Henry Foulis

or de Foliis second son of Sir Henry, son of Sir Dav. Foulis, (of an antient family in Scotland) Baronets, was born at Ingleby Mannour in Clievland in Yorkshire, educated in Grammar learning, and in the Presbyterian way, within the City of York, became a Communer of Qu. Coll. under the tuition of Mr. Tho. Tully, 6 June 1654, aged 16 years and thereabouts, took the degrees in Arts, that of Master being compleated in 1659, and on the 31 of Jan. the same year he was elected Fellow of Linc. Coll. Afterwards entring into holy orders, he applied himself for a time to the study of Divinity, and was admitted to the reading of the sentences in 1667. But his genie being naturally inclin’d to the study of certain parts of History, he waved his proper profession and betook himself to the writing and publishing of books of that faculty: The products of which, do evidently shew him to have been a true son of the Church of England, a hater of Popery, Presbytery and Sectarism. He was endowed with a most happy memory, understood books and the ordering of them so well, that with a little industry he might have gone beyond the great Philobiblos Jamesius. He had also in him a most generous and public spirit, a carelesness of the world and things thereof, (as most bookish men have,) a most becoming honesty in his dealings, a just observance of collegiate discipline, and a hatred to fangles, and the French fooleries of his time. He hath written and published,

The history of the wicked plots and conspiracies of our pretended Saints, the Presbyterians, &c. Lond. 1662. Oxon. 1674, both in fol. Which book, tho full of notable girds against that party, yet it hath been so pleasing to the Royalists, (who have found much wit and mirth therein) that some of them have caused it to be chained to desks in publick places, and in some country Churches, to be read by the vulgar. But as by the publishing of this book he hath much displeased the Presbyterians, of whom some ((b))((b)) Lud. Molinaeus, in Patron. bonae fidei, in cap. cui tit. est Specimen contra Durelium, p. 19. & alii. have fallen foul upon him in their Writings for so doing; so hath he more displeased another party for the writing of this book following.

The history of the Romish Treasons and Usurpations, with an account of many gross corruptions and impostures of the Church of Rome, &c. Lond. 1671 and 81. fol. Which book, had it not fallen into the hands of a knavish Bookseller, might have been extant in the life time of the author, and so consequently more compleat and exact than now it is. At its first publication I was enformed by a letter written by a noted man of that party that the Papists did look upon the said book as a simple thing—That he (the Author) fought against his own shadow, and that all sober Catholicks did disallow much of what he combats against.—That he prayed much to the Lord that he might live to see his book published, and then nunc dimittis, but it was not granted him, &c. This Mr. Foulis had laid the foundations of other books, which he intended to advance and have them published, but the day before he died he committed them to the flames, as many other notes he did, which would have been serviceable to some scholars. He ended his days, in the prime of his years, occasion’d by a generous and good natur’d intemperance, on the Vigil of the Nativity of our Saviour, in sixteen hundred sixty and nine, and was buried under the north wall,1669. at the upper end of the Chancel of S. Michaels Church, within the City of Oxon. on the 26 of Dec. being S. Steph. day. In his grave was afterwards buried William Stone, LL. Bach. sometimes Principal of New Inn, who died 22 June 1685.