divert
the melancholy of his confinement; as did also sir Walter
Raleigh, who was then in the Tower. Harriot lived for
some time at Sion-college, and died in London, July 2,
1621, of a cancer in his lip. He was universally esteemed
on account of his learning. When he was but a young
man, he was styled by Mr. Hakluyt
” Juvenis in disciplinis
mathematicis excellens;“and by Camden,
” Mathematicus insignis.“A ms. of his, entitled
” Ephemeris Chryrometrica,“is preserved in Sion-college library and his
” Artis Analytic* Praxis“was printed after his death, in
a thin folio, and dedicated to Henry earl of Northumberland. Des Cartes is said to have been obliged to this
book for a great many improvements in algebra, which he
published to the world as his own, a fact that has been
amply proved, in the astronomical ephemeris for 17vS8,
by Dr. Zach, astronomer to the duke of Saxe Gotha, from
manuscripts which he found in 1784 at the seat of the earl
of Egremont at Petworth, a descendant of the above-mentioned earl of Northumberland. These papers also show
that Mr. Harriot was an astronomer as well as an algebraist,
As to his religion, Wood says, that,
” notwithstanding
his great skill in mathematics, he had strange thoughts of
the Scripture, always undervalued the old story of the
Creation of the World, and could never believe that trite
position, * Ex nihilo nihil fit.‘ He made a Philosophical
Theology, wherein he cast off the Old Testament, so that
consequently the New would have uo foundation. He was
a deist; and his doctrine he did impart to the earl, and to
sir Walter Raleigh, when he was compiling the ’ History
of the World,' and would controvert the matter with eminent divines of those times: who, therefore, having no
good opinion of him, did look on the manner of his death,
as a judgment upon him for those matters, and for nullify,
ing the Scripture.“Wood borrowed all this from Aubrey,
without mentioning his authority; and it has been answered,
that Harriot assures us himself, that when he was with the
first colony settled in Virginia, in every town where he
came,
” he explained to them the contents of the Bible,
&c. And though I told them,“says he,
” the book materially and of itself was not of such virtue as I thought
they did conceive, but only the doctrine therein contained;
yet would many be glad to touch it, to embrace it, to kiss
it, to hold it to their breasts and heads, and stroke over
all their bodies with it, to shew their hungry desires of
that knowledge which was spoken of." To which we may
add, that, if Harriot was reputed a deist, it is by no
means probable that Dr. Corbet, an orthodox divine* and
successively bishop of Oxford and Norwich, sending a
poem, dated December 9, 1618, to sir Thomas Aylesbury,
when the comet appeared, should speak of
aff, and commissary of Essex, Herts, and Surrey, was the son of Dr. John Harris, bishop of Llandaff, who died in 1738. The time of his son’s birth we have not been able
, an English civilian, chancellor of
the dioceses of Durham, Hereford, and Llandaff, and
commissary of Essex, Herts, and Surrey, was the son of
Dr. John Harris, bishop of Llandaff, who died in 1738.
The time of his son’s birth we have not been able to ascertain. He was, however, a member of Oriel college, Oxford, where he took his degree of bachelor of laws in May
1745, and that of doctor in the same faculty in May 1750,
in which last year he was admitted into the college of advocates. Here he proved himself an eminent pleader, although not a masterly orator, and enriched himself by
very extensive practice. He died at his house in Doctors’
Commons, April 19, 1796, leaving his very extensive property mostly to charitable uses. Among the very
munificent items in his will, were 40,000l. to St. George’s hospital; 20,000l. to Hetherington’s charity for the blind;
15,000l. to the Westminster lying-in hospital, and 5000l.
to the Hereford infirmary. He also was in his life-time a
benefactor to the funds of the society of advocates. In
1752 he published a pamphlet, entitled “Observations
upon the English Language, in a letter to a friend,
” 8vo,
relating to the common mistakes in spelling, pronunciation,
and accent. This was anonymous; but he afterwards published with his name, “D. Justiniani Institutionum, Libri
quatuor; and a translation of them into English, with
notes,
”
t son of James Harris, esq. of the Close of Salisbury, by his second wife the lady Elizabeth Ashley, who was third daughter of Anthony earl of Shaftesbury, and sister
, esq. an English gentleman of very uncommon parts and learning, was the eldest son of James Harris, esq. of the Close of Salisbury, by his second wife the lady Elizabeth Ashley, who was third daughter of Anthony earl of Shaftesbury, and sister to the celebrated author of the Characteristics, as well as to the Hon. Maurice Ashley Cooper, the elegant translator of Xenophon’s Cyropaedia. He was born July 20, 1709. The early part of his education was received at Salisbury, under the rev. Mr. Hele, master of the grammar-school, in the Close, who was long known and respected in the West of England as an instructor of youth. From Mr. Hele’s school, at the age of sixteen, he was removed to Oxford, where he passed the usual number of years as a gentleman commoner of Wadham college. His father, as soon as he had finished his academical studies, entered him at Lincoln’s-Inn, not intending him for the bar, but, as was then a common practice, meaning to make the study of the law a part of his education.
concerning Universal Grammar,” 8vo. Of this work, Dr. Lowth, the late bishop of London, says, “Those who would enter deeply into the subject (of universal grammar) will
In July 1745 he was married to miss Elizabeth Clarke,
daughter and eventually heiress of John Clarke, esq of
Sandford, near Bridgewater, in the county of Somerset,
Five children were the issue of this marriage, of whom two
daughters, and a son, the present lord Malmsbury, sur->
vived their father. This change in his state of life by no
means withdrew his attention from those studies in which
he had been used to take so great delight, and which he
had cultivated with such advantage and reputation; for in
1751 he published another work, entitled “Hermes, or a
philosophical inquiry concerning Universal Grammar,
” 8vo.
Of this work, Dr. Lowth, the late bishop of London, says,
“Those who would enter deeply into the subject (of universal grammar) will find it fully and accurately handled,
with the greatest acuteness of investigation, perspicuity of
explication, and elegance of method, in a treatise entitled
Hermes, by James Harris, esq. the most beautiful example of analysis that has been exhibited since the days of
Aristotle.
” What first led Mr. Harris to a deep and accurate consideration of the principles of universal grammar,
was a book which he held in high estimation, and has frequently quoted in his Hermes, the “Minerva
” of Sanciius.
To that writer he confessed himself indebted for abundance of, valuable information, of which it appears that he
knew well how to profit, and to push his researches on the
subject of grammar to a much greater length, by the help
of his various and extensive erudition. Mr. Harris’s system in this work still maintains its ground in the estimation of most men of taste, notwithstanding the coarse attack made on it by Home Tooke.
solute pauper at Norton-court, and was buried in Norton church, at the expence of John Godfrey, esq. who had been his very good friend and benefactor.”
, the first compiler of a “Dictionary
of Arts and Sciences
” in this country, was born about
1705, 4to; another on
” The
lawfulness and use of Public Fasting,“1706, 4to;
” The
evil and mischief of a Fiery Spirit,“a sermon published in
1710, 4to another on the Rebellion in 1715, 8vo; and a
sermon on the Accession, 1715, 4-to. He also published a
” Collection of Voyages and Travels, with a number of
engravings,“afterwards improved and republished by Dr.
Campbell a
” Treatise on the Theory of the Earth,“in
1697 a
” Treatise on Algebra,“in 1702 a
” Translation
of Pardie’s Geometry into English,“2d edit. 1702. At
this time it appears that Dr. Harris
” lived and taught mathematics at his house in Amen-Corner.“He published
also,
” Astronomical Dialogues,“the third edition of which
appeared in 1795; but the work for which he was most
eminently distinguished, and which entitles him to honourable notice, was his
” Lexicon Technicum,“or
” An
Universal Dictionary of Arts and Sciences,“in 2 vols. fol.
published in 1708; from which originated all the other
dictionaries of science and cyclopaedias that have since appeared. He was followed, at a considerable interval of
time, in this department of literature, by Mr. Ephrairn
Chambers, whose Cyclopedia, with all the improvements
it has received, has long maintained distinguished reputation. We are concerned to be obliged to add, that though
Dr. Harris was a man of unquestionable abilities and attainments, and of great literary application, he was chargeable with culpable imprudence in his conduct, and notwithstanding the preferments he enjoyed, he was generally
in distress. He died Sept. 7, 1719, leaving unfinished the
66 History of Kent,
” which was published in folio soon after
his death, and which, though it had engaged his attention,
more or less, for eight years, is extremely inaccurate.
Mr. Gough says (British Topography, vol. I. p. 445), “Dr t
Harris died an absolute pauper at Norton-court, and was
buried in Norton church, at the expence of John Godfrey, esq. who had been his very good friend and benefactor.
”
n Oxfordshire, and in both cases without being ordained. At length he was examined by bishop Barlow, who found him a very accomplished Greek, and Latin scholar, and
, president of Trinity-college, Oxford, was born at Broad Campden, in Gloucestershire, in
1578, and sent for education to the free-school of Chipping-Campden, where owing to irregular conduct of the
masters and their frequent changes, he appears to have
profited little. From thence he was removed to the city
of Worcester, and lastly to Magdalen-hall, Oxford, which
was preferred from his relationship to Mr. Robert Lyster,
then principal, a man somewhat popishly inclined. Here,
however, he had a tutor of a different stamp, a reputed
puritan, under whom he studied with great assiduity. Although his parents designed him for the law, as soon as he
took his bachelor’s degree, he determined to make trial of
his talents for the pulpit, and went to Chipping-Campden,
where he preached a sermon which gave satisfaction.
He afterwards officiated for a clergyman in Oxfordshire,
and in both cases without being ordained. At length he
was examined by bishop Barlow, who found him a very
accomplished Greek, and Latin scholar, and he had the
living of Hanweli given him, near Ban bury, in Oxfordshire. During his residence here he was often invited to
London, and preached at St. Paul’s cross, also before the
parliament, and on other public occasions. He had also
considerable offers of preferment in* London, but preserved
his attachment to Hanweli, where he was extremely useful
in confirming the people’s minds, then much unsettled, in
the reformed religion, as well as in attachment to the
church of England, although he afterwards concurred with
those who overthrew it so far as to accept preferment
under them. On the commencement of the civil war,
tjie tranquillity of his part of the country was much disturbed by the march of armies, and himself obliged at last
to repair to London, after his premises were destroyed by
the soldiery. On his arrival in London, he became a
member of the assembly, but appears to have taken no
active part in their proceedings.or some time, Hanwell having now been taken from him, he officiated at the
parish-church of St. Botolph, Bishopsgate-street, until the
rilling powers ordered him to Oxford, as one of the reforming visitors. Here during the visitation of the earl of
Pembroke, the chancellor of the university, he was admitted; D. D. and president of Trinity-college in April
1,648, in the room of Dr. Hannibal Potter, who was ejected
by the visitors. This situation he retained until his death,
Uec. 11, 1658,. in his eightieth year. He was buried in^
Trinity-college chapel, with an inscription from the ele-“gant pen of Dr. Bathurst, one of his successors, and contaming praises of his conduct as a president more than sufficient to answer the charges brought against him by others.
The only words Dr. Bathurst is said to have struck out are
these in Italics,
” per decennium hujus collegii Præses
æternum cdebrandus“nor was this alteration made in the
epitaph itself, but in Wood’s ms. of the
” Hist, et Antiquitates Univ. Oxon.“The only fault of which Dr. Harris
can be accused, and which was very common with other
heads of houses put in by the parliamentary visitors, was
taking exorbitant fines for renewals of college leases, by
which they almost sold out the whole interest of >the college in such estates. On the other hand he appears to have
made some liberal grants of money to the posterity of the
founder, sir Thomas Pope.
” One is surprized,“says
Warton,
” at those donations, under the government of
Dr. Robert Harris, Cromwell’s presbytenan president.
But Harris was a man of candour, and I believe a majority
of the old loyal fellows still remained.“Durham, the author of Harris’s life, gives him the character of
” a man of
admirable prudence, profound judgment, eminent gifts
and graces, and furnished with all qualifications which
might render him a complete man, a wise governor, a
profitable preacher, and a good Christian." He appears
to have very little relished some of the innovations of his
time, particularly that easy and indiscriminate admission
into the pulpits, which filled them with illiterate enthusiasts
of every description. His works, consisting of sermons
and pious treatises, were collected in 1 vol. fol. published
in 1654.
