Arthur Pits

, or Pitsius as he writes himself, a younger Son of Arthur Pits Bach. of Law, sometimes Fellow of Alls. coll. afterwards Registrary of the Diocess and Achdeaconry of Oxford, and Impropriator of Eifley near to, and in the County of Oxon. was born at Eifley, educated for a time either in Alls. or Brasnose coll. or in both successively, having been a Chorister of the first as it it seems, but before he took a degree he left the University, Country, and Relations, went to Doway, spent some time in the English coll. there, return’d into his Country, was taken and imprison’d: but at length being released and ship’d with other Priests and Jesuits at Tower-Wharf, at the Queens charge in Febr. 1584. was set on shoar in Normandy. Whereupon retiring to Doway passed a course in Divinity, became Doctor of that faculty, and at length was made Chancellour to the Cardinal of Loraine, being then a person much in esteem for his great knowledge in the supream faculty. He hath written,

In quatuor Jesu Christi Evangelia & Acta Apostolorum commentarius. Duac. 1636. in a thick quarto. Which being all that he hath written, as I suppose, was published after his death by the English Benedictines at Doway, as one of them hath told me. At length Doctor Pits coming into England for health sake, left his preferment beyond the Seas, and setled in the house of a R. Catholick, named Stoner of Blounts Court near to Henley in Oxfordshire, a younger family of those of Stomer near to Watlington: 1634 where dying about sixteen hundred thirty and four, was buried in the Church of Rotherfield Pipard, commonly called Pepper near to Henley before mention’d, as I have been informed by an antient Catholick Gentlewoman, who was born within a mile of, and well acquainted with, him: yet in the register of that Church his own name appears not. His Father Art. Pits died at Eifley in 1579. and was buried on the north side of the Chancel there, leaving a fair estate behind him to be enjoyed by four Sons then living, viz. Robert, Thomas, Arthur and Philip.