Nicholas Rydley

was born of an ancient and gentile Family at Willymondswyke in Northumberland, educated in Grammatical Learning at Newcastle upon Tyne, in Academical at Cambridge, till he was Bach. of Arts. Afterwards going to Oxon, he was (b)(b) Reg. actorum Coll. Vnivers. p. 5. elected into one of Walt. Skyrlaw’s Fellowship of University Coll. 13. Apr. 1521. Which place he keeping but a little while (and therefore the Members of that House can hardly lay claim to him) he returned to Cambridge, where he became D. of D. and Master of Pembroke Hall. Afterwards he was made Chaplain to K. Ed. 6. and at length through Rochester (the temporalities of which See were (c)(c) Pat. 1. Ed. 6. p. 1. restored to him 27. Sept. 1547.) became Bishop of London 1549. He was a Person small in stature, but great in learning, and profoundly read in Divinity—quo viro (as (d)(d) Tho. Caius in Assert. Antiq. Acad. Oxon. Lond. 1574. in qu. p. 27. one who knew him saith) nihil integrius, & omnibus egregiis dotibus ornatius Anglia nostra multis hisce retro saeculis habuit, &c. Among several things that he wrot, were these.

Treatise concerning images, not to be set up, nor worshipped, in Churches.—Written in the time of K. Ed. 6.

Brief declaration of the Lords Supper—Printed 1555. and 1586. oct. Written by him while he was a Prisoner in Oxon. It was translated into Lat. by Will. Whittyngham, bearing this title: Assertio de coena Dominica. Genev. 1556. Answered by another Book entit. Confutatio Catholica Nich. Rydley de Eucharistia. Par. 1556. qu. Written by Alban Langdale D. D. of St. John’s College in Cambridge.

Certain godly and comfortable conferences between him and Mr. Hugh Latymer, during the time of their imprisonment. Lond. 1555. 56. and 74 in oct.

A friendly farewell, written during his imprisonment at Oxford, unto all his true Lovers, a little before his death. Lond. 1559. oct.

A piteous lamentation of the miserable state of the Church of England, in the time of the late revolt from the Gospel. Lond. in oct.

A comparison between the comfortable Doctrine of the Gospel and the traditions of Popish Religion.—Print. with the former.

An account of a disputation at Oxford, an. 1554 Oxon. 1688. qu. Written in Latin, and published from the Original MS: by Gilb. Ironside D. D. Warden of Wadham Col. and then Vicehanc. of the Univ. of Oxon.

Treatise of the blessed Sacrament—The beginning of which is Many things confound the real memory, &c. published with the former, by the aforesaid Person, from an original MS. to which he added, A Letter written by Mr. Jo. Bradford the Martyr, never before Printed.

Letter of reconciliation written to Bishop Hooper. Lond. 1689. qu. published by Sam. Johnson, Author of the Short account of the life of Julian the Apostate. Lond. 1682. oct. He the said Dr. Rydley had a hand also in the compiling of the Common Prayer-Book, now in use among us, has also disputations, arguings, communications, and conferences about matters of Religion, in the Book of Acts and Monuments of the Church, written by John Fox. In which Book under the Years 1554. and 55. you may see a full account of his sufferings, and afterwards of his burning near to Balliol College in Oxon. 1555 on the 16. of Oct in Fifteen hundred fifty and five, which was the second and third Years of K. Philip and Qu. Mary.