, a biographical compiler, was the son of a tradesman at Salisbury, who probably was a dissenter. He was born in that city in 1720,
, a biographical compiler, was the son of a tradesman at Salisbury, who probably was a dissenter. He was born in that city in 1720, and received his education at an academy kept at Taunton by messrs. Grove and Amory, men of learning and note, as dissenting teachers. An early love of books, and a thirst for knowledge, rendered application easy and profitable; and he was thought qualified to preach before he was nineteen years of age. He first officiated to a congregation at St. Loo, in Cornwall, and was afterwards invited to another in the city of Wells, where he was ordained in 1741. Within a few years, his marriage to a Miss Bovet of Honiton, occasioned his removal to that town; and his ministerial labours for the rest of his life, were confined to a very small congregation at Luppit, in the neighbourhood. To what denomination of dissenters he belonged we are not told. The strain of his discourses is said to have been plain and practical, but none of them have been published, and he appears to have soon courted fame in a different pursuit.
D. D. was procured for him from the university or Glasgow, in 1765, by his friend Mr. Thomas Holiis, who had assisted him in his various undertakings, by many curious
His preliminary attempt was on a singular subject, the
“Life of Hugh Peters,
” which, as he published it without his name, has escaped the notice of the collectors of
his works, but is prefixed to the late edition of his “Lives
”
as the first in the order of time, and essentially connected
with one of the subjects of his future inquiries. In this
life he professed to follow “the manner of Bayle,
” and it
might have been thought that its aukward appearance in
print would have shown Dr. Harris that his choice was injudicious; but, for whatever reason, he followed the same
in his subsequent works. The Life of Peters was published
in 1751, and in 1753 appeared his Life of James I.; in
1753, that of Charles I.; in 1761, that of Cromwell and
in 1765, that of Charles II. this last in 2 vols. 8vo. It
was his design to have completed this series with a Life of
James II., but he was interrupted by an illness which terminated fatally in February 1770, in the fiftieth year of
his age. His degree of D. D. was procured for him from
the university or Glasgow, in 1765, by his friend Mr.
Thomas Holiis, who had assisted him in his various undertakings, by many curious and interesting communications, and the use of scarce books and pamphlets. Dr.
Birch and other gentlemen in London seem also to have
contributed liberally to his stock of historical materials.
It is indeed as a collection of such, that these Lives have
been principally valued, for Dr. Harris cannot be ranked
among elegant writers, nor can it be gravely asserted that
he is always impartial. His reasonings are strongly tinged
with his early prejudices, but his facts are in general narrated with fidelity, and the evidence on both sides is given'
without mutilation.
t part of his nights in writing or drawing and he always acknowledged his obligations to a clergyman who came every Sunday to officiate in the neighbourhood, who lent
, a most accurate mechanic, the celebrated inventor of the famous time-keeper for ascertaining the longitude at sea, and also of the compound or gridiron-pendulum; was born at Foulby, near Pontefract in Yorkshire, in 1693. His father was a carpenter, in which profession the son assisted; occasionally also, according to the miscellaneous practice of country artists, surveying land, and repairing clocks and watches; and young Harrison always was, from his early childhood, greatly attached to any machinery moving by wheels. In 1700 he removed with his father to Barrow, in Lincolnshire; where, though his opportunities of acquiring knowledge were very few, he eagerly improved every incident from which he might collect information frequently employing all or great part of his nights in writing or drawing and he always acknowledged his obligations to a clergyman who came every Sunday to officiate in the neighbourhood, who lent him a ms copy of professor Sanderson’s lectures; which he carefully and neatly transcribed, with all the diagrams. His native genius exerted itself superior to these solitary disadvantages; for, in 1726, he had constructed two clocks, mostly of wood, in which he applied the escapement and compound pendulum of his own invention: these surpassed every thing then made, scarcely erring a second in a month. In 1728 he came up to London with the drawings of a machine for determining the longitude at sea, in expectation of being enabled to execute one by the board of longitude. Upon application to Dr. Halley, the astronomer royal, he referred him to Mr. George Graham, who advised him to make his machine before applying to that board. He accordingly returned home to perform his task; and in 1735 came to London, again with his first machine, with which he was sent to Lisbon the next year to make trial of it. In this short voyage he corrected the dead reckoning about a degree and a half; a success which procured him both public and private encouragement. About 17 '69 he completed his second machine, of a construction much more simple than the former, and which answered much better: this, though not sent to sea, recommended Mr. Harrison yet stronger to the patronage of his friends and the public. His third machine, which he produced in 1749, was still less complicated than the second, and more accurate, as erring only 3 or 4 seconds in a week. This he conceived to be the ne plus ultra of his attempts; but, by endeavouring to improve pocket-watches, he found the principles he applied to surpass his expectations so much, as to encourage him to make his fourth time-keeper, which is in the form of a pocket-watch, about six inches diameter. With this time-keeper his son made two voyages, the one to Jamaica, and the other to Barbadoes in which experiments it corrected the longitude within the nearest limits required by the act of the 12th of queen Anne; and the inventor had, therefore, at different times, more than the proposed reward, receiving from the board of longitude at different times almost 24,000l. besides a few hundreds from the East India company, &c. These four machines were given up to the board of longitude. The three former were not of any use, as all the advantages gained by making them, were comprehended in the last: being worthy however of preservation, as mechanical curiosities, they are deposited in the royal observatory at Greenwich. The fourth machine, emphatically distinguished by the name of The Time-keeper, was copied by the ingenious Mr. Kendal; and that duplicate, during a three years circumnavigation of the globe in the southern hemisphere by captain Cook, answered as well as the original.
c chaplain to sir William Brooke, knt. lord-warden of the Cinque Ports, and baron of Cobham in Kent, who is supposed to have given him the living of Radwinter, in Essex,
, an English historian, was a
native of London, and educated at Westminster school,
under the celebrated Alexander Nowell. He afterwards
studied at both universities, but in what colleges seems
doubtful. Wood suspects Christ Church for Oxford, and
Baker mentions one of this name a bachelor of arts of St.
John’s, Cambridge; but the date, 1571, is obviously too
late for our Harrison. He says himself that both universities “are so clear to him that he cannot readily tell to
which of them he owes most good will.
” After leaving
Cambridge he became domestic chaplain to sir William
Brooke, knt. lord-warden of the Cinque Ports, and baron
of Cobham in Kent, who is supposed to have given him the
living of Radwinter, in Essex, in Feb. 1558, which he held
until his death in the end of 1592 or beginning of 1593.
He wrote a “Historical Description of the Island of Britain,
” published in Holiingshed’s Chronicles; and “A
Chronology
” mentioned by Hollingshed. He translated
also “The Description of Scotland,
” from Hector Boethius,^ which is prefixed to Hollingshed’s “Hist, of Scotland.
” Wood says he obtained a canonry of Windsor, and
was buried there, leaving several children by his wife Manan, daughter of Will. Isebrand, ofAnderne, in Picardy.
His turn appears to have been more for compiling ancient
history than topography; for in his dedication to lord
Cobham he says, “Indeed I must needs confess, that un1 now of late, except it were from the parish where I
dwell unto your honour in Kent, or out of London, where
I was born, unto Oxford and Cambridge, where I have
been brought up, I have never travelled forty miles forth
right and at one journey in all my life.
”
the beautiful close of an “Epistle to lord Lansdown,” most pathetically bewails his loss. Dr. Birch, who has given a curious note on Mr. Harrison’s “Letter to Swift,”
, a young gentleman high in
esteem, and (as Swift expresses it) “a little pretty fellow,
With a great deal of wit, good sense, and good nature,
”
was educated at Winchester, and was afterwards of New
college, Oxford, of which he became a fellow. He appears to have been employed in private tuition, which was
not a very profitable employment. He had no other income than 40l. a year as tutor to one of the duke of Queensbury’s sons. In this employment he fortunately attracted
the favour of Dr. Swift, whose generous solicitations with
Mr. St. John obtained for him the reputable employment
of secretary to lord Raby, ambassador at the Hague, and
afterwards earl of Stafford. A letter of his, whilst at
Utrecht, dated December 16, 1712, printed inthedean’s
works, informs us that his office was attended with much
vexation and little advantage. Even in Jan. 13, 1713, when
he brought over the barrier treaty, and, as Swift says, was
the queen’s minister, entrusted in affairs of the greatest
importance, he had not a shilling in his pocket to pay his
hackney coach. He died soon after this, Feb. 14,1712-13.
See the “Journal to Stella
” of that and the following day,
where Dr. Swift laments his loss with the most unaffected
sincerity. Mr. Tickell has mentioned him with respect,
in his “Prospect of Peace;
” and Dr. Young, in the
beautiful close of an “Epistle to lord Lansdown,
” most
pathetically bewails his loss. Dr. Birch, who has given
a curious note on Mr. Harrison’s “Letter to Swift,
”
has confounded him with Thomas Harrison, M. A. of
Queen’s college. In the “Select Collection,
” by Nichols,
are some pleasing specimens of his poetry; which,
with “Woodstock-Park
” in Dodsley’s “Collection,
” and
an “Ode to the duke of Marlborough, 1707,
” in Duncombe’s “Horace,
” are all the poetical writings that are
known of this excellent young man, who figured both as
an humourist and a politician in the fifth volume of the
“Tatler,
” of which (under the patronage of Bolingbroke, Henley, and Swift) he was professedly the editor. There
was another William Harrison, author of “The Pilgrim,
or the happy Convert, a pastoral tragedy,
”
et appeared as a writer, was in writing some pamphlets to expose the impostures of one John Darrell, who pretended to have the power of casting out devils. Bishop Harsnet’s
, a learned English prelate, successively bishop of Chichester and Norwich, and archbishop
of York, the son of William Harsnet, a baker at Colchester,
was born in that town, and baptised June 20, 1561. He
was probably sent to the free-school of Colchester, but was
admitted Sept. 8, 1576, of King’s college, Cambridge,
whence he removed to Pembroke-hall, of which he became
a scholar, and was elected fellow Nov. 27, 1583. He took
his degree of B.A. in 1580, and that of M. A. in 15'84.
Three years after, in March 1586-7, he was elected master
of the free-school in Colchester, but, preferring the prosecution of his studies at Cambridge, he resigned this office
in November 1588, and returned to Pembrdke-hall, where
he studied divinity, in which indeed he had made great
progress before, and had been admitted into holy orders,
as appears by a sermon preached by him at St. Paul’s cross,
Oct. 27, 1584, on the subject of predestination. In 1592
he served the office of proctor, and five years after became
chaplain to Dr. Bancroft, bishop of London, by whose favour he obtained the rectory of St. Margaret Fish-street,
London, which he resigned in 1604; and the vicarage of
Chigwell in Essex, which he resigned in 1605, but continued to reside at Chigwell, where he had purchased a
house and estate, now the property and residence of his
descendant Mrs. Fisher. In 1598 he was collated to the
prebend of Mapesbury in St. Paul’s, and Jan. 1602 to the
archdeaconry of Essex, all in bishop Bancroft’s disposal.
In April 1604, sir Thomas Lucas of Colchester presented
him to the rectory of Shenfield in that county. The year
following, upon the resignation of bishop Andrews, he
was chosen master of Pembroke-hall, which he held until
1616, when he resigned in consequence of the society
having exhibited to the king an accusation branching into
fifty-seven articles. Many of these, Le Neve says, were
scandalous, and the proof evident; but, as Le Neve was
iiot able to procure a sight of tHem, we are not enabled to
judge. They do not, however, appear to have injured his
interest at court. He had been consecrated bishop of
Chichester in 1609, and was now, in 1619, three years
after he quitted Pembroke-hall, translated to Norwich, on
the death of Dr. Overall. In 1624 we find him again accused in the house of commons of “putting down preaching setting up images praying to the east;
” and other
articles which appear to have involved him with the
puritans of his diocese, but which he answered to the satisfaction of the parliament as well as of the court. On the
death of Dr. Montague, he was translated to the archbishopric of York in 1628, and in Nov. 1629, was sworn of
the privy council. These dignities, however, he did not
enjoy long, dying atMorton-on-the-marsh, Gloucestershire,
while on a journey, May 25, 1631. He was buried at
Chigwell church, agreeably to his own desire, where his
effigies is still to be seen fixed on the north side of the
chancel, against the wall. He left several charitable legacies and a year or two before his death founded and endowed a free school at Chigwell, and some alms-houses
the history of his school may be seen in Lysons’s “Environs.
” He bequeathed his library to the corporation of
Colchester for the use of the clergy. Besides the sermon above noticed, the only other occasion on which Dr.
Harsnet appeared as a writer, was in writing some pamphlets to expose the impostures of one John Darrell, who
pretended to have the power of casting out devils. Bishop
Harsnet’s character, from what we have related, appears to
be equivocal it is said he was equally an enemy to puritanism and to popery and, according to Fuller, was the
first who used the expression conformable puritans, i. e.
those who conformed out of policy, and yet dissented in
their judgments.
, an English poet and divine, was the son of a father of both his names, who was fellow of Pembroke college, Oxford, prebendary of Wales,
, an English poet and divine, was the son of a father of both his names, who was fellow of Pembroke college, Oxford, prebendary of Wales, canon, of Bristol, and vicar of St. Mary Magdalen, Taunton, Somersetshire. Refusing to take the oaths after that revolution which placed a new family on the throne, he relinquished *all his preferments, in 1691, and retired to Kentbury in Buckinghamshire, where he died Feb. 10, 1736, aged eighty-five. His son informs us, that when judge Jeffries came to Taunton -assizes in 1685, to execute his commission upon the unfortunate persons concerned in Monmouth’s rebellion, Mr. Harte, then minister of St. Mary Magdalen’s, waited on him in private, and remonstrated much against iiis severities. The judge listened to him calmly, and with some attention, and though he had never seen him before, advanced him in a few months to a prebendal stall in the cathedral church of Bristol. Old Mr. Harte was so much respected for his piety and learning, that the prelates Kidder, Hooper, and Wynne, who successively filled the see of Bath and Wells, contrived that he should receive the profits of his prebend of Wells as long as he lived; and Mr. Simon Harcourt, afterwards lord chancellor, offered him a bishopric in queen Anne’s time, which he declined with grateful acknowledgments. According to his son’s account, he was a most laborious student, employing ten or twelve hours a day, without any interruption, but that of casual sickness, for fifty years successively. His principal business was in referring every difficult part of Scripture to those particular passages in the fathers and eminent modern divines who had explained them expressly or occasionally.
the volume of poems, already mentioned, dedicated to the gallant and eccentric earl of Peterborough, who was, as the, author acknowledges, the first “who took notice
In 1727, he published the volume of poems, already
mentioned, dedicated to the gallant and eccentric earl of
Peterborough, who was, as the, author acknowledges, the
first “who took notice of him.
” This volume was ushered
in by a very numerous list of subscribers, among whom is
the name of Alexander Pope, for four copies. An edition
of these poems may be sometimes picked up, dated 1739,
and printed for John Cecil, instead of Bernard Lintot, the
original publisher. As the same list of subscribers is repeated, it is probable that these were the remaining copies
bought at Lintot’s sale (who died in 1737), and published
with a new title-page.
terwards vice-principal of St. Mary-hall, and in so much reputation as a tutor, that lord Lyttelton, who was one of his earliest friends, recommended him to the earl
In 1730 he published his “Essay on Satire,
” 8vo, and
in Essay on Reason,
” folio, to which Pope contributed very considerably, although no part of his share
can be exactly ascertained, except the first two lines. He
afterwards published two sermons, the one entitled “The
Union and Harmony of Reason, Morality, and Revealed
Religion,
” preached at St. Mary’s, Oxford, February 27,
1736-7, which excited so much admiration, or curiosity,
as to pass through five editions. The other was a “Fastsermon,
” preached at the same place, Jan. 9, 1739-40.
He was afterwards vice-principal of St. Mary-hall, and in
so much reputation as a tutor, that lord Lyttelton, who
was one of his earliest friends, recommended him to the earl
of Chesterfield, as a private and travelling preceptor to his
natural son. With this young man, to whom his lordship
addressed those letters which have so much injured his
reputation, Mr. Harte travelled from 1746 to 1750. Lord
Chesterfield is said to have procured for him a canonry of
Windsor, in 1751, “with much difficulty,
” arising from his
college connections, St. Mary-hall, of which Dr. King
was principal, being at that time noted for jacobitism.
Dr. Maty expresses his wonder, that lord Chesterfield should not have chosen a tutor who understood a little better the external decorations which his
Dr. Maty expresses his wonder, that lord Chesterfield
should not have chosen a tutor who understood a little better the external decorations which his lordship prized so
highly. “Harte,
” says this biographer, “had none of the
amiable connecting qualifications, which the earl wished
in his son.
” “It was impossible he should succeed in
finishing the polish of his education in the manner lord
Chesterfield wished; and it is a matter of astonishment
that the earl should not have perceived how much the
tutor’s example must have defeated his precepts. The
three principal articles he recommended to his son, were
his appearance, his elocution, and his style. Mr. Harte,
long accustomed to a college life, was too aukward both in
his person and address to be able to familiarize the graces
with his young pupil. An unhappy impediment in his
speech, joined to his total want of ear, rendered him
equally unfit to perceive as to correct any defects of pronunciation, a careful attention to which was so strongly
recommended in all lord Chesterfield’s letters, as absolutely necessary for an orator.
”
t attributed to him. It may not be impertinent to introduce here an anecdote, related by Dr. Warton, who was very intimate with Harte. " Pope told Mr. Harte, that in
With Pope, Harte appears to have been on very intimate terms, and we find his encomiastic lines among the
testimonies of authors prefixed to the “Dunciad.
” He
had even attained so much character both as a poet and a
philosopher, that the “Essay on Man
” was at first attributed to him. It may not be impertinent to introduce here
an anecdote, related by Dr. Warton, who was very intimate with Harte. " Pope told Mr. Harte, that in order to
disguise his being the author of the second epistle of the
Essay on Man, he made, in the first edition, the following
bad rhyme:
, with whatever else he left, are supposed to have fallen into the hands of his servant Edward Dore, who afterwards kept an inn at Bath. Dore and his family are no more,
Notwithstanding the unfortunate reception of his history,
he projected another undertaking of the same kind. This
we learn from the concluding passage of his Gustavus, in
which he says his intention was to carry the history of
Germany down to the peace of Munster, but that he was
deterred by the magnitude of the undertaking. He adds,
however, in a note, that he had completed the history of
the thirty years’ war, from the breaking out of the troubles
in Bohemia in 1618, to the death of Gustavus in 1632.
These papers, with whatever else he left, are supposed to
have fallen into the hands of his servant Edward Dore, who
afterwards kept an inn at Bath. Dore and his family are
no more, and the manuscripts are probably irrecoverably
lost. We have his own authority also, that he intended to
have written a criticism on the poetry of Dryden, which
he seems to have appreciated with just taste. The advertisement to “Religious Melancholy,
” from which this information is taken, is inserted almost entire, by Dr. Warton in his edition of Pope, as the result of a conference
between Pope and Harte.
s of the serious cast, such as became the situation of the author. We have, indeed, heard of authors who have sported with unusual glee in their moments of debility
The “Amaranth
” was written, as he informs us, te for
his private consolation under a lingering and dangerous
state of health.' 1 There is something so amiable, and we
may add, so heroic in this, that it is impossible not to make
every allowance for defects; but this collection of poems does
not upon the whole stand so much in need of indulgence
as may be expected. Some of them were sketched when
he was abroad, and now were revised and prepared, and
others may perhaps be the effusions of a man in sickness
and pain. Yet there are more animated passages of genuine poetry scattered over this volume, than we find in
his former works. The whole of the “Amaranth
” is of
the serious cast, such as became the situation of the author. We have, indeed, heard of authors who have sported
with unusual glee in their moments of debility and decay,
and seemed resolved to meet death with an air of good humour and levity. Such a state of mind, where it does
really occur, and is not affectation, is rather to be wondered at than envied. It is not the feeling of a rational
and an immortal creature.
“In this, however, he appears to have been mistaken. We know of no” future“philosophers of any name, who have adopted his system. Dr. Priestley, indeed, published in
Dr. Hartley was industrious and indefatigable in the
pursuit of all collateral branches of knowledge^ and lived
in personal intimacy with the learned men of his age.
The bishops Law, Butler, and Warburton, and Dr. Jortin,
were his intimate friends, and he was much attached to
bishop Hoadiy. Among his other friends or correspondents may be mentioned Dr. Hales, Mr. Hawkins Browne,
Dr. Young, Dr. Byrom, and Mr. Hooke the Roman historian. Pope was also admired by him, not only as a man
of genius, but as a moral poet; yet he soon saw the hand
of Bolingbroke in the “Essay on Man.
” Dr. Hartley’s
genius was penetrating and active his industry indefatigable his philosophical observations and attentions unremitting. From his earliest youth he was devoted to the
sciences, particularly to logic and mathematics. He studied mathematics, together with natural and experimental
philosophy, under the celebrated professor Saunderson.
He was an enthusiastic admirer and disciple of sir Isaac
Newton in every branch of literature and philosophy, natural and experimental, mathematical, historical, and religious. His first principles of logic and metaphysics he
derived from Locke. He took the first rudiments of his
own work, the “Observations on Man,' 7 from Newton and
Locke; the doctrine of vibrations, as instrumental to
sensation and motion, from the former, and the principle of
association originally from the latter, further explained in
a dissertation by the rev. Mr. Gay. He began this work
when about twenty-five years of age, and published it in
1749, when about forty-three years of age, under the title
of
” Observations on Man, his frame, his duty, and his
expectations,“2 vols. 8vo. His biographer informs us
that
” he did not expect that it would meet with any general or immediate reception in the philosophical world,
or even that it would be much read or understood; neither
did it happen otherwise than as he had expected. But at
the same time he did entertain an expectation that at some
distant period it would become the adopted system of future philosophers.“In this, however, he appears to have
been mistaken. We know of no
” future“philosophers
of any name, who have adopted his system. Dr. Priestley,
indeed, published in 1775
” Hartley’s Theory, &c. with
Essays on the subject of it," but all he has done in this is
to convince us of his own belief in materialism, and his
earnest desire to prove Hartley a materialist, who dreaded
nothing so much, although it must be confessed that hie
doctrines have an apparent tendency to that conclusion.
Since that time, Hartley’s work was nearly forgotten, until
1791, when an edition was published by his Son, in a handsome 4to volume, with notes and additions, from the
German of the rev. Herman Andrew Pistorius, rector of
Poseritz, in the island of Rugen; and a sketch of the life
and character of Dr. Hartley. The doctrine of vibrations,
upon which he attempts to explain the origin and propagation of sensation, although supported by much ingenious reasoning, isnot only built upon a gratuitous
assumption, but as Haller has shewn, it attributes properties
to the medullary substance of the brain and nerves, which
are totally incompatible with their nature.
h was published in the Gazette in June, 1739. In 1738 he published “Observations made on ten persons who have taken the Medicament of Mrs. Stephens;” and in 1739 his
Dr. Hartley was the author of some medical tracts relative to the operation of Mrs. Stephens’ s medicine for the
stone, a disease with which he was himself afflicted; he
was, indeed, principally instrumental in procuring for Mrs.
Stephens the five thousand pounds granted by parliament
for discovering the composition of her medicine, which
was published in the Gazette in June, 1739. In 1738 he
published “Observations made on ten persons who have
taken the Medicament of Mrs. Stephens;
” and in View of the present Evidence for and against Mrs.
Stephens’s Medicine as a Solvent for the Stone, containing
155 Cases, with some Experiments and Observations,
”
and a “Supplement to the View of the present Evidence,
”
&c. His own case is the 123d in the above-mentioned
“View;
” but, notwithstanding any temporary relief which
he might receive from the medicine, he is said to have
died of the stone, after having taken above two hundred
pounds weight of soap, which is the principal ingredient
in its composition. In the Gentleman’s Magazine for February, 1746, Dr. Hartley published with his name, “Directions for preparing and administering Mrs. Stephens’s
Medicine in a solid Form.
” He is also said to have written
in defence of inoculation for the small-pox, against the
objections of Dr. Warren, of Bury St. Edmund’s; and
some papers of his are to be met with in the Philosophical
Transactions. He died at Bath, August 28, 1757, aged
fifty-two. He was twice married, and left issue by both
marriages.
, an ingenious writer on agriculture in the seventeenth century, was the son of a Polish merchant, who, when the Jesuits prevailed in that country, was obliged to
, an ingenious writer on agriculture in the seventeenth century, was the son of a Polish merchant, who, when the Jesuits prevailed in that country, was obliged to remove himself into Prussia, where he settled and built the first house of credit at Elbing, and his grandfather, the deputy of the English company at Dantzick, brought the English company to Elbing; whence that town came by trade to the splendour and result which it afterwards attained. His family, indeed, was of a very ancient extraction in the German empire, there having been ten brothers of the name cf Hartlib. Some of them were privy-counsellors to the emperor, some to other inferior princes; some syndics of Ausperg and Norimberg.
In 1645 he published “The Discourse of Flanders Husbandry,” 4to, about 24 pages; not then knowing who was the author; the “Legacy” to his sons, which relates also
In 1645 he published “The Discourse of Flanders Husbandry,
” 4to, about 24 pages; not then knowing who
was the author; the “Legacy
” to his sons, which relates
also to the cultivation of their estates, consists of three
4to pages, and was written on the author’s death -bed,
1645. The author was sir Richard Weston, whom Harte
apprehends to be the sir Richard Weston “who was ambassador from England to Frederick V. elector Palatine,
and king of Bohemia, in 1619, and present at the famous
battle of Prague, concerning which a curious relation of
his, by way of letter, is still preserved in ms.
” It is remarked in the Philosophical Transactions, that England
has profited in agriculture to the amount of many millions,
by following the directions laid down in this little treatise,
which has always been looked upon as a capital performance
in husbandry.
t, he complains “he had nothing to keep him alive, with two relations more, a daughter and a nephew, who were attending his sickly condition.” About the same time he
He was consulted in a book called “Chemical, Medicinal, and Chirurgical Addresses to Samuel Hartlib.
”
Lond. On Motion
by Engines,
” Letters to Hartlib from Flanders,
” German by birth, a good scholar,
and a great traveller,
” was appointed in he had nothing to
keep him alive, with two relations more, a daughter and a
nephew, who were attending his sickly condition.
” About
the same time he presented a petition to the house of commons, by the name of Samuel Hartlib, sen. setting forth
his services, and praying relief; in which, among other
things, he says, that for thirty years and upwards he had
exerted himself in procuring “rare collections of Mss. in
all the parts of learning, which he had freely imported,
transcribed, and printed, and sent to such as were most
capable of making use of them; also the best experiments
in husbandry and manufactures, which by printing he hath
published for the benefit of this age and posterity.
” The
event of these applications, and the time of the death of
this ingenious man, is unknown. Sprat, in his history of
the royal society, says nothing of Hartlib, who seems to
have been an active promoter of that institution. Nor is
it less remarkable, that he never mentions Milton’s “Tractate of Education,
” although he discusses the plan of Cowley’s philosophical college. Harte intended to republish
Hartlib’s tracts, and those with which he was concerned;
and Warton had seen his collection.
ighty “Academical Discourses.” He must be distinguished from George Hartman, a German mathematician, who, in 1540, invented the bombarding-staff, “Baculus Bombardicus,”
, a learned divine, was
born in 1680, at Minister, of catholic parents. After having been several years a Je.uit, he turned protestant at
Cassel in 1715, was soon after made professor of philosophy and poetry, and, in 1722, appointed professor of
history nnd rhetoric at Marpurg, where he died in 1744.
His most esteemed works are, “Hist. Hassiaca,
” 3 vols.
“Vita? Pontificum Romanorum Victoris III. Urbani II. Pascalis II. Gelasii II. Callisti II. Honorii II.;
” “State of the
Sciences in Hesse,
” in German; “Praecepta eloquentiae
rationalis,
” &c. He has also left above eighty “Academical
Discourses.
” He must be distinguished from George Hartman, a German mathematician, who, in 1540, invented
the bombarding-staff, “Baculus Bombardicus,
” and was
author of a treatise on perspective, reprinted at Paris, 1556,
4to and from Wolfgang Hartman, who published the Annals of Augsburg, in folio, 1596.
y, he saved his boyish allowance and presents in money, and applied to a teacher of the mathematics, who promised to be very expeditious, and kept his word. Under him
, an eminent mathematician, was born at Goud?, in Holland, March 26, 1656. His father intended him for the ministry, but the young man had an early disposition for contemplating the heavenly bodies, which engrossed his whole attention, and finding, at the age of thirteen or fourteen, that without some knowledge of the mathematics he could make no satisfactory progress in this study, he saved his boyish allowance and presents in money, and applied to a teacher of the mathematics, who promised to be very expeditious, and kept his word. Under him he first learned to grind optic glasses, and at length, partly by accident, was enabled to improve single microscopes by using small globules of glass, melted in the flame of a candle. By these he discovered the animalculse in semine humano, which laid the foundation of a new system of generation.
bservations at Amsterdam, and communicated his clisco^ veries respecting the animalcules to Huygens, who published them in the “Journal des Savans” without mentioning
In the mean time, in obedience to his father’s request,
be spent some years at Leyden and Amsterdam in the
study of the belies lettres, Greek, philosophy, and anatomy, until 1672, when he resumed his microscopical observations at Amsterdam, and communicated his clisco^
veries respecting the animalcules to Huygens, who published them in the “Journal des Savans
” without mentioning Hartsoeker. Hartsoeker, indignant at being thus deprived of the honours of invention, determined to avow
himself the inventor of the new microscope, and the first
observer of the animalcules; and sent a letter to that purpose to the same literary journal. The editor, however,
had the precaution to send it privately to Huygens, who,
after reprimanding Hartsoeker for his rashness in being
prejudiced against him by envious and interested persons,
drew up a memoir for the journal, in which he did his young
friend all the justice he could desire.
im the esteem of many men of learning, particularly father Malebranche and the marquis de L'Hopital, who, finding him well versed in the old geometry, would fain have
In 1694 he published at Paris, his first work, under the
title of “Essai de Dioptrique,
” in which he demonstrated
with great perspicuity the whole theory of that science,
as far as regards spherical glasses, for he rejects all other
figures as useless. He then adds the methods, many of
them peculiar to himself, of grinding and polishing glasses,
and the names and quantities of the ingredients to be made
use of for forming them; and a general system of refraction, along with his experiments, leading him to the different refrangibiiity of the rays of light, he pretends to
have been the first to assign their different velocities as
the cause of it. Thus his essay on dioptrics is likewise
an essay on the first principles of natural philosophy. He
reckons but two elements, one a substance, infinite, perfectly fluid, always in motion, and no part of which is ever
perfectly separated from the rest the other a collection of
little bodies different insize and figure, perfectly hard and
unalterable, confusedly swimming in the fluid element,
where they meet, unite, and become the different sensible
bodies. With these two elements he forms every thing,
and accounts for the weight and hardness of bodies, as he
does elsewhere, from the same system, for their elasticity.
There are other opinions advanced by him, which the more
advanced state of the science has proved erroneous; but
this work at that time procured him the esteem of many
men of learning, particularly father Malebranche and the
marquis de L'Hopital, who, finding him well versed in the
old geometry, would fain have gained him over to the new
geometry of infinites, to which they were partial; but he
considered it of little service in natural philosophy, and
had not a better opinion of any of the more abstruse parts
of algebra. Encouraged, however, by the success of his
Dioptrics, he two years alter published, at Paris, his “Principes cle Physique,
” in which he explains at large the system he had already given in miniature, adding to it his
own sentiments and those of many others on some subjects
which he had not before handled, the whole forming a
course of natural philosophy, which, by avoiding too great
minuteness, he has rendered sufficiently perspicuous.
In 1704, after very pressing solicitations, he went to the court of the elector Palatine, who appointed him his first ma&ematiciau, and honorary professor
In 1704, after very pressing solicitations, he went to
the court of the elector Palatine, who appointed him his
first ma&ematiciau, and honorary professor of philosophy
in the university of Heidelberg. Here he published, in
1707 and 1708, his lectures, under the title of “Conjeetures Physiques,
” and then took his leave for a time of the
electorate, in order to visit other parts of Germany, or
study natural history, and mines in particular. At Cassel
he repeated the experiments made by Mr. Hamberg with
the landgrave’s burning glass constructed by Mr. Tschirnhaus, but without being able to vitrify even lead, insomuch
that he absolutely denied the fact, affirming that what
Hamberg took for vitrified gold was a substance issuing
from the charcoal tbat supported it, mixed perhaps with
some of the heterogeneous parts of the metal itself.
sented him to the elector, afterwards George I. and the electoral princess, the late queen Caroline, who gave him a very gracious reception. About this time, the elector
From Hesse Cassel Hartsoeker repaired to Hanover, where Leibnitz, the professed friend of all men of learning, presented him to the elector, afterwards George I. and the electoral princess, the late queen Caroline, who gave him a very gracious reception. About this time, the elector palatine hearing speak of the burning-glass of M. Tschirnhaus, asked Mr. Hartsoeker if he could make him such a one. Upon this he caused three to be cast, and having soon finished them, the elector presented him with the largest, which was three feet and five inches Rhinland measure jn diameter, nine feet focus, and this focus perfectly circular, of the size of a louis d'or, and so ponderous, that two men could with difficulty move it.
e “Councils of the church of Germany,” which had been projected by Schannat, a learned ecclesiastic, who had collected materials for the purpose. These, on his death,
, a celebrated Jesuit, was born
at Cologne in 1694, of a patrician family, and taught the
belles lettres there until he went to Milan, on being appointed professor of Greek and Hebrew. On his return to
his own country, he acquired much celebrity as a preacher
and as a professor of philosophy and divinity. He died in
1763; his principal works were, l.“Summa historic omnis
ab exordio rerum ad annum a Christo nato 1718,
” Luxembourg, De initio metropoleos ecclesiasticae Coloniae, &c. disquisitio,
” Cologne, Bibliotheca scriptorum Coloniensium,
” ibid. Dissertationes decem historico-criticx in sacram scripturam,
” fol. 5. “Inscriptionis Herseliensis Ubio-Romanse
explanatio,
” Cologne, Councils of the church of Germany,
” which had
been projected by Schannat, a learned ecclesiastic, who
had collected materials for the purpose. These, on his
death, were put into the hands of Hartzheim, who after augmenting and reducing them to order, published the first
four volumes. The work was afterwards continued by
Scholl and Neissen.
after king William came over, was made physician of the Tower. At this time there was a great debate who should succeed to this office, and the contending parties were
, an English physician, was born in
Surrey, acquired the Greek and Latin tongues in the
Low Countries, and was admitted of Exeter-college, Oxford, in Ib55. Afterwards he went to Leyden, and studied
under Vanderlinden, Vanhorn, and Vorstius, all of them
professors of physic, and men of eminence. He was
taugbt chemistry there by a German, and, at the same
place, learned the practical part of chirurgery, and the
trade of an apothecary. After this he went to France, and
thence returned to Holland, where he was admitted fellow
of the college of physicians at the Hague; being-, at that
time, physician in ordinary to Charles II. in his exile.
He afterwards returned to London, whence he was sent, in
1659, with a commission to Flanders, to be physician to
the English army there; where staying till he was tired of
that employment, he passed through Germany into Italy,
spent some time at Padua, Bologna, and Rome, and then
returned through Switzerland and Holland to England.
Here he became physician in ordinary to his majesty; and,
after king William came over, was made physician of the
Tower. At this time there was a great debate who should
succeed to this office, and the contending parties were so
equally matched in their interests and pretensions, that it
was extremely difficult to determine which should have the
preference. The matter was at length brought to-a compromise; and Dr. Harvey was promoted, because he was
in appearance sickly and infirm, and his death was expected in a few months. He survived, however, not only
his rivals, but all his contemporary physicians, and died
after he had enjoyed his office above fifty-years. He wrote
several medical treatises, which never have been in any
esteem. Unlike his predecessor of the same name, whose
modesty equalled his knowledge, and who never proceeded
a step without fact and experiment, Gideon Harvey was
a vain and hypothetical prater throughout. Under pretence
of reforming the art of medicine, he attacked the characters of the most eminent physicians of the time, combining:
the most insulting sarcasms with many glaring falsehoods
and absurdities; and although, in the general war which,
he waged, he justly attacked many abuses which then
prevailed in the profession, yet he often committed great
errors of judgment. His principal work, part of which was
published in 1683, and part in 1686, was entitled “The
Conclave of Physicians, detecting their intrigues, frauds,
and plots against the patients,
” &c.
, an eminent English physician, who first discovered the circulation of the blood, was born of a.
, an eminent English physician,
who first discovered the circulation of the blood, was born
of a. good family at Folkstone, in Kent, April 2, 156^.
At ten years of age he was sent to the grammar-school at
Canterbury, and at fourteen removed thence to Caius college, in Cambridge, where he spent about six years in
the study of logic and natural philosophy, as preparatory
to the study of physic. He then travelled through France
and Germany, to Padua in Italy; where, having studied
physic under Minadous, Fabricius ab Aquapendente, and
Casserius, he was created doctor of physic and surgery in
that university, 1602. He had a particular regard for Fabricius, often quotes him in terms of the highest respect;
and declares, that he was the more willing to publish his
book, “De Motu Cordis,
” because Fabricius, who had
learnedly and accurately delineated in a particular treatise
almost all the parts of animals, had left the heart alone
untouched. Soon after, returning to England, he was incorporated M. D. at Cambridge, and went to London to
practise, and married. In 1604, he was admitted candidate of the college of physicians in London; and three
years after fellow, and physician to St. Bartholomew’s hospital. In 1615, he was appointed lecturer of anatomy and
surgery in that college; and the year after read a course of
lectures there, the original ms. of which is extant in the
British Museum, and is entitled, “Prcelectiones anatom.
universal, per me Gulielmum Harvaeiunu medicum Londinensem, anat. & chirurg. professorem.
” This appointment of lecturer was probably the more immediate cause
of the publication of his grand discovery of the circulation
of the I id. The date of this promulgation is not absolutely a -tained: it is commonly said that he first disclosed is opinion on the subject in 1619; but the index
of his ms, containing the propositions on which the doctrine is founded, refers them to April 1616. Yet with a
patience and caution, peculiarly characteristic of the sound
philosopher, he withheld his opinions from the world, until
reiterated experiment had amply confirmed his doctrine,
and had enabled him to demonstrate it in detail, and to
advance every proof of its truth of which the subject is
capable.
inquisition. Honoratus Faber professed himself to be the author of that opinion; and Vander Linden, who published an edition of Hippocrates, about the middle of the
In 1628 he published at Francfort his “Exercitatio anatomicade motu cordis & sang inis;
” dedicated to Charles I.
There follows also another dedication to the college of
physicians, in which he observes, thiit he had frequently
before, in his “Anatomical Lectures,
” declared his new
opinion concerning the motion and use of the heart, and
the circulation of the blood; and for above nine years had
confirmed and illustrated it before the college, by reasons
and arguments grounded upon ocular d moustration, and
defended it from the objections of the most skilful anatomists. This discovery was of such vast importance to the
whole art of physic, that as soon as men were satisfied,
which they were in a tew years, that it could not be contested, several put in for the prize themselves, and a great
many affirmed the disc very to be due to others. Some
asserted, that father Paul was the first discoverer of the
circulation, but being too much suspected for heterodoxies already, durst not make it public, for fear of the
inquisition. Honoratus Faber professed himself to be the
author of that opinion; and Vander Linden, who published
an edition of Hippocrates, about the middle of the seventeenth century, took a great deal of pains to prove, that
this father of physic knew the circulation of the blood, and
that Harvey only revived it. But the honour of the discovery has been sufficiently asserted and confirmed to
Harvey; and, says Freind, “as it was entirely owing to
him, so he has explained it with all the clearness imaginable: and, though much has been written upon tuat subject since, I may venture to say, his own book is the
shortest, the plainest, and the most convincing, of any, as
we may be satisfied, it' we look into the many apologies
written in defence of the circulation.
”
he Levant, was born at Toernvalla, in East Gothland, Jan. 3d, 1722. He was the son of a poor curate, who died at an early age, and whose widow, on account of mental
, one of the favourite
pupils of Linnæus, and eminently distinguished by hisillus“trations of the natural history and medicine of the Levant,
was born at Toernvalla, in East Gothland, Jan. 3d, 1722.
He was the son of a poor curate, who died at an early age,
and whose widow, on account of mental and corporeal infirmities, was obliged to be placed in the hospital at Vadstena. Her brother, a worthy clergyman of the name of
Pontin, educated young Hasselquist with his own children,
at the school of Linkoeping; but he was soon deprived of
this benefactor, and was obliged to become the tutor of
young children till he was old enough to go to the university; and by a similar plan he was enabled to support himself after he entered at Upsal, in 1741. Here he soon
took a decided turn for physic and natural history, and
had some talents for poetry; and such was his diligence,
that his superiors procured him, in 1746, a royal stipend or
scholarship. In June 1747, he published his thesis, entitled
” Vires Plantarum," setting forth the erroneous and
often foolish principles on which plants had formerly been
employed in medicine, and suggesting a truly philosophical one iii their natural botanical affinities.
, Mr. Rydelius, the Swedish consul, as well as from the French consul, M. Peysonel, one of the first who suspected the animal nature of corals. He spent the winter in
At Smyrna Hasselquist nret with the kindest reception from his relation, Mr. Rydelius, the Swedish consul, as well as from the French consul, M. Peysonel, one of the first who suspected the animal nature of corals. He spent the winter in noticing every thing he could meet with respecting the main objects of his pursuit, in this place and its neighbourhood, as well as the religious ceremonies and manners of the people. He visited the house and garden, once occupied by the famous Sherard, at Sedekio, near Smyrna, but found no traces of any great care having been taken to adorn the garden, or to store it with exotic plants. He made an excursion to Magnesia, his quality of physician causing him to be received every where with respect. As the spring advanced he became desirous of extending his inquiries and early in May set sail for Alexandria, where he arrived on the 13th. Here the palm-trees, which now first presented themselves to his notice, excited him to inquire into and to verify the celebrated history of their artificial impregnation, of whicii he wrote a full account to Linnæus. Having spent two months in seeing all he could at Alexandria, Rosetta, and Cairo, he visited the Egyptian pyramids in July, brought from thence Chondrilla juncea, the only plant he could find, which is. now in the herbarium of his preceptor, was hospitably entertained by the Arabs, and returned safe to Cairo, where he had afterwards an opportunity of seeing the caravan depart for Mecca, of which he has given an ample and interesting description, as well as of many other festivals and exhibitions. He visited the catacombs, and examined many mummies of the ancient Ibis, by the size of which he was induced to take this famous bird to be a species of Ardea, common and almost peculiar to Egypt, different from the Tantalus Ibis of Linnæus. The learned Cuvier, however, has recently shewn that naturalists have been widely mistaken on this subject, and Bruce alone has indicated the real Ibis.
ent, and departed this life, Feb. 9, 1752, at six in the evening, to the inexpressible grief o f all who knew him, in the 31st year of his age.
From time to time, in the course of his travels, he had written to LinnaBtis, and had sent home various natural curiosities, as well as several dissertations, which were printed in the Transactions of the Upsal and Stockholm academies. His letters to various friends were occasionally printed, in a periodical publication called Literary News, at Stockholm; and in return for the entertainment and information he gave his countrymen, they contributed some necessary supplies towards his expensive undertakings. Unfortunately he had, in the meanwhile, sacrificed, instead of restoring his health. He flattered himself, as all in his condition do, and thought that a winter’s repose at Smyrna might restore him. He tried the country air and a milk diet, but he wasted away daily, like a lamp whose oil is spent, and departed this life, Feb. 9, 1752, at six in the evening, to the inexpressible grief o f all who knew him, in the 31st year of his age.
stinum,” or a Journey to the Holy Land, in one volume, 8vo, with a biographical preface by Linnseus, who subjoined to the work the very interesting letters of Hasselquist
In the course of his expensive journeys and his illness,
this unfortunate young man had unavoidably incurred debts
beyond what his casual supplies from home could liquidate;
and the collections and manuscript notes, which still remained at Smyrna, were seized by his creditors, for a sum
amounting to 14,000 dollars of copper-money, or about
350l. sterling. This circumstance was no sooner made
known, through Linnæus and his friend Bteck, to the accomplished queen of Sweden, Louisa Ulrica, the worthy
sister of the great Frederick of Prussia, than she immediately redeemed these treasures out of her own purse,
gave Linnæus all the duplicates, and commissioned him to
arrange and publish the manuscript journal and remarks
of his deceased pupil; a task which he undertook with
alacrity, and executed with care and judgment. These
papers were given to the public in 1757, in Swedish, except several Latin descriptions, under the title of “Iter
Palaestinum,
” or a Journey to the Holy Land, in one volume, 8vo, with a biographical preface by Linnseus, who
subjoined to the work the very interesting letters of Hasselquist to himself. This book has been translated into
several languages, and appeared in English, at London, in
1766; but this translation is in many parts defective, especially with regard to the natural history and the scientific
names. In 1758 the above-mentioned Dr. Baeck, physician to the queen, published, at Stockholm, an oration in
praise of Hasselquist, in 8vo.
ered his estates in Kent. He died at the master’s lodge at Corsham, Jan. 14, 1812. By Anne his wife, who died in 1803, Mr. Hasted left four sons and two daughters, of
, the historian of Kent, was the
only son of Edward Hasted of Hawley, in Kent, esq. barrister at law, descended paternally from the noble family
of Clifford, and maternally from the ancient and knightly
family of the Dingleys of Woolverton in the Isle of Wight.
He was born in 1732, and probably received a liberal education; but we have no account of his early life. At one
time he possessed a competent landed property in the
county of Kent, and sat in the chair for a little while at
the quarter sessions at Canterbury. His laborious “History of Kent
” employed his time and attention for upwards
of forty years; and such was his ardour in endeavouring
to trace the descent of Kentish property, that he had abstracted with his own hand, in two folio volumes, all the
wills in the prerogative office at Canterbury. His materials, in other respects, appear to have been ample. He
had access to all the public offices and repositories of records in London; to the libraries and archives of the archbishop at Lambeth, the dean and chapter of Canterbury,
and that at Surrenden in Kent. He had also the ms collections of Thorpe, Le Neve, Warburton, Edmondson,
Lewis, Twisden, and many others, with much valuable
correspondence with the gentlemen of the county. This
work was completed in four folio volumes, 1778 1799.
The whole exhibits more research than taste, either in arranging the information, or in style; and it is very defective in notices of manners, arts, or biographical and literary history. Its highest praise is that of a faithful record
of the property of the country, and of its genealogical history. During the latter part of his labours, he fell into
pecuniary difficulties, which are thought to have prevented
his making a proper use of his materials, and obliged him
to quit his residence in Kent. After this he lived in obscure retirement, and for some time in the environs of
London. A few years before his death, the earl of Radnor presented him to the mastership of the hospital at Corsham in Wiltshire, to which he then removed; and some
time after by a decree in the court of chancery, recovered
his estates in Kent. He died at the master’s lodge at Corsham, Jan. 14, 1812. By Anne his wife, who died in 1803,
Mr. Hasted left four sons and two daughters, of whom the
eldest son is vicar of Hollingborne, near Maidstone in
Kent, and in the commission of the peace for that county.
ics in England, without even consulting the king: this greatly offended the nobility and parliament, who enacted several statutes against it, and restored to the churches
, bishop of Durham. Of this great prelate we meet with few accounts previous to his promotion to the see of Durham, except his being a prebendary of Lincoln and York, and secretary to Edward III. by whom he appears to have been much esteemed. Before this time the popes had for many years taken upon them the authority of bestowing all the bishoprics in England, without even consulting the king: this greatly offended the nobility and parliament, who enacted several statutes against it, and restored to the churches and convents their ancient privilege of election. Richard de Bury, bishop of Durham, dying April 24, 1345, king Edward was very desirous of obtaining this see for his secretary Hatfield; but, fearing the convent should not elect, and the pope disapprove him, he applied to his holiness to bestow the bishopric upon him, and thereby gave him an opportunity of resuming his former usurpations. Glad of this, and of obliging the king, and showing his power at the same time, the pope immediately accepted him; objections, however, were made against him by some of the cardinals, as a man of light behaviour, and no way fit for the place; to this the pope answered, that if the king of England had requested him for an ass, he would not at that time have denied him: he was therefore elected the 8th of May, and consecrated bishop of Durham, 10th of July, 1345.
nvaders, a great number of the northern noblemen armed all their vassals, and came to join the king, who was then at Durham; from thence they marched against the Scots
What his former behaviour, on which the cardinals grounded their objections, may have been, is uncertain; but it is scarce to be imagined, that a king of Edward’s judgment and constant inclination to promote merit, would have raised him to such a dignity had he been so undeserving; nor would he have employed him in so many affairs of consequence as he appears to have done had he not been capable of executing them. In 1346, David king of Scotland, at the head of 50,000 men, invaded England, and after plundering and destroying the country wherever he came, encamped his army in Bear-park, near Stanhope, 141 the county of Durham, from which he detached parties to ravage the neighbouring country; to repel these invaders, a great number of the northern noblemen armed all their vassals, and came to join the king, who was then at Durham; from thence they marched against the Scots in four separate bodies, the first of which was commanded by lord Percy and bishop Hatfield, who on this occasion assumed the warrior, as well as several other prelates. The Scots were defeated, and their king taken prisoner. In 13 54 the bishop of Durham and lords Percy and Ralph Nevill were appointed commissioners to treat with the Scots for the ransom of their captive monarch. In 1355, when king Edward went into France at the head of a large army, he was attended by our prelate; to whom, however, It is more important to mention, that Trinity college, in Oxford, owed its foundation; it was at first called Durham college, and was originally intended for such monks of Durham as should chuse to study there, more particulars of which may be seen in Warton’s Anglia Sacra. Wood, in his Annals, relates the matter somewhat differently. At the dissolution it was granted, in 1552, to Dr. Owen, who sold it to sir Thomas Pope, by whom it was refounded^ endowed, and called Trinity college. Before Hatfield’s time, the bishops of Durham had no house in London to repair to when summoned to parliament; to remedy this, this munificent prelate built a most elegant palace in the Strand, and called it Durham-house (lately Durham-yard), and by his will bequeathed it for ever to his successors in the bishopric. This palace continued in possession of the bishops till the reformation, when it was, in the fifth of Edward VI. demised to the princess Elizabeth. In the fourth of Mary it was again granted to bishop Tunstall and his successors, and afterwards let out on a building lease, with the reservation of 200l. a year out-rent, which the bishop now receives. On this pfat of ground the Adelphi buildings are erected.
the Inner Temple, not to study law, but that his mind might be enlarged by an intercourse with those who were at once men of business and of the world, for such was
, a statesman and lawyer
in queen Elizabeth’s reign, was the third and youngest son,
of William Hatton, of Holdenby in Northamptonshire, by
Alice, daughterof Lawrence Saunders, of Horringworth,
in the same county. He was entered a gentleman commoner of St. Mary Hall, Oxford, but removed, without
taking a degree, to the society of the Inner Temple, not
to study law, but that his mind might be enlarged by an
intercourse with those who were at once men of business
and of the world, for such was the character of the lawyers
of that day. He came on one occasion to the court at a
masque, where queen Elizabeth was struck by the elegance
of his person, and his graceful dancing. It is not improbable also that his conversation corresponded with his outward appearance. He was from this time, however, in the
way to preferment; from one of the queen’s pensioners he
became successively a gentleman of the privy chamber,
captain of the guard, vice-chamberlain, and privy-counsellor, and by these unusual gradations rose to the office
of lord chancellor in 1587, when he was likewise elected a
knight of the garter. His insufficiency is said at first to
have created strong prejudices among the lawyers against
him, founded, perhaps, on some degree of envy at his
sudden advancement without the accustomed studies; but
his good natural capacity supplied the place of experience
and study; and his decisions were not found deficient
either in point of equity or judgment. In all matters of
great moment he is said to have consulted Dr. Swale, a
civilian. “His station,
” says one of his biographers, “was
great, his dispatches were quick and weighty, his orders
many, yet all consistent: being very seldom reversed ijii
thartcery, and his advice opposed more seldom in council.
He was so just, that his sentence was a law to the subject,
and so wise, that his opinion was an oracle to the queen.
”
When, in 1586, queen Elizabeth sent a new deputation to
queen Mary of Scotland, informing her that the plea of
that unhappy princess, either from her royal dignity, or
from her imprisonment, could not be admitted, sir Christopher Hatton was one of the number, along with Burleigh, and Bromley the chancellor; and it was by Hatton’s
advice chiefly, that Mary was persuaded to answer before
the court, and thereby give an appearance of legal procedure to the trial.
, an English poet who flourished about the end of the fifteenth century, was a native
, an English poet who flourished about the end of the fifteenth century, was a native of Suffolk, and educated at Oxford. He travelled afterwards in England, Scotland, France, and Italy, and became a complete master of French and Italian poetry. On his return, his acquired politeness and knowledge procured him an establishment in the household of Henry VII. who was struck with the liveliness of his conversation, and admired the readiness with which he could repeat most of the old English poets, especially Lydgate: his knowledge also of the French tongue might be a recommendation to that monarch, who was fond of studying the best French books then in vogue.
affectionate esteem. In May 1759, he married an amiable woman, by whom he had a numerous family, and who survives to lament his loss.
, an English physician, and founder of the Humane Society, was born at Islington, Nov. 28,1736; and received the early part of his education in his native village, and completed it in St. Paul’s school. He was afterwards placed with Mr. Carsan, an ingenious medical practitioner near Vauxhall; and, on the expiration of his apprenticeship, was for a short time an assistant to Mr. Dicks, in the Strand, whom he succeeded in business; and, by his application, and unwearied attention to his patients, acquired a considerable degree of reputation and affectionate esteem. In May 1759, he married an amiable woman, by whom he had a numerous family, and who survives to lament his loss.
ty of resuscitation was denied. He ascertained its practicability by advertising rewards to persons, who, between Westminster and London bridges, should, within a certain
In 1773 he became deservedly popular, from his incessant zeal in calling the attention of the public to the resuscitation of persons apparently dead, principally by drowning. In this laudable attempt he encountered much opposition, and some ridicule. The practicability of resuscitation was denied. He ascertained its practicability by advertising rewards to persons, who, between Westminster and London bridges, should, within a certain time after the accident, rescue drowned persons from the water, and bring them ashore to places appointed for their reception, where means might be used for their recovery, and give immediate notice to him. The public mind being thus awakened to the subject, greater exertions were made by individuals than had ever before been known; and many lives were saved by himself and other medical men, which would otherwise have certainly been lost; and Mr. Hawes, at his own expence, paid the rewards in these cases for twelve months, which amounted to a considerable sum. His excellent friend, Dr. Cogan (then somewhat known to the public, and since much better known, by several valuable publications), who had long turned his thoughts to this subject, remonstrated with him on the injury which his private fortune would sustain from a perseverancein these expences and he at last consented to share them with the public. Dr. Coganancl he agreed to join their strength; and each of them bringing forward fifteen friends to a meeting at the Chapter coftee-house in 1774, the Humane Society was instantly formed. From this period the weight and organization of the infant institution devolved in great measure on Mr. Hawes, whose undeviating labours have, it is hoped, established it for ever; and without which, there would very probably not have been at this time a similar establishment in Europe, America, or India; where Humane societies have now multiplied with every great stream that fructifies the soil of those different regions.
pecuniary and his professional assistance to distress; and his name ought to be recorded among those who add to the character of the nation, by the establishment of
The Royal Humane Society is a shining and an eminent proof of his philanthropy; an institution which has been found highly useful, and to establish which he employed many years of his life. The moment in which one of the regular anniversaries of the society were at an end, he began to meditate plans for the success of the ensuing year. The nomination of succeeding stewards, the augmentation of the list of regular subscribers, and the obtaining of churches and preachers for the benefit of his favourite institution, were never out of his sight; and so much indeed did the Humane Society engross his attention, that his own immediate interests appeared to him to be subordinate considerations. He was always ready to afford both his pecuniary and his professional assistance to distress; and his name ought to be recorded among those who add to the character of the nation, by the establishment of institutions founded on benevolent principles.
e “Chaise Percee,” from the French; “Epistle to the King of Prussia;” “Lines to the Rev. Mr. Layng” ( who was at this time a writer in the Magazine), and to the celebrated
, an elegant and ingenious
English writer, was born either in 1715, or 1719, in London, and was, as some report, brought up to the trade of a
watchmaker. Sir John Hawkins, however, informs us that
he was, when very young, a hired clerk to one Harwood,
an attorney in Grocers’-alley in the Poultry. His parents
were probably dissenters, as he was a member of the celebrated Mr. Bradbury’s meeting, from which, it is said, he
was expelled for some irregularities. It does not appear
that he followed any profession, but devoted himself to
study and literary employment. So early as 1744 he succeeded Dr. Johnson in compiling the parliamentary debates for the Gentleman’s Magazine, to which he afterwards contributed many of his earlier productions in verse.
In 1746, he wrote in that publication, under the' name of
Greville, the “Devil Painter, a tale;
” the “Chaise Percee,
”
from the French; “Epistle to the King of Prussia;
”
“Lines to the Rev. Mr. Layng
” (who was at this time a writer in the Magazine), and to the celebrated Warburton
“On a series of theological inquiries
” “A Thought from
Marcus Antoninus
” “The Smart.
” In- The Accident
” “Ants’ Philosophy
” “Death of
Arachne;
” “Chamontand Honorius
” “Origin of Doubt;
”
“Life,
” an ode “Lines to Hope
” “Winter,
” an ode“”The Experiment,“a tale. In 1748,
” The Midsummer
Wish“” Solitude“” The two Doves,“a fable
” Autumn“in 1749,
” Poverty insulted“”Region allotted
to Old Maids;“” The Nymph at her Toilet;“” God is
Love;“” Cloe’s Soliloquy." Some of these are signed
H. Greville. Whether he wrote any prose compositions is
doubtful. Mr. Duncombe, on whose authority the above
list is given, says nothing of prose.
d after the publication of the Adventurer which gave a new turn to his ambition. Arohbishop Herring, who had read his essays with much delight, and had satisfied himself
In 1752-3-4, he was concerned with Drs. Johnson, Bathurst, and Warton, in the Adventurer, and from the
merit of his papers acquired much reputation and many
friends. At this time, his wife kept a school for the
education of young ladies, at Bromley in Kent; and his ambition was to demonstrate by his writings how well qualified
he was to superintend a seminary of that kind. But an
incident happened after the publication of the Adventurer
which gave a new turn to his ambition. Arohbishop Herring, who had read his essays with much delight, and had
satisfied himself that the character of the author would
fully justify the honour intended, conferred on him the
degree of doctor of civil law, with which he was so elated,
as to imagine that it opened a way for the profession of a
civilian, and, having prepared himself by study, made an
effort to be admitted a pleader in the ecclesiastical courts,
but met with such opposition as obliged him to desist.
After this disappointment, he devoted his attention again
to the concerns of his school, which was much encouraged,
and became a source of considerable emolument. This
degree, however, and the consequence he began to acquire in the world, alienated him from son*e of the most
valuable of his early friends. Although he had until this
time, lived in habits of intimacy with Dr. Johnson, he
appears to have withdrawn from him; and it is singular,
that in all Mr. Boswell’s narrative of that eminent man’s
life, there is not one instance of a meeting between Johnson and Hawkesworth. This seems in some degree to confirm sir John Hawkins’s account, which states that “his
success wrought no good effects upon his mind and conduct:
” Dr. Johnson made the same remark, and with a
keen resentment of his behaviour; and sir John thinks “he
might use the same language to Hawkesworth himself, and
also reproach him with the acceptance of an academical
honour to which he could have no pretensions, and which
Johnson, conceiving to be irregular, as many do, held in
great contempt;
” thus much is certain, that soon after the
attainment of it the intimacy between them ceased.
respecting Swift, and by the indefatigable researches of his more recent editor, Mr. Nichols, a man who cannot be praised too highly for having enlarged the resources
In 1765 he published dean Swift’s works, with explanatory notes, and a life written upon a plan long before laid
down by Dr. Johnson; and here it is worthy of remark,
that whatever coolness may at one time have subsisted between them, all traces of animosity had been effaced from
the mind of Dr. Johnson, when he characterized Hawkesworth as a man “capable of dignifying his narration with
so much elegance of language and force of sentiment.
”
To this edition, the critics of the day discovered many objections, which have, however, been since removed by
more accurate information respecting Swift, and by the
indefatigable researches of his more recent editor, Mr.
Nichols, a man who cannot be praised too highly for having
enlarged the resources of literary history.
e plan of the Magazine was improved by a Review of New Publications. Mr. Owen Ruffhead was the first who filled this department, and continued to do so about two years,
In 1766, Dr. Hawkesworth was the editor of three additional volumes of Swift’s Letters, with notes and illustrations. In this publication he discovers an uncommon
warmth against infidel publications, and speaks of Bolingbroke and his editor Mallet with the utmost detestation: that
4 in this he was sincere, will appear from the following proof.
We have already mentioned, that in 1744 he succeeded
Dr. Johnson as the writer or compiler of the parliamentary debates in the Gentleman’s Magazine; in this office,
if it maybe so termed, he continued until 1760, when
the plan of the Magazine was improved by a Review of
New Publications. Mr. Owen Ruffhead was the first who
filled this department, and continued to do so about two
years, according to sir John Hawkins, when he was succeeded by Dr. Hawkesworth; but there must have been
an intermediate reviewer, if sir John be correct in the
time when Mr. Ruffhead ceased to write, as Dr. Hawkesworth’s first appearance as a critic 'is ascertained, upon
undoubted authority, to have been April 1765. In the
month of October of that year, there appeared in the Magazine an abstract of Voltaire’s “Philosophical Dictionary,
”
by a correspondent. Dr. Hawkesworth’s friends, to vyhom
it appears his connection with the Magazine was no secret,
were alarmed to see an elaborate account of so impious a
work; and one of them wrote to him on the subject. An
extract from his answer, now before us, and dated Nov.
8, 176:5, will perhaps fill up a chasm in his personal as well
as literary history.
publication entitled “A Journal of a Voyage round the World.” This was the production of some person who had been upon the expedition; and, although the account was
In 1768 he published an excellent translation of “Telemachus,
” in 4to. He continued to review new books in
the magazine, but without offering any publications from
his own pen that can now be traced, until 1772, when he
was invited to write an account of the late voyages to the
South Seas, a fatal undertaking, and which in its consequences deprived him of peace of mind and life itself.
When these navigators returned home, the desire of the
public to be acquainted with the new scenes and new
objects which were now brought to light, was ardently
excited, and different attempts were made to satisfy the
general curiosity. There soon appeared a publication
entitled “A Journal of a Voyage round the World.
” This
was the production of some person who had been upon the
expedition; and, although the account was dry and imperfect, it served in a certain degree to relieve the public
eagerness. The journal of Sydney Parkinson, draughtsman to sir Joseph Banks, to whom it belonged by ample
purchase, was likewise printed, from a copy surreptitiously
obtained; but an injunction from the court of chancery
for some time prevented its appearance. This work, though
dishonestly given to the world, was recommended by its
plates. But it was Dr. Hawkesworth’s account of Lieutenant Cook’s voyage which completely gratified the public
curiosity, as it was written by authority, was drawn up
from the journal of the lieutenant, and the papers of sir.
Joseph Banks; and besides the merit of the composition,
derived an extraordinary advantage from the number and
excellence of its charts and engravings, which were furnished at the expence of government. The large price
given by the bookseller for this work, and the avidity with
which it was read, displayed in the strongest light the
anxiety of the nation to be fully informed in every thing
that belonged to the late navigation and discoveries.
poetical translations and epigrams these might hurt his feelings as an author but the greater part, who arraigned his impious sentiments and indecent narratives, probably
An innumerable host of enemies now appeared in the
newspapers and magazines; some pointed out blunders in
matters of science, and some exercised their wit in poetical
translations and epigrams these might hurt his feelings
as an author but the greater part, who arraigned his impious sentiments and indecent narratives, probably rendered his sufferings as a man more acute. Against their
charges he stood defenceless; and no defence indeed
could be attempted with a reasonable expectation of success. But what, we are told, completed his chagrin, was
the notice frequently given in an infamous magazine published at that time, that “All the amorous passages and
descriptions in Dr. Hawkesworth’s Collection of Voyages
(should be) selected and illustrated with a suitable plate
”
And this, in defiance of public decency, was actually done,
and he whose fame had been raised on his labours in the
cause of piety and morals, was thus dragged into a partnership in the most detestable depravity that the human mind
can invent.
Soon after the publication of this ill-fated book, he became known to a lady who had great property and interest in the East India company; and
Soon after the publication of this ill-fated book, he became known to a lady who had great property and interest in the East India company; and through her means was chosen a director of that body, at the general election, in April 1773. The affairs of the company were at this time in a confused state, and the public mind greatly agitated by the frequent debates both in parliament and at the Indiahouse. Dr. Hawkesworth (who in the list is styled John Hawkesworth, esq.) probably attended the meetings, but took no active share: his health was indeed now declining and he expired at the house of his friend Dr. Grant, of Lime-street, Nov. 17, 1773. He was interred at Bromley, in Kent, where a monument was erected to his memory.
over him; and it must be confessed a too keen sensibility seemed to him, as indeed it ever is to all who possess it, a pleasing but unfortunate gift. Alive to every
Of his personal character the following friendly sketch
appeared in the Annual Register for 1773, and was no
doubt intended to counteract some disadvantageous reports respecting his principles, which were circulated
about the time of his death. “Nature had endowed him
with an uncommonly fine understanding, which had been
improved not only by long study, but by converse with
mankind. His fertile mind teemed with ideas> which he
delivered in so clear, and yet concise a manner, that no
one could be at a loss perfectly to comprehend his meaning,
or ever tired by hearing him speak; especially as his diction was so unaffectedly pure, and his language so simply
elegant, that the learned and unlearned attended with
equal pleasure to that unstudied flow of eloquence, which,
without seeming to look for them, always adopted those
words which were most suitable to the subject, as well as
most pleasing to his hearers. It has been objected to him,
that he suffered his passions to hold too strong a dominion
over him; and it must be confessed a too keen sensibility
seemed to him, as indeed it ever is to all who possess it,
a pleasing but unfortunate gift. Alive to every tender sentiment of friendship, his heart dilated with joy whenever
heaven put it in his power to be beneficial to those he
loved; but this feeling disposition was the means of leading
him into such frequent, though transient gusts of passion,
as were too much for his delicate constitution to bear,
without feeling the effects of them. Yet with all these
quick sensations, he was incapable of lasting resentment
or revenge; and had he never found an enemy till he had
done an injury, he would, we may venture to pronounce,
have left the world without having known one.
”
the navy, and in a few months he had nearly lost his life by a wound from an enthusiastic assassin, who mistook him for another person. He was now consulted on every
, an able naval commander, was
born at Plymouth about 1520. Being the son of a seaman, captain William Hawkins, he imbibed a love for the
profession, and when a youth made several voyages to
Spain, Portugal, and the Canaries. In the spring of 1562
he formed the design of his first famous voyage, the consequence of which was very important to his country, as
he then began that traffic in slaves, which after two centuries and a half we have seen abolished. At that time,
however, this trade was accounted honourable and useful,
and sir John bore the badge of his exploits in a crest of
arms granted him by patent, consisting of a “demi-moor
in his proper colour, bound with a cord,
” not unlike a
device which we have seen employed to excite an abhorrence of the slave-trade when its abolition was first agitated. In returning from a third expedition of this kind
he was attacked and defeated by a Spanish fleet. After
undergoing many hardships, he reached home in Jair.
1568; and it is said that his ill-success in this instance
damped his ardour for maritime enterprise. In 1573 he
was appointed treasurer of the navy, and in a few months
he had nearly lost his life by a wound from an enthusiastic
assassin, who mistook him for another person. He was
now consulted on every important occasion, and in 1588;
was appointed rear-admiral on-board the Victory, to confront the famous armada. His conduct on this occasion
obtained for him the high commendations of his illustrious
queen, the honour of knighthood, and other important commands in the navy. He died in 1595, it is said of vexation,
on account of an unsuccessful attempt on the enemies possessions in the West Indies, and in the Canaries. He was a
good mathematician, and understood every thing that related to his profession as a seaman. He possessed much
personal courage, and had a presence of mind that set
him above fear, and which enabled him frequently to deliver himself and others out of the reach of the most imminent dangers; he had great sagacity, and formed his
plans so judiciously, and executed the orders committed
to him with so much punctuality and accuracy, that he
ever obtained the applause of his superiors. He was submissive to those above him, and courteous to his inferiors,
extremely affable to his seamen, and much beloved by
them. He sat twice in parliament as burgess for Plymouth, and once for some other borough. He erected
an hospital at Chatham for the relief of disabled and diseased seamen, and is highly applauded by his contemporaries and by historians, who lived after him. His son,
sir Richard Hawkins, was brought up to a maritime life,
and in 1582, when very young, he had the command of a
vessel in an expedition under his uncle to the West Indies; he also commanded a ship in the action against the
Spanish armada, in which he was greatly distinguished.
About 1593, he sailed with three ships, his own property,
to the coast of Brazil, at the commencement of a much
longer voyage; but he was obliged to burn one of his
little squadron, another deserted their commander, so that
he was under the necessity of sailing alone through the
straits of Magellan. To satisfy the desires of his men, he
made prizes of some vessels, which drew upon him the
whole force of a Spanish squadron, to which he was compelled to yield. After a confinement of two years in Peru
and the adjacent provinces, he was sent back to Europe. He
died in 1622, as he was attending, on business, the privycouncil. He left behind him a work of considerable value,
which was printed and ready for publication it is entitled
“The Observations of sir Richard Hawkins, knight, into
the South-sea, A.D. 1593.
” From this piece, which the
author dedicated to prince Charles, afterwards king
Charles I., it appears that the issue of his voyage to the
South-seas, his long confinement, and the disasters which
naturally attended it, brought him into great distress. His
nautical observations, his description of the passage through
the straits of Magellan, and his remarks on the sea-scurvy,
and on the best methods of preserving his men in health,
were considered at that period of very great importance.
He intended to have published a second part of his observations, in which he meant to have given an account of
what happened to him and his companions during their
stay in Peru, and in Terra Firma, but which death prevented him from accomplishing.
, a recent English writer, the son of a man, who, though descended from the preceding sir John Hawkins, followed
, a recent English writer,
the son of a man, who, though descended from the preceding sir John Hawkins, followed at first the occupation of a house-carpenter, which he afterwards exchanged for the profession of a surveyor and huijder. He
had married Elizabeth, daughter of Thomas Gwatkin
of Tou nhope, co. Hereford, gentleman; and the issue of
this marriage were several children. Of these the present
object of this article was the youngest, and was born in the
city of London, on the 30th day of March, 1719. After
fcaving been sent first to one school, and afterwards to a
second, where he acquired a tolerable knowledge of Latin,
he was placed under the tuition of Mr. Hoppus, the author of a well-known and useful architectural compendium,
published in 1733, 8vo, and entitled “Proportional Architecture, or the Five Orders regulated by equal Farts.
”
Under this person he went through a regular course of architecture and perspective, in order to fit him for his
father’s profession of a surveyor, for which he was at first
intended; but his first cousin, Mr. Thomas Gwatkin, being
clerk to Mr. John Scott of Devonshire-street, Bishopsgate, an attorney and solicitor in full practice, persuaded
him *to alter his resolution, and embrace that of the law,
which he did, and was accordingly articled as a clerk to
Mr. Scott. In this situation his time was too fully employed in the actual dispatch of business, to permit him
without some extraordinary means to acquire the necessary knowledge of his profession by reading and study;
besides that, his master is said to have been more artxious
to render him a good copying-clerk, by scrupulous attention to his hand-writing, than to qualify him by instruction to conduct business. To remedy this inconvenience,
therefore, he abridged himself of his rest, and rising at
four in the morning, found opportunity of reading all the
necessary and most eminent law-writers, and the works
of our mos% celebrated authors. By these means, before the expiration of his clerkship, he had already
rendered himself a very able lawyer, and had possessed
himself of a taste for literature in general, but particularly for poetry and the polite arts; and the better to
facilitate his improvement, he from time to time furnished to “The Universal Spectator,
” “The Westminster Journal,
” The Gentleman’s Magazine,“and
other periodical publications of the time, essays and
disquisitions on several subjects. The first of these is
believed to have been an
” Essay on Swearing;“but the
exact time of its appearance, and the paper in which it
was inserted, are both equally unknown. It was, however,
re-published some years since (without his knowledge till he saw it in print) in one of the newspapers. His next
production was an
” Essay on Honesty," inserted in the
Gentleman’s Magazine for March, 1739; and which occasioned a controversy, continued through the magazines
for several succeeding months, between him and a Mr.
Calamy, a descendant of the celebrated Dr. Edmund Calamy, then a fellow-clerk with him.
Impelled by his own taste for poetry, and excited to it by his friend Foster Webb’s example, who had contributed to “The Gentleman’s Magazine” many very elegant
Impelled by his own taste for poetry, and excited to it
by his friend Foster Webb’s example, who had contributed
to “The Gentleman’s Magazine
” many very elegant
poetical compositions, he had, before this time, himself
become an occasional contributor in the same kind, as well
to that as to some other publications. The earliest of hi?
productions of this species, now known, is supposed to be
a copy of verses “To Mr. John Stanley, occasioned by
looking over some compositions of his, lately published,
”
which bears date 19th February, 1740, and was inserted in
“The Daily Advertiser
” for February 21, 1741; but,
about 1742, he proposed to Mr. Stanley the project of
publishing, in conjunction with him, six cantatas for a
Voice and instruments, the words to be furnished by himself, and the iriusic by Mr. Stanley. The proposal was
accepted, the publication was to be at their joint expence,
and for their mutual benefit; and accordingly, in 1742, six
cantatas were thus published, the five first written by Mr.
Hawkins, the sixth and last by Foster Webb; and, these
having succeeded beyond the most sanguine expectations,
a second set of six more, written wholly by himself, were
in like manner published a few months after, and succeeded equally well.
e morals, were become desirous of his acquaintance. Among these was Mr. Hare of Lhnehouse, a brewer, who being himself a musical man, and having met him at Mr. Stanley’s
As these compositions, by being frequently performed at Vauxhall, Ranelagh, and other public places, and at many private concerts, had become favourite entertainments, and established the author’s reputation as a poet, many persons, finding him also a modest well-informed young man of unexceptionable morals, were become desirous of his acquaintance. Among these was Mr. Hare of Lhnehouse, a brewer, who being himself a musical man, and having met him at Mr. Stanley’s at musical parties, gave him an invitation to his house; and, to forward him in his profession, introduced him to a friend of his, Peter Storer of Highgate, esq. This introduction became, from his own good conduct, the means of making Mr. Hawkins’s fortune, though in a way which neither he nor Mr. Hare at that time could foresee, and different from that in which it was first intended.
ning of 1753, when, on occasion of his marriage with Sidney, the youngest of Mr. Storer’s daughters, who brought him a considerable fortune, which was afterwards greatly
In the winter of this year 1749, Dr. (then Mr.) Johnson was induced to institute a club to meet every Tuesday evening at the King’s Head, in Ivy-lane, near St. Paul’s. It consisted only of nine persons, and Mr. Hawkins was invited to become one of the first members; and about this time, as it is supposed, finding his father’s house, where he had hitherto resided, too small for the dispatch of his business, now very much increasing, he, in conjunction with Dr. Munckley, a physician, with whom he had contracted ah intimacy, took a house in ClementVlane, Lombard-street. The ground-floor was occupied by him as an office, and the first floor by the doctor as his apartment. Here he continued till the beginning of 1753, when, on occasion of his marriage with Sidney, the youngest of Mr. Storer’s daughters, who brought him a considerable fortune, which was afterwards greatly increased, he took a house in Austin Friars, near Broadstreet, still continuing to follow his profession of an attorney. Having received, on the death of Peter Storer, esq. his wife’s brother, in 1759; a very large addition to her fortune, he quitted business to the present Mr. chamberlain Clark, who had a short time before completed his clerkship under him, disposed of his house in Austin Friars, and purchasing a house at Twickenham for a country, he soon afterwards bought the lease of one in Hatton-street, London, for a town-residence.
At the recommendation of the well-known Paul Whitehead, esq his neighbour in the country, who, conceiving him a fit person for a magistrate, had mentioned
At the recommendation of the well-known Paul Whitehead, esq his neighbour in the country, who, conceiving
him a fit person for a magistrate, had mentioned him as
such to the duke of Newcastle, then lord lieutenant for.
Middlesex, his name was, in 1761, inserted in the commission of the peace for that county; and having, besides
a due attention to the great work in which he was engaged,
by the proper studies, and a sedulous attendance at the
sessions, qualified himself for the office, he became an
active and useful magistrate in the countyt. Observing,
as he had frequent occasion to do in the course of his duty,
the bad state of highways, and the great defect in the laws
for amending and keeping them in repair, he set himself
to revise the former statutes, and drew an act of parliament consolidating ajl the former ones, and adding such
other regulations as were necessary. His sentiments on
this subject he published in octavo, in 1763, under the
title of “Observations on the State of Highways, and on,
the Laws for amending and keeping them in Repair,
” subjoining to them the draught of the act before mentioned,
which bill, being afterwards introduced into parliament,
passed into a law, and is that under which all the highways
in the kingdom are at this time kept repaired. Of this
persons, and that was the number of the first members; but the rule was broken through to admit one who had been a member of that in Ivy-lane, Till this admission,
Johnson, and sir Joshua (then Mr.) Reynolds, had, in,
the winter of this year 1763, projected the establishment
of a club to meet every Monday evening at the Turk’s
Head in Gerrard street, and, at Johnson’s solicitation, he,
Mr. H. became one of the first members. This club, since
known by the appellation of “The Literary Club,
” was at
first intended, like the former in Ivy-lane, to have consisted of no more than nine persons, and that was the number of the first members; but the rule was broken through
to admit one who had been a member of that in Ivy-lane,
Till this admission, Johnson and Mr. Hawkins were the
only persons that had been members of both.
ccordingly a vigorous opposition to it was commenced and supported under the conduct of Mr. Hawkins, who drew a petition against the bill, and a case of the county,
An event of considerable importance and magnitude, in 1764, engaged him to stand forth as the champion of the county of Middlesex, against a claim, then for the first time set up, and so enormous in its amount as justly to excite resistance. The city of London finding it necessary to re-build the gaol of Newgate, the expence of which, according to their own estimates, would amount to 40,Oooj. had this year applied to parliament, by a bill brought into the House of commons by their own members, in which, on a suggestion that the county prisoners, removed to Newgate for a few days previous to their trials at the Old Bailey, were as two to one to the London prisoners constantly confined there, they endeavoured to throw the burthen of two-thirds of the expence on the county, while they themselves proposed to contribute one third only. This attempt the magistrates for Middlesex thought it their duty to oppose; and accordingly a vigorous opposition to it was commenced and supported under the conduct of Mr. Hawkins, who drew a petition against the bill, and a case of the county, which was printed and distributed amongst the members of both houses of parliament. It was the subject of a day’s conversation in the House of lords; and produced such an effect in the House of commons, that the city, by their own members, moved for leave to withdraw the bill. The success of this opposition, and the abilities and spirit with which it was conducted, naturally attracted towards him the attention of his fellow-magistrates; and, a vacancy not long after happening in the office of chairman of the quarter sessions, Mr. Hawkins was, on the 19th day 4>f September, 1765, elected the successor. In the year 1771 he quitted Twickenham, and, in the summer of the next year, he, for the purpose of obtaining, by searches in the Bodleian and other libraries there, farther materials for iiis History of Music, made a journey to Oxford, carrying with him an engraver from London, to make drawings from the portraits in the music-school.
ery best judges of the science and of literary composition; and by thai of the university of Oxford, who, in consequence of its publication, made him soon after, a voluntary
After sixteen years’ labour, he, in 1776, published, in
five volumes, quarto, his “General History of the Science
and Practice of Music,
” which, in consequence of permission obtained in
the spot converted into proper legal form, by dictating, conformably to. them, a will to Mr. Hoole, who, with some other friends, had there called in upon Johnson,
When this circumstance became known to sir J. H. he represented this act to him (as it really was) as a mere nullity; and Johnson was prevailed upon, on the 27th of November, 1784, at Mr. Strahan’s, at Islington, to give him the necessary instructions, which he, sir J. on the spot converted into proper legal form, by dictating, conformably to. them, a will to Mr. Hoole, who, with some other friends, had there called in upon Johnson, and which being coinpleted, was executed by Johnson and properly attested. In the codicil, which Johnson afterwards made, sir J. assisted in the same manner, as to legal phraseology, and directing the proper mode of execution and attestation.
cumstance which would lead one to doubt the meanness of his birth as well as his profession. Persons who gave names to manors were generally of more considerable rank:
, a brave officer of the four, teenth century, has been slightly noticed by his contemporaries at home, and would not have been brought into a conspicuous point of view but for the engraved portrait of him presented to the society of antiquaries in 1775, by lord Hailes. He is said, by the concurrent testimony of our writers, to have been the son of a tanner of Sible Hedingham, in Essex, where he was born in the reign of Edward II. Mr. Morant says, the manor of Hawk wood in. that parish takes its name from sir John. But it was holden before him by Stephen Hawkwood, probably his father, a circumstance which would lead one to doubt the meanness of his birth as well as his profession. Persons who gave names to manors were generally of more considerable rank: and the manor appears to have been in the family from the time of king John.
“Les Tard Venus;” by Walsingham, “Magna Comitiva.” These were formed by persons of various nations, who, having hitherto found employment in the wars between England
Upon the conclusion of the peace between the English
and French by the treaty of Bretigni 1360, sir John, finding his estate too small to support his title and dignity,
associated himself with certain companies called, by Froissart, “Les Tard Venus;
” by Walsingham, “Magna Comitiva.
” These were formed by persons of various nations,
who, having hitherto found employment in the wars between England and France, and having held governments,
or built and fortified ho.uses in the latter kingdom which,
they were now obliged to give up, found themselves reduced to this desperate method of supporting themselves
and their soldiers by marauding and pillaging, or by en-,
gaging in the service of less states, which happened to be
at war with each other. Villani, indeed, charges Edward
III. with secretly authorizing these ravages in France,
while outwardly he affected a strict observance of the
peace. At this time, in the summer, continues this
historian, ah English tailor, named John della Guglea, that
is, John of the needle, who had distinguished himself iri
the war, began to form a company of marauders, and collected a number of English, who delighted in mischief,
and hoped to live by plunder, surprizing and pillaging
first one town, and then another. This company increased
so much that they became the terror of the whole country.
All who had not fortified places to defend them were forced
to treat with him, and furnish him with provision and money, for which he promised them his protection. The
effect of this was, that in a few months he acquired great
wealth. Having also received an accession of followers
and power, he roved from one country to another, till at
length he came to the Po. There he made all who came
in his way prisoners. The clergy he pillaged, but let the
laity go without injury. The court of Rome was greatly
alarmed at these proceedings, and made preparations to
oppose these banditti. Upon the arrival of certain Englishmen on the banks of the Po, Hawkwood resigned his command to them, and professed submission to the king of
England, to whose servants he presented a large share of
his ill-gotten wealth.
utious general retreated into the Cremonese, and when by several skirmishes he had amused the enemy, who kept within a mile of him, and thought to force his camp, he
The first appearance of Hawkwood in Italy-was in the
1*isan service in 1364; after which period he was every
where considered as a most accomplished soldier, and
fought, as different occasions presented themselves, in the
service of many of the Italian states. In 1387 we find him
engaged in a hazardous service in defence of the state of
Florence. The earl of Armagnac, the Florentine general,
having been lately defeated by Venni, the governor of the
Siannese, the victors marched to surprize Hawkwood, and
encamped within a mile and a half of him. But this cautious general retreated into the Cremonese, and when by
several skirmishes he had amused the enemy, who kept
within a mile of him, and thought to force his camp, he
sallied out and repulsed them with loss. This success
a little discouraged them. Venni is said to have sent
Hawkwood a fox in a cage, alluding to his situation; to
which Hawkwood returned for answer, “the fox knew how
to find his way out.
” This he did by retreating to the
river Oglio, placing his best horse in the rear till the
enemy had crossed the river, on whose opposite bank he
placed 400 English archers on horseback. The rear by
their assistance crossed the river and followed the rest,
who, after fording the Mincio, encamped within ten miles
of the Adige. The greatest danger remained here. The
enemy had broken down the banks of the river, and let out
its waters, swoln by the melting of the snow and mountains
to overflow the plains. Hawkwood’s troops, surprized at
midnight by the increasing floods, had no resource but immediately to mount their horses, and, leaving all their
baggage behind them, marched in the morning slowly
through the water, which came up to their horses bellies.
By evening, with great difficulty, they gained Baldo, a
town in the Paduan. Some of the weaker horses sunk
under the fatigue. Many of the foot perished with cold,
and struggling against the water; many supported themselves by laying hold on the tails of the stronger horses.
Notwithstanding every precaution, many of the cavalry
were lost as well as their horses. The pursuers, seeing
the country under water, and concluding the whole army
had perished, returned back. The historian observes, that
it was universally agreed no other general could have got
over so many difficulties and dangers, and led back his
small army out of the heart of the enemy’s country, with
no other loss than that occasioned by the floods, which no
precaution could have prevented. One of the most celebrated actions of Hawkwood’s life, says Muratori, was this
treat, performed with so much prudence and art, that
! deserves to be paralleled with the most illustrious Roman generals; having, to the disgrace of an enemy infinitely superior in number, and in spite of all obstructions
from the rivers, given them the slip, and brought off his
army safe to Castel Baldo, on the borders of the Paduan.
Sir John Hawkwood, as soon as he found himself among
his allies, employed himself in refreshing his troop and
watching the enemy’s motions.